SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is ordering mandatory testing for dairy herds as the H5N1 Bird Flu virus has been detected in 8 states in the U.S.

According to the USDA, the testing applies to interstate movement of dairy cattle and mandatory reporting of positive results and begins Monday, April 29th.

On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration said it had found 1 in 5 samples of retail milk contained traces of the virus, traced to 33 herds in Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, Ohio, and Texas.

According to William Schaffner, professor in the division of infectious diseases at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, pasteurization should kill the virus and people generally shouldn’t be too concerned about buying milk from a grocery store.

“IDPH prioritizes the safety of our milk supply as well as the Illinoisans who work with cattle and poultry,” said Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Sameer Vohra. “Please note that pasteurized milk is safe, but we strongly recommend that Illinoisans avoid any unpasteurized raw milk products at this time based on the potential risk of infection.”

Illinois State Veterinarian Dr. Mark Ernst said, “While we have no confirmed cases in Illinois, what we have seen in other states is that affected dairy animals are recovering with very low mortality rates. These additional safety protocols are being implemented out of an abundance of caution, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed the risk to humans is low.”

The IDPH said it will be working with producer groups and partner organizations to promote education to veterinarians and cattle farmers on the clinical signs of H5N1 influenza so that potential infections can be quickly identified and contained.

Illinois is home to more than 600 dairy farms with 73,000 cows or calves, according to the USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service.