Raw milk debate spills into capitols, courts

Debate about the health attributes and risks of raw milk is spilling into statehouses and courtrooms across the country as proponents of unpasteurized dairy products push to make them easier for consumers to buy. Supporters of the raw milk cause say pasteurization, the process of heating milk to destroy bacteria and extend shelf life, destroys important nutrients and enzymes. "We have new science today that shows raw milk contains ... enzymes that kill pathogens and strengthens the immune system," said Sally Fallon Morell, president of the Washington D.C.-based Weston A. Price Foundation, a nonprofit group pushing for increased access to raw milk. Enzymes and other nutrients are "greatly reduced in pasteurized milk," she said. Public health officials disagree, saying raw milk carries an increased risk for bacterial contamination that can lead to illness and even death. More than 1,500 peopl e became ill from drinking raw milk between 1993 and 2006, the most recent data available from the Centers for D i s e a s e C o n t r o l a n d Prevention. Of those, 185 were hospitalized and two died. The CDC said not all foodborne illnesses are reported, meaning the actual number is likely higher. Fallon Morell said there also have been illnesses and deaths related to pasteurized products and that linking illnesses to raw milk is not an accurate assessment of the nutritional benefits of drinking unpasteurized milk. The sale of raw milk is prohibited in 23 states, although seven of them let people get milk through so-called herdshare programs, in which customers can buy ownership in a cow in return for raw milk from the animal. Retail sales of raw milk is allowed in nine states and 19 allow the sale of raw milk from a farm directly to an individual. Lawmakers in at least six s tat e s — Georgia, Iowa, Mi s s o u r i , New J e r s e y, Wisconsin and Wyoming — have introduced measures this year seeking to change laws governing raw milk. The Fa l l s Chu rch, Va . - b a s e d Farmer to Consumer Legal Defense Fund also has filed lawsuits in California, Iowa, Missouri, New York and Wisconsin challenging various aspects of states' laws regarding raw milk. The Iowa lawsuit filed last month challenged the state's ban on herdshare agreements. "The Iowa Department of Agriculture contends this type of arrangement is illegal. Our position is that it is legal," said Pete Kennedy, president of the Farmer to Consumer group. He said the state's law contradicts common sense. "The farmer can drink milk from cows at the farm, so why can't someone with an ownership or interest in that cow drink milk from those animals?" Kennedy said. I o w a S e c r e t a r y o f Agriculture Bill Northey said in a statement that state officials "feel we have acted within our authority under Iowa code ... in this situation." The issues in other states include testing requirements and delivery methods for raw milk, and herdshare agreements. The Iowa legislation, which died in a committee, would have allowed the sale of raw milk from a farmer directly to customers. Supporters said they won't give up. "I think there are a number of people out there interested in having access to unprocessed milk, so I think it's time for Iowa to allow that access somehow," said Tom German, a livestock farmer near Holstein, Iowa, who has two dairy cows that produce milk for his family. Nick Wallace, a livestock farmer near Keystone, Iowa, said the state's ban on raw milk sales infringe on consumers' rights. "We feel it's a consumer's right to put what we want in our bodies and if we want to contract with a farmer who sells raw milk we should be able to buy it," Wallace said. He said with or without a change in law, people will find a way to get raw milk if they want it. "There's already people doing it, they're just doing it under the cover of darkness," Wallace said. Those arguments don't fly with public health officials. "With raw milk the concern is it can be contaminated and it provides a good environment for bacteria to grow to high levels, which increases the chance it can make people sick," said Dr. Ann Garvey, the state public health veterin a r i a n w i t h t h e I owa Department of Public Health. Garvey, along with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, support pasteurization and claim the process doesn't significantly change the nutritional content of milk. "It's the measure taken to ensure what we're consuming is safe and free from pathogens," Garvey said. But raw milk advocates said governments should step out of the way and let people buy products they want. Fa l l o n More l l , o f the Weston A. Price Foundation, notes Amish farmers in Pennsylvania are "making a fortune" selling raw milk to people in New Jersey and Washington, D.C., which don't allow such sales. Wallace, one of the Iowa farmers, concedes it's a complex and polarizing issue. "There's a million reasons why you should and shouldn't drink it but it boils down to personal rights," he said.