Bird flu virus found in retail sample of raw milk sold in Santa Clara County

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. (KTVU) - Bird flu virus was detected in a retail sample of raw milk from the Raw Farm dairy of Fresno County that was then sold in Santa Clara County, state health officials said Sunday.

No illnesses associated with this lot of cream top raw milk have been reported, the California Department of Public Health said.

The County of Santa Clara Public Health Department said health officials identified H5N1 in raw milk samples from Raw Farms LLC, purchased at a local retail outlet on Nov. 21. The store the raw milk was sold at was not disclosed. 

The company has voluntarily recalled the product. Out of an abundance of caution, and due to the ongoing spread of bird flu, consumers should not consume any of the affected raw milk, the department said in a press release. Consumers should immediately return any remaining product to the store where it was purchased.

The milk has lot code 20241109 with a Best By date of 11/27/2024 on the package, the department said.

Bird flu symptoms include cough, sore throat, diarrhea, vomiting, headaches, fever and other cold- and flu-like unpleasantness.

For more information on the national response to bird flu, people can visit https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/.

KTVU contributed to this report.