Feds link raw milk from Lancaster dairy to fatal illness
The CDC has linked two 2014 cases of listeriosis, one of them fatal, to a Lancaster County dairy barn that produces raw milk.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has linked two 2014 cases of listeriosis, one of them fatal, to a Lancaster County dairy barn that produces raw milk.
That finding, announced Monday by the Pennsylvania Department of Health, was based on whole-genome sequencing of Listeria bacteria from unpasteurized chocolate milk produced by Miller's Organic Farm.
The genetic testing was performed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, using samples of milk produced by the farm in November 2015.
Both of the patients who contracted listeriosis were hospitalized, one in California and the other Florida. The Florida patient died as a result of the illness, the health department said. Samples of bacteria taken from the two patients were "genetically related" to bacteria taken from the November milk samples.
The farm, located in Bird-in-Hand, is not licensed or inspected by state agriculture officials because it does not conduct retail sales. It operates as a private club, and only members can order its milk.
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