JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After a bird flu outbreak in dairy cows, a local dairy farmer is assuring everyone that Florida’s milk supply is safe.
So far, no infections have been reported in the state.
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Matt Lussier owns and operates Lussier Dairy Inc. and Hawthorne Creek Creamery in Hawthorne. News4JAX talked with him Friday morning about what he’s doing to keep his cows safe from illness.
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He spoke to News4JAX by phone because they are limiting guests at the farm at this time out of an abundance of caution.
Lussier says he’s watching his cows very closely, as he always does.
“When something new happens, we have two main objectives, one, safeguard the product to the consumer to make sure that everything is the safest we can make it. And it is faster as pasteurization has done its job, both built-in ground beef tested, fine. Everything’s safe for the consumer. And our second priority is the safety and health of our herds, you know, we were not in business without our cattle, and you can’t be in our business unless you love cattle,” he said.
After testing hundreds of milk samples from 38 states the FDA ruled that the nation’s milk supply is safe from the bird flu.
Lussier applauds the FDA and the USDA for their quick response to the outbreak last week.