The U.S. government is taking action to stop ‘cow flu.’ Is it too little, too late?

The U.S. government announced new measures yesterday to slow the spread of the H5N1 influenza virus among cattle, following the revelation that milk sold commercially in 10 states contained fragments of the virus. An order issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) restricts the movement of dairy cattle between states and mandates the reporting of infected cows. The order comes as new genetic evidence suggests cattle infections with the virus, first announced on 25 March, may have started as early as the fall of 2023, and that the virus has likely circulated far beyond the 33 farms in eight states where it has been detected. Some scientists and veterinarians say the virus may already be so widespread that the order won’t have much of an effect. “Limiting interstate transmission is just like limiting air travel during times of COVID long after viruses were established in a given place,” says evolutionary biologist Mike Worobey of the University of Arizona. “It’s a drop in the bucket.” Until now the federal government had largely left the response to the outbreak to states, farms, and milk producers. About 20 states have already barred the importation of dairy cows from outside their borders. Scientists have decried the lack of action at the federal level and the dearth of details about the spread of the virus, a variant of a clade known as 2.3.4.4b that has ravaged wild birds and poultry populations globally for 2 years. They wo...
Source: ScienceNOW - Category: Science Source Type: news