New York State department of agriculture and markets commissioner Richard Ball warned local residents today, not to consume unpasteurized raw milk from the Churchtown Dairy.
They say, the milk tested positive for listeria, which can be fatal for some.
The dairy put out this message on their facebook page:
Churchtown Dairy Milk Recall
On Friday, July 26 New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets informed us that they had a presumptive (preliminary, to be confirmed) positive detection for Listeria Monocytogenes in a bottled milk sample pulled from our cooler on Monday, July 22.
We immediately and voluntarily pulled all milk from our cooler and submitted a sample to our own lab that confirmed this test. Follow-up testing By NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets and our own testing confirmed the presence of Listeria Monocytogenes in the milk sample. Listeria Monocytogenes is a species of bacteria that can cause the infection Listeriosis and we are taking this situation very seriously. While no illnesses have been reported, we are working closely with the state to determine the source of the pathogen and are taking the following precautionary measures:
• Upon hearing of the presumptive test result, we immediately pulled all milk from our cooler. We will not provide milk for sale until we have an all-clear from NY Ag & Markets and our own lab confirms this.
• We are working to identify the source by comprehensive testing of our cows and our facilities. We expect to have results of these tests within a week.
• Environmental and product testing is a regular practice at Churchtown Dairy. At the first report of this presumptive positive, enhanced testing was performed. All samples came back negative. We continue to perform environmental testing and additional testing to ensure safety prior to resuming raw milk production and sales.
• All equipment and facilities have been thoroughly inspected and deeply cleaned.
• We have notified all customers on our email list of the situation as well as the local media. We have turned over to Ag & Markets our list of known customers for the time period during which contaminated milk may have been sold.
Please note that our cheese and other products are still approved for sale by NY Ag & Markets. Our customers' health is our primary concern and we have voluntarily conducted tests of each batch of cheese available for sale and are confident in their safety. We are addressing this situation aggressively to learn where this risk may have come from and to adjust protocols accordingly to enhance our farming practices and food safety program. We will keep you posted as this situation develops and hope to have our high quality raw milk available for sale again soon.
Please contact Executive Director Kam Bellamy at info@churchtowndairy.org or at (518) 851-2042 should you have any questions.