Italian institutes IZSVe and Izsler are conducting experimental tests on cattle and raw milk to assess the risk and improve diagnosis of the highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus (HPAI) following its spread on US livestock farms. No evidence of H5N1 infection has been found in European cattle, with over 3,200 cattle in Italy testing negative. Preliminary results show that standard pasteurization and cheese production processes significantly reduce the viral load in raw milk. The World Health Organization considers the risk to the general human population to be low.