WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced an additional six states are enrolling in the National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS). This brings the total number of states testing under NMTS guidelines to 36 since the first round of states joined in early December.

With the enrollment of six additional states, the NMTS will account for bulk milk tank samples from two-thirds of the nation’s dairy herds, or nearly three-quarters of the nation’s milk production. This data will further enhance understanding of H5N1 presence among dairy herds for USDA and its federal partners. The six states enrolling in the strategy today include: Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and West Virginia. This brings USDA closer to conducting mandatory, nationwide bulk milk surveillance in all 48 contiguous states.

USDA’s National Milk Testing Strategy involves five stages that describe a state’s testing activity and the presence of H5N1 in that state. Of the 36 states enrolled as of today, 17 states are considered to be in Stage 2, meaning they have state-level bulk tank sampling programs already underway. California, Michigan, and Nevada are considered to be in Stage 3, meaning that they are affected states that have rapid response measures in place to address detections.