The bird flu strain that has infected dairy cattle herds in nine U.S. states has been detected in alpacas, says the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) cattle futures turned higher on Tuesday on technical trading and market anticipation that packers increase buying on a shortened holiday week, analysts said.
Nutrien Ltd, the world's largest producer of potash fertilizer, confirmed on Tuesday that it is indefinitely halting three blenders in Brazil, where it is trying to navigate difficult market conditions.
Bird flu vaccines for laying hens are effective in practice, the Dutch government said on Tuesday, while confirming plans to vaccinate poultry against the virus.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures ended mixed on Friday, amid growing uncertainty over packer interest after the U.S. Memorial Day holiday weekend, traders said.
Chicago Board of Trade wheat futures closed nearly flat on Friday but rose seven per cent for the week as concerns grew over crop losses in Russia and other exporting countries.
Feeding raw milk contaminated with bird flu to mice infected them with the virus, adding to evidence that consumption of unpasteurized milk is not safe for humans, according to a study published on Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Bird flu virus particles were found in tissue samples taken from one dairy cow sent to slaughter at a U.S. meat processing plant, but none were detected in samples from 95 other cattle, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Friday.