Milk from dromedary camels infected with the MERS coronavirus may contain the virus, and consuming this raw milk may thus pose a risk to public health.

The two patients who were diagnosed last week with the MERS coronavirus are now on the mend.

As of 13 May 2014, RIVM and Erasmus MC have diagnosed the MERS coronavirus in two Dutch people. The patients are related and were infected during a joint journey to Saudi Arabia.

Researchers searching for signs of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in different livestock animals have found antibodies specific to the new virus in dromedary camels.