Huge amounts of bird-flu virus found in raw milk of infected cows : New findings point to the milking process as a possible route of avian-influenza spread between cows — and from cow to human.

Milk from cows infected with bird flu contains astronomical numbers of viral particles, which can survive for hours in splattered milk, new data show^1,2. The research adds to growing evidence that the act of milking has probably been driving viral transmission among cows, other animals and potentially humans.

That’s a better scenario for public health than transmission through airborne particles, which would be more difficult to contain. “It’s good news it’s probably spreading by the milking process,” says Martin Beer, a virologist at the Federal Research Institute for Animal Health in Greifswald, Germany. This means that changes to milking procedures could help to bring the outbreak under control and prevent human infections.