On March 17th, CDFA Animal Health & Food Safety Services Director and State Veterinarian, Annette Jones, shared the following with poultry and dairy producers — California is beginning to recover from the worst outbreak of Avian Influenza in the State’s history. Over the past eight months, almost all dairy and poultry farms throughout the Central Valley and Southern California were impacted. To address this threat, many actions were taken to reduce the amount of virus accidentally moved from farm to farm. One such action was the collective agreement to defer routine on-site regulatory inspections on dairy and poultry farms in affected regions. Today, while there still are hundreds of farms under California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Quarantine due to the presence of virus, the majority have been released.
Recognizing that Avian Influenza, particularly H5N1, continues to be a disease threat to both dairy cows and poultry in the State, but also noting that the State has passed the peak risk period in many areas, CDFA is no longer recommending that all routine inspections on non-quarantined farms be suspended. We ask regulatory officials conducting routine inspections to first determine whether the premises is under CDFA Quarantine or if the animals housed on site are exhibiting any signs consistent with H5N1. We continue to recommend the deferral of all inspections possible on farms that are still under CDFA State Veterinarian Quarantine Order, acknowledging that a CDFA Quarantine does not supersede other inspection authority, and the criticality of an inspection is made by the inspecting agency.
In addition to the above, we recommend the following biosecurity best practices on all dairy and poultry farms (H5N1 affected and unaffected) for State, County, City, and private inspectors and auditors:
1) Observe and follow all biosecurity practices being implemented by the premises
2) Park in designated areas away from the processing area and/or animal housing areas.
3) Avoid animal housing areas and, if you must enter, wear appropriate respiratory protection. The recommendation for all poultry is fitted N95 or better. For dairies that are not under Quarantine, defer to your agency internal policy or the dairy’s instruction. If the farm is under Quarantine and the inspection cannot be postponed, follow CalOSHA requirements (Reference 5199.1 (d)(4) Respiratory Protection).
4) Use disposable gloves (best practice) or wash hands thoroughly and apply hand sanitizer when available after sampling/inspection activities.
5) Wear disposable booties or reusable rubber boots that are cleaned and disinfected before leaving the site.
6) Cover clothing with clean smock or coveralls. For dairies, should you experience milk splatter or get your outer clothes dirty, have an extra set of clothes, Tyvek, smock, or coveralls. DO NOT inspect other farms using dirty/contaminated clothing. For poultry, use new Tyvek or protective clothing provided by the producer.
7) On dairies if in a milking area, wear goggles (indirectly vented) or a face shield to protect from milk splatter.
8) Leave disposable PPE on the premises in a lined trash can near where vehicles are parked. Do not enter a farm unless trained to don and doff (apply and remove) biosecurity clothing without spreading disease.
9) ALWAYS follow all the biosecurity instructions of the premises that may include registering in a logbook, using company supplied protective clothing and footwear, footbaths, hand cleaning stations, tire/truck wash stations, and all other biosecurity measures. If asked about previously visited premises, do not provide any identifying information but can state when a visit was last made and if the farm was under quarantine or not.
People, equipment, and vehicles can easily spread devastating diseases such as H5N1 from one infected farm to a healthy farm. CDFA appreciates your efforts to protect the health of our herds, flocks, and other Californians.
For more information about the ongoing outbreak in California, visit: www.cdfa.ca.gov/AHFSS/Animal_Health/HPAI.html.
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