The New York Department of Agriculture and Markets is warning consumers in Sullivan county and the surrounding areas to not drink raw milk from the Richard Dirie Farm because it may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria. That farm is at 1345 Chandelle Road in Livingston Manor, New York.
A sample of the milk collected by a public health inspector on April 7, 2015 tested positive for the pathogenic bacteria. The producer was informed of a preliminary positive test on April 9, 2015, and halted production until the results were confirmed. They were confirmed on April 15, 2015.
That farm will not be able to sell raw milk until further sampling finds that the milk is free from the dangerous bacteria. Raw milk is not pasteurized, which means it is commonly contaminated with bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella, Brucella, and E. coli.
Listeria bacteria can cause serious health problems, including paralysis and death. If you purchased this product, do not drink it. Discard it in a sealed container and then clean out your refrigerator with a mild bleach solution, since Listeria can grow at refrigerator temperatures.
If you drank any of this milk, monitor yourself for the symptoms of listeriosis for the next 70 days. It can take that long for symptoms to appear. Those symptoms include high fever, severe headache, neck stiffness, nausea, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea. Pregnant women may only have a mild illness, but listeriosis can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, and infection in the newborn baby.
