Bird flu can live in raw milk for more than a week, study finds

(NewsNation) — The bird flu virus can remain infectious in raw milk for over a day at room temperature and more than a week when refrigerated, according to a new, non-peer-reviewed research from a group of UK scientists.

The study, published in medRxiv, examined the stability of the H5N1 avian influenza virus in raw cow and sheep milk, with researchers simulating storage conditions common in dairy settings.

“High viral titres were detected in milk from infected cows, raising concerns about onwards human infections,” the authors wrote.

Scientists emphasized that pasteurization effectively kills the virus, but unpasteurized milk poses a potential risk of infection, both through occupational exposure in dairies and the consumption of raw milk.

To test how long the virus remains infectious