Debate over Health and Safety of Raw Milk Continues Unabated
Recent developments in the ongoing food safety debate over the production and sale of raw milk have recently focused the media spotlight in several states. According to a Denver Post article, Colorado is one of 29 states allowing “cow-share programs” to side-step laws that forbid the retail sale of raw milk, consumption of which has allegedly been linked to a resurgence of milk-related sickness in the United States. Under a cow-share program, consumers hold shares in dairy herds and receive raw milk products as a return on their investment. Some 60 Colorado dairies apparently now offer the service.
Meanwhile, similar “buying clubs” are reportedly under fire in Massachusetts, where the mainstream dairy industry has, according to reports, lobbied Commissioner of the Department of Agricultural Resources Scott Soares to begin cracking down on the clubs. The department reportedly sent cease-and-desist letters to four buying clubs early in 2010. Mobilizing support for their cause, the owners reportedly met with Soares in advance of a May 10 legislative hearing on a department proposal to ban the clubs. Among those challenging the proposal were a Boston employment lawyer, a Cambridge business owner and a former investigator with the Environmental Protection Agency.
In a related development, Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle (D) has reportedly indicated that he will sign a bill that will allow farmers to sell raw milk directly to consumers through 2011. The president of a Washington-based non-profit group that advocates the consumption of raw milk was apparently pleased with the bill, despite its limitation, saying “It’s the best state this could have happened in for us.” Wisconsin will join 19 other states that allow direct sales within state borders; nine other states reportedly allow retail sales. Among those opposing the raw milk movement is plaintiffs’ lawyer Bill Marler, who claims raw milk sales will result in bacterial contamination outbreaks. Industry interests also oppose raw milk, arguing that raw-milk-related outbreaks “hurt all the dairies.” See Alternet.org, May 4, 2010; The Kansas City Star and The Denver Post, May 5, 2010.
