Colorado Orders Dairy Farms to Conduct Weekly Milk Testing for Bird Flu

Colorado has the highest number of reported avian influenza cases in the United States, with 47 confirmed detections so far.

Dairy cattle feed at a farm in New Mexico on March 31, 2017. Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo

Colorado issued a mandatory order on July 22 requiring all commercial cow dairies in the state to conduct weekly testing of milk samples for the highly pathogenic avian influenza, also known as bird flu.

The state’s Department of Agriculture said the measure is intended to help authorities identify infected dairies and prevent the further spread of avian influenza.