I was off to Wisconsin (I think it still is the dairy state) this morning for the IAFP conference when another raw milk issue landed in my inbox – I need to update my chart at www.realrawmilkfacts.com.
Alaska state health officials updated the June report of Campylobacter illnesses on what appears to be an ongoing Campylobacter outbreak connected to consumption of raw milk from Point MacKenzie’s cow share with seven confirmed cases and 11 more that are suspected, according to the new report.
According to the state report and the news, the outbreak connected to unpasteurized milk began in May and has continued into July, the report said. The same rare strain of the Campylobacter pathogen was found in all seven cases confirmed in laboratory tests. And, it also was confirmed in manure samples from the Mat-Su farm. The lab report, combined with the fact everyone who got sick drank raw milk from the same dairy, affirms the conclusion that this outbreak is due to consumption of Farm A (Point MacKenzie Dairy) raw dairy products, the state bulletin said.
Tests didn’t find the pathogen in milk from the farm’s bulk tanks. That’s not surprising, said state epidemiologist Joe McLaughlin. Campylobacter jejuni “is notoriously difficult to culture from environmental specimens other than raw stool,” Thursday’s epidemiology report said.
Raw milk samples collected in May and June did test positive for a different pathogen, called listeria, which can cause life-threatening meningitis in children and people with compromised immune systems, the state report said.