Four years after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, dairy cattle herds across the U.S. are facing a pandemic of their own. Even after the lesson provided by the COVID-19 pandemic in disease preparedness and surveillance, the CDC is struggling to track the virus’ spread due to the lack of trust between dairy farmers and governmental agencies. Thus, the area between appropriate bio-surveillance and a farmer’s rights has been a difficult place to land. In an attempt to more effectively aim for this intersection, the Biden administration has released its plan to implement several farmer incentives, encouraging cooperation between the two perspectives.

H5N1, otherwise known as avian influenza, was found in a Texas dairy cattle herd on March 25th of this year. Because this virus has transferred species, this can now be referred to as bovine influenza. According to the CDC, this is the first time that this virus has been found in cattle. Since then, the USDA reports that it has spread to dairy herds across twelve different states, the most recent being Minnesota on July 2. In total, 139 dairy herds are confirmed to have been impacted by the avian influenza virus across the U.S. In other words, at least 139 dairy farmers have been impacted by the spread of avian influenza among their cattle. However, it is unclear how many farmers are actually reporting the sickness among their herds. Rick Naerebout, CEO of the Idaho Dairymen’s Association, asserted that, “[n]ationwide, the vast majority of cases are not reported.” Concerned that a positive test would draw unwanted regulatory attention, economic losses, or a reputational hit, farmers are reluctant to test their herd at all. Positive test or not, the virus has the potential to heavily impact farmers. Dairy cattle infected with the virus have been observed to produce less milk. In addition, the milk that farmers can draw from infected cows contains the virus. If identified, this milk will likely need to be disposed of, resulting in further milk losses for the farmer. A study funded by the National Institute of Health demonstrated that mammals can get infected with the virus by drinking infected milk. Although the same study showed pasteurization effective in making even infected milk safe to consume, select states still allow the sale of raw milk (usually with some restrictions). It is worth noting that there are states that allow the retail sale of raw milk and have had herds infected with the virus, such as New Mexico.

Amidst these food safety concerns, safe control and tracking of the virus is reliant on CDC and farmer collaboration. Surveillance of the virus is dependent on how much information farmers are willing to share–which in itself is completely dependent on the farmers’ trust or distrust of the government agencies trying to surveille them. Former CDC director, Tom Frieden, noted how the COVID-19 pandemic increased skepticism of public health agencies, especially in rural areas. When addressing the major concerns for farmers when it comes to the USDA and CDC handling of things, Frieden emphasized “the economic risks to farmers, many of whom are on the edge economically.” For farmers, likely already skeptical of the CDC, drawing potentially negative regulatory attention to their farms by inviting the CDC to investigate them is not worth the risk. As a result, there has been a lack of farmers interested in participating in CDC research regarding the virus. The Texas Department of State Health Services reported no dairy farms interested in partaking in CDC epidemiological field studies. In addition, public identification as a result of the surveys suggested by the CDC is another concern amongst farmers. As a positive test would draw USDA and CDC attention, additional quarantining protocol, and possible federal official involvement, farmers are potentially putting themselves at risk both reputationally and economically by testing for the virus.

While farms may be hesitant to work with the CDC, there does seem to be a greater willingness to work with local authorities. The Idaho Dairymen’s Association, for example, may take part in a CDC survey concerning the virus, provided it is shortened and performed by a local health department outside of the farmer’s property. Dr. Justin Smith, the Kansas animal health commissioner, describes that the CDC response team presence on a farmer’s property to be very intimidating to dairy farmworkers. Local, more familiar, public health offices may serve as a vessel to gain the data the CDC needs while easing the concerns of farmers.

Despite these challenges and possible compromises, the Biden administration has created a program in hopes of providing farms with an incentive to cooperate with governmental efforts to limit the spread of H5N1. The program is mainly directed towards providing farmers with indemnity. Farms could receive a maximum of $28,000 for testing sick cows and taking steps to protect their farmworkers. In addition, the costs of milk lost from farms impacted by the virus may also be compensated. In order to address the reluctance of farmers to join government studies regarding the virus, such as previously noted in Texas, farmers will be compensated. In addition, farms with avian influenza who participate in a federal study, and provide personal protective gear to their employees, will receive $2,000 a month. Along with these measures, the CDC is prepared to spend $93,000,000 to gain information on the virus and its spread. It is clear that under the Biden administration, efforts to surveille the virus are being taken very seriously, likely an agenda prioritized following the COVID-19 pandemic. While these measures are particularly aimed at making farms and government agencies more easily interact, there are also measures aimed at rewarding farmers for taking precautionary measures. In addition to the payment previously stated that, in part, requires protective equipment be given to employees, there is a $2000 monthly payment for safely eliminating milk containing the virus.

These efforts for cooperation are ultimately working towards the end goal of limiting the virus infection in humans. Although the virus has not been observed to jump between humans, humans can still be infected by cattle (through both raw milk and direct contact), giving the virus a chance to mutate and develop the ability to transfer between humans. Thus, minimizing the chance of this is a priority. So far, the CDC has described cases observed in humans during this outbreak as “mild” and of low risk to the public in the present moment.

Even though these measures are certainly hopeful, there is still a question as to whether these incentives will be enough to meaningfully engage farmers, especially when considering how various farms will value the incentives differently. According to the 2017 U.S. census, family-owned farms account for 96% of all U.S. farms. The segmented nature of this industry makes streamlining a nationwide response to the avian flu more difficult on both the private and governmental ends. Combined with the fact that the CDC has no legal authority over certain precautions farmers take, various farmers may differ in their response to these programs.

Looking into the future, farmworkers are likely to be provided with more than protective gear to prevent transmission to humans. Finland has already developed a vaccine for this type of avian flu, which will be provided to workers considered to be at high risk (that is, those working closely with cattle). Perhaps the United States will be next in providing a vaccine to both farmworkers and cattle.  

Suggestions for further reading:

1. How the USDA is Responding to the Avian Flu: https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2024/04/24/usda-actions-protect-livestock-health-highly-pathogenic-h5n1-avian 
2. Most Recent CDC Update on the Avian Flu Outbreak in Dairy Herds: https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/spotlights/h5n1-response-07052024.html 
3. NIH-Funded Study Regarding Avian Flu-Infected Milk: https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/assessing-avian-influenza-dairy-milk
4. Finland’s Response to the Bird Flu: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-13568101/Finland-roll-vaccines-bird-flu-week-world-first.html
5. John Hopkins on the Avian Flu in Dairy Cattle: What’s Happening With Dairy Cows and Bird Flu | Johns Hopkins | Bloomberg School of Public Health (jhu.edu)
6. The Bird Flu’s Latest Spread: https://www.fooddive.com/news/bird-flu-dairy-cattle-iowa-minnesota-us-outbreak-widens/718314/
7. The Indemnity Program: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/us/politics/dairy-farms-bird-fluprotection.html#:~:text=Under%20the%20so%2Dcalled%20indemnity,with%20confirmed%20bird%20flu%20cases
8. Historical Context of the Avian Flu: https://www.forbes.com/sites/phillempert/2024/05/01/the-2024-avian-flu-origins-impact-and-the-global-response/
9. Farmers’ Responses to CDC Programs: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/06/bird-flu-dairy-farms-cdc-00156119 
10. Farmers’ Perspectives on CDC Recommended Protective Gear: Dairy farmers resist CDC push for PPE against bird flu virus | STAT (statnews.com)