24 Hour News 8 reports, Michigan officials have set up a three-mile surveillance area around a Newaygo County farm after one of its steers tested positive for bovine tuberculosis.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development said the steer had been sent to slaughter when samples confirmed it had the disease.
MDARD tracked the two-year-old steer to the farm through its ear tag. Through a whole genome sequencing test, veterinarians determined the bovine TB the steer had was similar to the bovine TB found in cattle and free-ranging white-tailed deer in northeastern lower Michigan.
According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, bovine tuberculosis can cause TB in people who consume contaminated unpasteurized dairy products or have direct contact with a wound, such as inhaling the bacteria during slaughtering. MDARD plans to hold an informational meeting about the case of bovine TB at 7 p.m. on March 27. The meeting will take place at the Grant Community Center at 105 S. Front Street.