Bird flu warnings are ignored on many dairy farms

TIPTON, California. It was an early fall morning and hundreds of cows — streaked black and white Holsteins and cappuccino-colored Jerseys — were milling about a San Joaquin Valley dairy farm in the nation's largest milk-producing state.

Nearby, workers stretched some of the animals in a carousel in the farm's milking parlor and quickly attached pumping equipment. The machines rumbled and whirred as the cows were carried on a bulldozer to the exit area, taken out of the milk pipes and taken to the road.

The incident seemed unlikely – except for the fact that five days earlier, the H5N1 bird flu virus that devastated California dairy herds three months ago, had been confirmed on the farm. Although a number of cattle were sick, and their owner expected that number to increase, none of the farm workers were wearing protective equipment and vehicles from outside the site were driving in and out with unprecedented concern.

The farm was one of more than 400 California operations confirmed to be affected by H5N1, but interviews with Central Valley dairy farmers, dairy workers and a recent study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest the virus may be. is much more common in the population than the CDC's official numbers suggest. Although authorities have been urging dairy farms and workers to take measures to prevent the spread of disease, there is little evidence that their warnings are being heeded.

No expert will say whether the H5N1 bird flu will be the next global pandemic, and government health officials say the virus poses little risk to the public. However, some experts warn that almost all the conditions necessary for the virus to have a threatening mutation are now in place on many dairy farms: Lax testing protocols; unprotected contact between humans and animals; general failure to take the threat seriously enough; and the approach of human flu season.

Since the H5N1 (2.3.4.4b) virus first appeared in North America in late 2021, it has infected more than 600 dairy herds in 15 states, hundreds of millions of wild and domestic birds, and at least 48 mammals. species – such as dolphins, seals, cats and dogs.

“We are in a virus soup. I mean, there's a virus all around us right now,” said Dr. Marcela Uhart, a wildlife doctor who works at UC Davis' One Health Institute, based in Argentina, speaking at a conference held by the O'Neill Institute at Georgetown Law recently. . (11/15) “This virus is circulating left and right in mammals and birds, as we can see, some of them do not show any symptoms of the disease.”

In October, The Times visited Tipton, a dairy town in Tulare County, and spoke with several residents, including Elodia Ibañez, who said the number of reported cases in California — which in mid-October was 16, and now stands at 23 — is staggering. . is very low. She said her husband, a dairy worker, told her that two of his colleagues had red, swollen eyes, but they continued to work despite showing signs of bird flu.

“It is a disease they know that cows have, many cows have died. But the manager cared about the cows, not the workers,” Ibañez told The Times. “They never told them that they should go to the doctor for a check-up.”

People often continue to work because they feel there is nothing else they can do, she said. “Even though they say there are laws that protect them, there are still many people who are afraid… They are afraid of losing their jobs.”

Anthony, also a resident of Tipton, said he would speak, but did not want to give his last name; he has family members who work in the dairy industry, and he fears that he will affect their work by speaking out.

“My father and uncle told me that there are a number of milk shops that have had disease outbreaks,” said Anthony. He said his father and uncle take precautions, but many workers don't report being sick because they don't want to get into trouble.

“Some of them are not here officially. They rely on that job, they don't want to jeopardize that,” he said.

In early November, the CDC published a study that looked at H5N1 antibodies in the blood of dairy workers in Michigan and Colorado. This organization took blood from 115 people; eight – or 7% – had antibodies. Only three dairy workers in those two states — one in Colorado, two in Michigan — have tested positive for the disease.

It is this blindness – and ignorance – of the virus's reach that has infectious diseases and health professionals involved.

And as human flu season approaches, and infected wild birds continue their southern migration down North American airplanes – stopping to rest in ponds, lakes, farms and backyards across the United States – experts worry more and more about a large “spillover”. event.

If a virus – whether it's bird flu, human flu virus or coronavirus – is given the chance to spread within and between organisms, the virus will evolve, adapt and evolve. Sometimes these changes have little effect on its ability to transmit between organisms or cause serious diseases. But sometimes they do.

Then there's the concern that the bird flu virus will find another circulating flu virus – human, swine or other bird flu – and swap genes with it, potentially creating a new “super flu” that can easily spread between people whose hosts are seriously ill, or who carry the vaccine. used to treat infected patients.

In the 1970s, when understanding of influenza viruses was developing, Robert Webster, a researcher at St. Jude's in Memphis, Tenn., is conducting research at the US Department of Agriculture's Plum Island Research Station, off Long Beach. The island.

He injected the human flu virus – H3N2 – into one pig, the swine flu virus – H1N1 – into the other. Then he put two pigs in the pen with four others. Seven days later, he and his team found different viruses – H3N1 and H1N2 – in one of the pigs.

The bacteria had changed genes and created a new combination.

Jersey cows drink water at sunrise.

(Tomas Ovalle / For The Times)

The work of Webster and others led to the discovery that many severe influenza epidemics were the result of this type of reactivation. For example, the 1918 flu outbreak – which killed an estimated 50 million people worldwide – is believed to have been a hybrid version of bird and human flu.

It happened again in 2009, when human and swine flu switched genes, releasing the H1N1 swine flu that killed about 500,000 people.

There is already evidence that this virus is changing genes. Birds currently traveling south from the Arctic carry a variant of H5N1 – called D1.1 or D1.2 – that has a change in the uptake of several parts of the flu virus.

It's this kind of difficulty that has landed a Canadian teenager in critical condition at a British Columbia hospital. Health authorities do not know where or how the baby got it, except to note that it did not come from cows or chickens. And they don't yet know if it has acquired the ability to travel easily between humans – although early and early tests suggest it may have acquired new and frightening features, including changes that could make it easier to infect people.

However, as of this time, there is no evidence that the H5N1 bird flu circulating among dairy cows and workers – known as B3.13 – has acquired the ability to travel effectively from person to person, or cause serious illness. But with human flu season approaching — and the possibility that customers are selling contaminated raw milk — the possibilities are growing.

In an effort to spread awareness among dairy farms and encourage workers to get tested and reduce the chances of the virus getting mutations that could spread and kill people, state health, agriculture and worker safety experts held a workshop in Tulare. Expo Center in late October, with help from the dairy trade group, Western United Dairies.

About 20 dairy workers and farmers sat in on the two-hour session, which included presentations in English and Spanish from various government agencies and dozens of slides.

Dr. Erica Pan, California State Epidemiologist, told the audience that her organization recommends personal protective equipment, and urged people to protect their eyes. He also told the audience to stay up-to-date on the vaccines they recommend and to avoid consuming raw milk and raw beef, “especially ground beef.”

Eric Berg, Deputy Chief of Health and Research and Standards at CalOSHA said quarantine farms need to establish restricted areas for infected animals. He said workers should wear protective clothing, including coveralls, gloves and “most importantly … eye protection and respirators indoors.”

Eduardo Mondragon sat on the edge of the conference room, nodding his head as experts discussed safety measures for dairy workers. As the manager of many dairy farms, Mondragon had watched bird flu sweep through the farms he oversaw in Tulare County and the cows he and his colleagues were tasked with caring for as they fell ill.

Milk production dropped as hundreds of cows fell ill and about a dozen died, he said, but the dairy owner provided protective equipment, including gloves and goggles, that workers used to wear every day.

At the dairy farm, Mondragon said they worked quickly when the cows started getting sick in the summer to try to stop the spread. His boss sent him to a meeting in Tulare to learn more about bird flu.

“We didn't stop for weeks,” he said, with many workers working weekend shifts to take care of the cows. “We managed the flu well, and because of that we didn't lose much. Milk production yes, but animals, no.”

Mondragon knows that when his dairy farm saw the worst bird flu in the summer, none of the workers reported getting sick. He said friends in the industry in other countries have not been affected like the dairies in Tulare County.

After the seminar, Mondragon loaded his white truck with boxes of N95 masks, face shields and goggles to return to his workplace to share with other workers.