Study Linking Raw Milk to H5N1 Mutations Sparks Controversy Over Pandemic Risks and Research Methods

A new study was released where the researchers inoculated raw milk with H5N1 (bird flu; avian flu), fed the milk to mice, and the mice became ill on the first day with “ruffled fur and lethargy.” The primary flaw with the study is that inoculated milk is different from milk that comes from an infected cow or goat. Despite this, the NIH funded study is being shared as evidence that raw milk consumption could lead to the mutation of the virus that causes the next pandemic. The research study was led by Yoshihiro Kawaoka, a virologist that recreated the deadliest flu in history from 1918 with dangerous gain-of-function research.

The second case of avian flu has been detected in humans in the United States. Both instances only developed conjunctivitis, more commonly known as pink eye. While the CDC says the risk to humans is low, the FDA commissioner Robert Califf said we need to be prepared for the virus to potentially mutate enough to cause a human avian flu pandemic. While speaking in a Senate committee, Califf said if the flu starts infecting the lungs of humans, it could cause a 25% fatality rate as it has in other parts of the world.

The health authorities are sending mixed messages about the risks and concerns of an H5N1 pandemic. Dr. Robert Redfield, the former CDC director, said he is very concerned about the potential of bird flu infecting humans.

“Right now, it takes five amino acid changes for it to be effectively infecting humans,” Dr. Redfield said. “That’s a pretty heavy species barrier. But this virus is already now in 26 different mammal species. But in the laboratory, I could make it highly infectious for humans in months, because it’s been published the five amino acids that I need to change. I don’t think that research should be done. That’s the real biosecurity threat. That these university labs are doing these bio experiments that are intentionally modifying viruses and bird flu I think is going to be the cause of the next pandemic where they are teaching these viruses how to be more infectious for humans.”

The author of the raw milk study, Yoshihiro Kawaoka, is a virologist who has received many large research grants from the NIH, NIAID, DoD and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Kawaoka is also known for his dangerous gain-of-function experiments on the H1N1 (swine flu) virus and H5N1 (bird flu). He intentionally mutated the bird flu virus to make it transmissible to ferrets. Ron Fouchier, a co-researcher on the H5N1 research, said more than a decade ago that he created “probably one of the most dangerous viruses you can make” after the research was allowed to continue.

Then, in 2013, the authors downplayed the risks, according to an Intercept expose from 2022. Kawaoka brought journalists into his lab to discuss the safety protocols and to relieve public concerns. Within months, two accidents were reported at his lab, including a spill and a needle prick. The NIH learned about the protocols for sending lab workers home to quarantine after they have been exposed to the virus. This was the protocol for all research done at the University of Wisconsin, but was against NIH regulations.

They almost shut down the study, but after some negotiations, the research continued as long as they followed the protocols. Kawaoka lists multiple influenza grants in his disclosures, a patent with Medimmune LLC, and he co-founded FluGen, a clinical-stage vaccine company. Kawaoka received a $9.5 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to study influenza virus mutations. He received another grant in 2019 from the Gates Foundation for a universal flu vaccine and was described as a “star in the flu world” by the Stat News article.

In a speech, Kawaoka said high school students in his lab created viruses. “That actually created a problem later on,” Kawaoka laughed. 

Kawaoka has also worked with Ralph Baric on several studies, including a $10 million NIH grant in 2013 to study SARS, Ebola, and other viruses. The HighWire reported on the dangerous gain-of-function experiments conducted years before the pandemic at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory uncovered by the White Coat Waste Project.

More recently, The HighWire reported on the dangerous gain-of-function bat experiments at Colorado State University uncovered by an open records request from the White Coat Waste Project. EcoHealth Alliance and Peter Daszak have since been debarred, while emails between Anthony Fauci, David Morens, and Daszak show incriminating evidence that they tried to hide information about the nature of the NIH studies from public view and FOIA requests.

The health agencies have lost trust in terms of safety protocols, but also in terms of their research results. Dr. Redfield said the researchers doing these studies will cause the next pandemic rather than offer the benefit of preventing or protecting the public from the next pandemic.

Meanwhile, the latest mice study takes a hard aim at raw milk as a potential source for causing H5N1 to mutate and spread into the human population. As mentioned, milk that has been inoculated with H5N1 is not the same as drinking the milk from a cow that has been infected with H5N1. Furthermore, the symptoms of the mice were fatigue and they were euthanized before they had a chance to recover or worse symptoms were detected.

The Global Health Security Strategy leans heavily into the “one health” approach as the World Health Organization laid out. The HighWire covered this story and went into details about the potential for greater control over small farmers. The GHSS document refers to “surveillance” and “climate” dozens of times. Electronic ID tags have been approved in the U.S., and the USDA says the reason is to track diseases in livestock.

Ireland approved electronic ID tags and shortly thereafter suggested culling 200,000 livestock to meet climate goals. New York is using psychological manipulation strategies to encourage people to eat less meat. Bill Gates is funding multiple research projects that are intended to reduce emissions. He also has investments in carbon neutral milk and synthetic breast milk. Raw milk advocates have suggested that raw milk is a better option than formula for babies that are unable to breastfeed.

The FDA is leaning into the risks of raw milk, but says the concern regarding H5N1 is theoretical. The agency relies on its long-standing belief that raw milk is not safe because it can carry dangerous bacteria that is otherwise killed in the process of pasteurization. The FDA also makes sure to denounce all health benefits that are touted by advocates as having “no scientific basis.”

The FDA claims to follow the science, but there isn’t a single scientific study linked on their pages asserting the dangerous risks associated with raw milk consumption. Meanwhile, Chris Kresser details several studies that show the nutritional benefits of raw milk, including greater uptake of vitamin A and prevention of asthma. Despite the claim that there is no scientific evidence to support nutritional claims, the FDA fails to acknowledge or counter the scientific evidence that shows otherwise.

The Hill quotes Alex O’Brien, the safety and quality coordinator for the Center for Dairy Research. O’Brien said, “I liken drinking raw milk to playing Russian roulette. The more times people consume it, the greater the chance they’ll get sick.”

The Raw Milk Institute wrote an open letter to medical professionals to say the claims about the dangers of raw milk are not rooted in truth or science. They say that large factory farms that provide milk do not have the best practices, and consuming raw milk from these farms would be high risk. However, raw milk is typically produced and sold by small farmers. There is more space and sanitary conditions for the way the raw milk is handled, filtered, and stored.

Raw milk is more likely than other items to cause food-borne illnesses, but the illnesses typically go away within a few days and contain mild symptoms. The Hill and many other media outlets touted the importance of social distancing and alluded to the science as driving all public health recommendations. Two of the highest public health officials, Dr. Fauci and Francis Collins, have now admitted that there was no scientific basis for social distancing.

Public health agencies and officials have lost credibility with the public but still want their recommendations to be taken seriously as the threat of a new pandemic arises. Virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka recreated the 1918 Spanish Flu, the deadliest in history, and has continued to work on gain-of-function research funded by Gates and the NIH. His latest research attempts to classify raw milk as the danger that will start the next pandemic.