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Earlier this month, Laurie Stanek shovels hay for her herd of young black-and-white Holstein cows, just a few of about 200 cows on her family dairy farm. Located in northern Michigan’s Antrim County, she has been working there for nearly 50 years now.
Farm work starts early.
“We come out here at 5 a.m. every morning to feed the babies,” she said.
But now that avian influenza, or bird flu, has spread to cattle, Michigan farmers have some extra chores to do.
new State requirements include limiting the number of visitors and enhancing disinfection practices. Things like cleaning boots and cars. Michigan has also banned the display of poultry or dairy cattle at events such as fairs. U.S. Department of Agriculture Cows traveling across state lines must have a negative test result. To bird flu.
“We know the threat exists and we will not allow anyone in,” Stanek said, citing state requirements to limit visitors.
Health authorities are emphasizing the outbreak of avian influenza in dairy cattle across the country. Biosecurity — That is, efforts to prevent the introduction and spread of disease.
Researchers continue to work to understand how climate change affects the spread of avian flu. But as Grist previously reported, H5N1 has spread outside of its typical seasons as migration patterns change. And studies have shown that climate change, in general, can combine with many other factors to increase the likelihood of cross-species viral transmission. This is called a ‘virus leak’.
“We are in a place where the threat of new pathogens is greater than ever before. Therefore, the need for biosecurity is more important than ever,” said Suresh Kuchipudi, professor and chair of the Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health.
Some, like Kuchipudi, say expanding biosecurity operations could help make the agricultural sector more resilient to climate change. But this is only part of the complex process of responding to the spread of a virus like avian flu.
This strain of avian influenza is called H5N1. Highly pathogenic, which means it is fatal to poultry. First discovered in the 1990s, There was a sharp increase Over the past few years, it has spread to birds and mammals around the world.
Thoreau’s spread is new.
“I’m a virologist by training, and I have to admit with all my other virologist friends, none of us saw this coming,” said Kim Dodd, director of the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at Michigan State University. Animals such as foxes can contract the flu by eating infected carcasses. But cows don’t eat meat.
“We didn’t expect to find [highly pathogenic] We found that avian influenza amplifies well in dairy cows and that there is too much virus in the milk,” Dodd said. “And that’s a big part of trying to understand what we need to do to help control the outbreak.”
The first confirmed case in cattle was reported in Texas earlier this year, and 11 additional states have confirmed avian flu cases in dairy cattle.
Michigan reported Most cases in Korea. As of Wednesday, the state had confirmed 25 clusters of flu cases. also has 2 out of 3 confirmed cases of disease in humans — The other was a dairy farm worker in Texas.
Last May, government officials declare They call the flu a “special emergency.” Threat It affects animal health, human health, trade and the economy.
Officials and researchers said Michigan’s high case count is an example of robust testing in response to the outbreak. Overall, the response to the avian influenza outbreak in cattle has been somewhat passive. unstable. The state government pushed back Public health experts oppose federal efforts to address the virus Concerns raised It outlined a lack of testing and warned that the actual reach was likely greater than official calculations.
Those involved in Michigan’s response said Part of the response is collaboration with farmers. “It takes both aspects,” Dodd said. “We need people to see and people to test, but we also need people who own animals to open their doors and allow testing.”
H5N1 causes reduced milk production in dairy cows, among other symptoms. This could devastate the poultry industry. from then detected For the US commercial herd in 2022, this resulted in: dead We have nearly 100 million farmed birds.
Why can’t we just quit cows?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has maintained that the risk to the public is relatively low. but dairy farm worker More now exposure risk I contracted bird flu while working with cattle. The virus appears to spread primarily through milk.
“We want to continue to protect human health by limiting the further spread of the virus and ensure that there are not too many viruses in the environment that could potentially mutate and affect humans. In a different way,” said Tim Boring, director of the state Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
One of the ways the state is doing this is by urging farms to follow biosecurity measures. These are very low-level skills, such as wearing protective gear and disinfecting equipment. How effective it is depends on compliance.
“I am sure they are serious. I’m sure they’re not joking. It is their livelihood and their investment,” said Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt, professor of veterinary medicine at the University of Montreal. But “if they’re not sharing data, if they’re not doing proper monitoring to know who’s where and what they’re doing, then we already have a big problem.”
As animals interact with each other in new environments, climate change coincides with the spread of certain diseases. Biosecurity may play a role in prevention or response, but it is unlikely to prevent the next pandemic, Vaillancourt said. He argues that we really need to look at the disease from a local perspective.
“How can we minimize spread between sites?” he said “That requires data sharing.”
This is where industries and institutions often fall short. Farms where outbreaks occur could face stigma and lose money, and farm workers who test positive could deal with health and economic problems. Worker advocacy groups also spoke out. concern Those tests don’t reach people on the front lines.
Some public health experts say the surge in avian flu in cattle is an opportunity to strengthen the response and protect animal and human life in the process.
“in fact, [governments] “There are avian flu viruses that are less tolerant than this, so we need to learn how to deal with them correctly when the risk is lower,” said Amesh Adalja, a scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
The agricultural industry must be part of the response to pandemics driven by climate change. Humans often interact with animals in agricultural settings. Preventing and responding to viruses also requires building trust with farmers.
“This is going to be part of how we think about building resilience – having an integrated approach,” Adalja said.
This approach is known as: One HealthMany people involved in public health have pointed to it as a framework that acknowledges the connections between people, animals and the environment and seeks to address problems such as disease in a holistic way.
Wildlife surveillance systems and vaccination programs can help track and control viruses such as avian flu.
As climate change disrupts ecosystems, new outbreaks of avian flu spread to mammals.
And the dairy industry could learn something from those who handle pigs, Vaillancourt said. The effort Morrison Pig Health Monitoring Project Farmers and industry have been involved in tracking diseases in pigs.
He said the big picture is that everyone involved with livestock needs to think about preventing the spread of disease. Let’s say a farmer needs to move some cows.
“How do I move it?” he said “What roads will you use to minimize site contamination along the way? How do we clean and disinfect our vehicles when moving from one site to another?”
As the virus spread, several efforts were pushed forward. federal government presentation The USDA said it would spend $824 million in emergency funding to respond. Released This is a voluntary pilot program to test milk on a large scale.
And Michigan agriculture officials say more safety measures on farms could become a bigger part of the state’s approach to climate change.
“I think improving biosecurity in new ways not previously considered will be a component of increasingly strong climate resilience measures,” said Boring, director of the state Department of Agriculture. “So we’re seeing a little bit of that in real time with our response to H5N1 here in the state.”
Back in County Antrim, Laurie Stanek said dealing with animal diseases was just part of running a farm. They’re paying attention to the new rules and doing what they’ve always done.
“A lot of it is just good husbandry techniques and common sense,” she said. “Keeping the animals healthy ensures that they also get healthy products.”
She said it depends on their livelihood.
