Consumer Alert: Agriculture Commissioner says TV movie may mislead public on the facts about avian influenza.

Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin said he felt that the recent fictional TV movie "Fatal Contact" may confuse people when they hear the words "avian influenza" or "bird flu."

"The movie did not do a good job of distinguishing between avian influenza in birds and the pandemic flu which affects people. It may leave the impression that every strain of bird flu is a pandemic one. In fact, no pandemic strain of avian influenza exists anywhere in the world at this time and the current strain is not easily transmitted to humans," said Commissioner Irvin.

Different strains of avian influenza exist and vary in their severity. A severe strain of the virus (H5N1) was detected in Southeast Asia in 2003. It is almost exclusively a bird disease and has only occasionally affected humans. It has resulted in 115 deaths worldwide since then. Most human cases of avian influenza from this strain have occurred in people with very intimate contact with infected poultry.

The H5N1 strain is a highly pathogenic (high path) strain of the virus which kills chickens rapidly. There are also several low pathogenic forms that do not kill chickens and have no effect on humans. "There have been cases of high path (non-H5N1 strains) and low path avian influenza in the U.S. in the past. All were contained and, where appropriate, eradicated," said Commissioner Irvin. "My fear is that this movie will cause people to overreact whenever they hear about avian influenza. They may even stop eating chicken out of fear. There is absolutely no need to do either."

Avian influenza is not readily transmitted from birds to people. "Thanks to our robust system of surveillance and monitoring, consumers can be assured that chicken is safe to eat. Poultry companies, cooperating with the Georgia Poultry Laboratory network, participate in a comprehensive testing program of all flocks on the farm before the birds go to the processing plant. Any flock of chickens found to have avian influenza would be detected, contained, promptly and humanely destroyed on the farm and disposed of in an environmentally acceptable manner. None of the birds would be sent to the processing plant or otherwise enter the food chain," said Irvin. "And, as always, properly cooking chicken to 165 degrees would kill the virus or any other germs."

Q: What are sprouts? My husband like to use them in his salads.

A: Sprouts are the germinating form of seeds and beans. They require no soil, only water and cool temperatures. They emerge in two to seven days, depending on the type of seed or bean.

In addition to raw alfalfa sprouts, other varieties include clover, sunflower, broccoli, mustard, radish, garlic, dill, and pumpkin, as well as various beans, such as mung, kidney, pinto, navy and soy, and wheat berries. Many are sold individually, some in mixtures.

Q: I have seen bottled water marked for use in preparing infant formula. What does this mean?

A: Some water companies wish to make available bottled waters which are marked for infants and for use in mixing with infant formula. When manufacturers label their water as intended for infants, the water must meet the same standards established for tap water by the Environmental Protection Agency. The label must also indicate that the bottled water is not sterile. As with tap water, consumers should boil bottled water one minute before mixing with infant formula.

Water that is sterilized by the manufacturer and intended use with infants must meet certain strict FDA standards. Most manufacturers of infant formula provide directions for mixing their products with water and usually do not specify the source of water other than to indicate that the water should be safe to drink. In most situations, it is safe to mix formula using ordinary cold tap water that is brought to a boil and boiled for one minute or as directed on the label of the infant formula.