How the heck did raw milk from Pennsylvania end up with people in Florida and California?

They order it on the Internet...
Do a Google on "Millers Organic Farm"...

A Campaign for Real Milk

A Project of the Weston A. Price Foundation

Q. What is real, raw milk?

Real milk is milk that comes from pastured cows, that contains all the fat and that has not been processed in any way—it is raw and unhomogenized.

For a brochure summarizing the safety and health benefits of raw milk, see our Campaign for Real Milk Brochure.

For an extensive and fully referenced presentation on the safety, health benefits and economic benefits of real raw milk, see our Campaign for Real Milk PowerPoint Presentation.

For an overview on the safety, health benefits, and economic benefits of real raw milk, see Fresh, Unprocessed (Raw) Whole Milk: Safety, Health and Economic Issues.

Q.  Is it safe to drink real, raw milk? 

Real milk that has been produced under sanitary and healthy conditions is a safe and healthy food.  It is important that the cows are healthy (tested free of TB and undulant fever) and do not have any infections (such as mastitis). The cows should be eating food appropriate to cows, which is mostly grass, hay or silage, with only a small amount of grain, if any. The milk should be full-fat milk, as many important anti-microbial and health-supporting components are in the fat. The cows should be milked under sanitary conditions and the milk chilled down immediately.

For information on safe handling of raw milk, see Safe Handling – Consumers’ Guide
Preserving the Quality of Fresh, Unprocessed Whole Milk available from the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund.

For information on safe production of raw milk, see the Raw Milk Production Handbook available from the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund.

To read David Gumpert’s remarks from the Raw Milk Debate at Harvard Law School, see “Raw Milk Safety vs. Rights: Striking a Balance.”

Q.  What makes real raw milk safe?

Raw milk contains many components that kill pathogens and strengthen the immune system. These include lacto-peroxidase, lacto-ferrin, anti-microbial components of blood (leukocytes, B-macrophages, neutrophils, T-lymphocytes, immunoglobulins and antibodies), special carbohydrates (polysaccharides and oligosaccharides), special fats (medium chain fatty acids, phospholipids and spingolipids), complement enzymes, lysozyme, hormones, growth factors, mucins, fibronectin, glycomacropeptide, beneficial bacteria, bifidus factor and B12-binding protein.  These components are largely inactivated by the heat of pasteurization and ultrapasteurization.  For further information, see Part I of our Campaign for Real Milk PowerPoint Presentation.

This five-fold protective system destroys pathogens in the milk, stimulates the Immune system, builds healthy gut wall, prevents absorption of pathogens and toxins in the gut and ensures assimilation of all the nutrients.

So powerful is the anti-microbial system in raw milk that when large quantities of pathogens are added to raw milk, their numbers diminish over time and eventually disappear.  For a discussion of scientific papers showing the pathogen-killing properties of raw milk, see Does Raw Milk Kill Pathogens? by Dr. Ted Beals.

Of course, this marvelous protective system can be overwhelmed by very dirty conditions. That is why we do not recommend raw milk from confinement dairies, or raw milk that is produced under unsanitary conditions. Raw milk producers have a responsibility to produce raw milk in the cleanest possible conditions. Cows should not be allowed to wallow in mud and muck; they should be well fed; and all equipment washed and stored properly. We strongly advise all raw milk producers to be members of the Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) and to implement their guidelines for safe raw milk practices.

Q.  How safe is real raw milk compared to other foods?

It is very difficult to determine the risk of drinking raw milk on a per-serving basis compared to pasteurized milk and to other foods.  For starters, the risk of illness from all dairy foods, raw and pasteurized, is very low compared to other foods—amounting to only 1 percent of all illnesses.

A government document published in 2003 indicates that on a per-serving basis, deli meats are ten times more likely to cause food-borne illness than raw milk (Listeria Monocytogenes Risk Assessment: Interpretive Summary, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Sept. 2003, page 17).

For an analysis of the comparative safety of raw versus pasteurized milk see Those Pathogens, What You Should Know by Dr. Ted Beals. On a per-serving basis, raw milk is as safe or several times safer than pasteurized milk. See our press release on these findings, Government Data Proves Raw Milk Safe, and this Safety of Raw Milk Summary PowerPoint Presentation.

Q.  Why do we hear about raw milk causing health problems so frequently?

Health officials are highly biased against raw milk and published reports reflect that bias.  Very often raw milk is blamed for an outbreak of illness without proof, or even for an outbreak that affected many people who did not consume raw milk. For example, an outbreak in Wisconsin in 2001 that sickened many hundreds of people was blamed on a raw milk cow-share program even though only a few of the hundreds of cow-share participants got sick (see Wisconsin Campylobacter Outbreak Falsely Blamed on Raw Milk).

For a discussion of the bias against raw milk and some of the techniques used to create that bias, see the following:

• Summary: Response to Anti-Raw Milk Position Paper by Bill Marler, JD (PDF)
• Rebuttal to the FDA article: “Raw Milk Misconceptions and the Danger of Raw Milk Consumption” (PDF)
• “The Safety of Raw vs. Pasteurized Milk” (PDF), chapter 15 of The Untold Story of Milk by Ron Schmid, New Trends Publishing
• For an analysis of every published report claiming that raw milk caused illness, see Response to Anti-Raw Milk Article Published in Clinical Infectious Diseases (PDF)
• For a response to testimony by John Sheehan, head of dairy safety at the FDA, see Response to the Testimony of John F. Sheehan (PDF)

Q. Is real, raw milk safe for babies?

A homemade formula made from real, raw milk is safe for babies and has saved hundreds from having to consume commercial formula—indeed has saved many lives.  In the formula, raw milk is diluted with water and whey and supplemented with lactose, cod liver oil and certain oils to give it a profile more in line with human milk.  For a discussion on the use of raw milk for babies, see Is Raw Milk Safe for Babies?  For instructions on making raw milk formula along with questions and answers, see Recipes for Whole Foods Baby Formula.

The alternative to our raw milk formula is commercial formula, which has been a source of many outbreaks of infection, often fatal. Recently in China, many infants developed kidney failure after consuming infant formula tainted with melamine.

In studies comparing raw and pasteurized human milk, there were fewer infections and better growth in children receiving raw human milk (see Pasteurization Does Harm Real Milk).

See also “Raw Milk and Children” (PDF), chapter 16 from The Untold Story of Milk by Ron Schmid, New Trends Publishing.

Q.  Are there any health benefits to consuming real raw milk?

There are many health benefits to consuming raw milk.  Early studies showed that children consuming raw milk had greater resistance to disease, better growth and stronger teeth than children consuming pasteurized milk. Animal studies indicate that raw milk confers better bone structure, better organ development, better nutrient assimilation, better fertility and even better behavior than pasteurized milk. (See Part II of our Campaign for Real Milk PowerPoint Presentation.)

Q.  Can real raw milk help relieve asthma and allergies?

We have received many testimonials of raw milk relieving the symptoms of asthma and allergies.  Several recent European studies indicate that children who receive raw milk are much less likely to develop allergies and asthma, especially if the raw milk is given at a young age, in the first year of life. See:

• Studies Showing Raw (Farm) Milk Protective Against Asthma and Allergies
• How Glutathione Protects Against Asthma

Q.  Is real raw milk helpful for adult diseases?

Although there are no published studies on the use of raw milk in adults, we have received many testimonials on the beneficial effects of raw milk for osteoporosis, arthritis, digestive disorders, fatigue, weight loss and even cancer.

Q.  Is real raw milk easier to digest than pasteurized milk?

Raw milk contains enzymes and encourages beneficial bacteria that contribute to easy digestion and ensure that all the vitamins and minerals are absorbed.

Pasteurization warps and distorts the enzymes and other proteins in milk so that the body thinks they are foreign, and has to mount an immune response.  This makes pasteurized milk very difficult to digest.  In fact, the market for fluid milk has been declining at 1 percent per year for the past thirty years.  Fewer and fewer people can digest processed milk.

Q.  Can people with lactose intolerance drink real raw milk?

In 2007, the Weston A. Price Foundation conducted a survey of raw milk drinkers in Michigan.  Of those diagnosed with lactose intolerance, 82 percent stated that they could drink raw milk without any problems (Pilot Survey of Cow Share Consumer/Owners, Lactose Intolerance Section).

Q. What are the state laws about selling real raw milk?

For a summary of state laws on selling real, raw milk, see our Raw Milk Nation map on the State Updates page. In summary, raw milk can be sold in stores in ten states and purchased at the farm in about 28 states. Raw milk is available as pet food in four states, and through cow- and herd-share agreements in several other states.

In no state is it illegal to purchase, possess or consume raw milk.

For details about various state laws, see our Summary of Raw Milk Statutes and Administrative Codes.

Q.  Why is real, raw milk a good thing for farmers?

In the conventional dairy system, farmers receive about $12 per hundredweight of milk, less than their operating costs.  This is why small and medium dairy farms are going out of business at such a high rate—in 2002, dairy farms went out of business at the rate of 16 per day.

When the farmer produces raw milk and sells directly to the public, he gets from $50 to $250 per hundredweight—enough to make a decent living.

For details on the economics of raw milk, see Part IV of our Campaign for Real Milk PowerPoint Presentation.

Q.  Where can I find real raw milk?

See our Real Milk Finder or contact your nearest local chapter leader of the Weston A. Price Foundation.

Millers Organic Farm Falsely Linked to Listeria Illness?

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CDC Claims Raw Milk From Millers Organic Farm Caused Listeria Illness

CDC accuses Millers Organic Farm of causing raw milk illness

In a recent announcement from the Centers For Disease Control (CDC), they stated that a Multistate Outbreak of Listeriosis was linked to raw milk from Millers Organic Farm in Pennsylvania.

The statement declared, in part, that an elderly woman in Florida had died as a result of Listeria from raw dairy

at Millers Organic Farm. Shortly after this claim from the CDC came out, investigative journalist David Gumpert reported on his blog questioning whether the CDC was engaged in misconduct in issuing that premature release and that the woman who died was being treated for advanced cancer—not listeria.

The Weston A. Price Foundation issued a release vindicating Millers Organic Farm as the source of the problem, showing the lack of real evidence from the CDC and that the family’s story did not support the CDC claims.

When stories like the CDC’s claim are issued, it gives a distortion of the facts that leads to manipulation of the data. Rather than seeking scientific results that prove what was behind the illness, the CDC reported on it as fact, giving false data to the statistics surrounding raw milk—statistics that will likely not be set right by the CDC.

Meanwhile, thousands of people continue to consume raw milk, including milk from Millers Organic Farm, will no ill effect. According to the WAPF press release,

“The FDA has spent years aggressively warning people against drinking raw milk with the claim that it causes hundreds more foodborne illness outbreaks than pasteurized milk. Yet, there have been no cases of listeriosis attributed to raw milk consumption going back forty years, or more. Unlike raw milk, pasteurized dairy has been linked to several deaths in the past ten years.

Prior to the false claim from the CDC, there have been no reported illnesses associated with Miller’s Organic Farm in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.

“This recent release from the CDC is a deliberate attempt to tarnish raw milk and present false and defamatory information,” says Sally Fallon Morell, president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, a nutrition education non-profit based in Washington, DC. “This is a witch-hunt against raw milk. This is clearly not a case of illness associated with raw milk, but rather an agency with an agenda.”

The CDC recommends that people “drink and eat only pasteurized dairy products (including soft cheese, ice cream, and yogurt).”

“This is a weak attempt to shut down people’s choices,” says Pete Kennedy, president of the Farm-to-consumer Legal Defense Fund. “It shows this bureaucracy is getting more desperate in trying to stop the growing demand for raw milk.”

"How the heck did raw milk from Pennsylvania end up with people in Florida and California?"

The same way Colorado's legal marijuana is ending up in the surrounding states. Illegally.

States are legalizing raw milk -- only for their state, mind you -- and that milk is being sold interstate despite federal laws prohibiting that.

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that a Lancaster County dairy farm is linked to a multistate outbreak of Listeria."

So, how much did that 2-year investigation cost the American taxpayers? I say that money should be recoved from both the dairy and the State of Pennsylvania and both should be sued for the deaths of these people.

Keep your raw milk in your own state and kill your own citizens.

The same way Colorado's legal marijuana is ending up in the surrounding states. Illegally.

It's a private club. Nothing is sold to the general public.

"How the heck did raw milk from Pennsylvania end up with people in Florida and California?"

The same way Colorado's legal marijuana is ending up in the surrounding states

The United States map I looked at has Florida and California nowhere near Pennsylvania.

What does yours show?

Nothing is sold to the general public.

Because nobody ever resells pot.

The United States map I looked at has Florida and California nowhere near Pennsylvania.

What does yours show?

You stupid ass, you get the point.

Your failed attempt at being facetious adds nothing to the dialogue.

you get the point.

The point is - your hit piece was a lie.

The Weston A. Price Foundation issued a release vindicating Millers Organic Farm as the source of the problem, showing the lack of real evidence from the CDC and that the family’s story did not support the CDC claims.

When stories like the CDC’s claim are issued, it gives a distortion of the facts that leads to manipulation of the data. Rather than seeking scientific results that prove what was behind the illness, the CDC reported on it as fact, giving false data to the statistics surrounding raw milk—statistics that will likely not be set right by the CDC.

Meanwhile, thousands of people continue to consume raw milk, including milk from Millers Organic Farm, will no ill effect. According to the WAPF press release

- your hit piece was a lie.

It was no lie. The Price Foundation will not back up their statement.

The Weston A. Price Foundation of Washington D.C., which is a non-profit group that annually produces an international raw milk trade show and conference, claims a family member of the Florida patient says the woman died as a result of cancer and chemotherapy treatment.

A woman identified by the Price Foundation as Peggy Stevenson, who purports to be the sister-in-law of the son of the Florida patient, said through the foundation that she was a caregiver for the patient.

“My family member was diagnosed with and died of cancer after a week of chemo,” Stevenson said in the Price Foundation news release. “I am outraged that the CDC is using our tragic situation to damage and try to destroy a farm we love and support.”

Attempts to reach Stevenson were unsuccessful. The Price Foundation did not respond to a request for assistance in reaching Stevenson for comment. The foundation’s president Sally Fallon Morell said in the release that the CDC report is just plain wrong.

and that milk is being sold interstate despite federal laws prohibiting that.

I forget - Which part of the constitution specifically delegates, to the Federal Gooberment, the power to regulate the milk supply?

and that milk is being sold interstate despite federal laws prohibiting that.

I forget - Which part of the constitution specifically delegates, to the Federal Gooberment, the power to regulate the milk supply?

Yea, I forgot too, misterwhite.

Which part of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes.”

Help me remember, is that the Commerce Clause in Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S Constution?

And is selling milk across state lines interstate commerce?

"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the Federal Government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State Governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace negotiation, and foreign commerce;…The powers reserved to the several states will extend to all the objects, which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the state."

What does this mean?

And is 2+2 now 11 in your 2016 edition of the Newspeak Dictionary/Constitution; or is it still 5 like in the last version?

"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the Federal Government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State Governments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on external objects, as war, peace negotiation, and foreign commerce;…The powers reserved to the several states will extend to all the objects, which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the state."

What does this mean?

I can best tell you what it "doesn't" mean. It doesn't mean that a farm in Pennsylvania can ship raw milk out of state.

The Commerce Clause in the U.S. Constitution reserves the right of the Federal Government to control interstate commerce. And shipping milk between states in interstate commerce.

I can best tell you what it "doesn't" mean.

Well, take a stab at what it DID mean in the context of the mindset of America's founders when they were constituting their Republic.

Which part of "the powers reserved to the several states will extend to all the objects, which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the state" are you having trouble with?

Well, take a stab at what it DID mean in the context of the mindset of America's founders when they were constituting their Republic.

That is a DEFLECTION ... I will not go there.

You tell us how the information in your post authorizes a farm in Pennsylvania to ship raw milk from Pennsylvania to other states ... specifically to California and Florida which is the situation being discussed on this thread.

Got it.

How you s'pose it came to be that the People of Pennsylvanian got too stupid to decide for themselves whether to drink pasteurized milk, or not... without the Federal Gooberment's help?

Do YOU need the Federal Gooberment to decide that for you?

So you don't know what America's founders had in mind when they were constituting their Republic - and limiting powers of the federal government to those specified in Federalist 45, which only mentions FOREIGN commerce.

No the Commerce Clause in the U.S. Constitution does not ONLY mention FOREIGN commerce.

You best go read the United States Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3) again.

Here I will save you time.

United States Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes."

No the Commerce Clause in the U.S. Constitution does not ONLY mention FOREIGN commerce.

Federalist paper 45 does, super genius.

Hence the mindset of the framers - about which you've obviously discerned very little.

Your rebuttal was a lie.

Peggy Stevenson, who purports to be the sister-in-law of the son of the Florida patient, said through the foundation that she was a caregiver for the patient. “My family member was diagnosed with and died of cancer after a week of chemo.”

How can that be when the Florida Department of Health's review of medical records show she died as a result of listeriosis.

"Somebody lying here, boss."

Help me remember, is that the Commerce Clause in Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S Constution? And is selling milk across state lines interstate commerce?

Yeah, smarty pants. You know that only because you're a genius constitutional scholar. You're probably the only one who knows about the Commerce Clause.

"Hence the mindset of the framers ..."

The mindset of the framers is clearly expresssed in Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution.

If they wanted to limit the regulation of commerce to foreign trade they would have done so. They didn't.

The "living document" was also perverted to give Corporate- collective abominations the rights intended for actual individual human beings.

Meanwhile: 

"The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. the powers reserved to the several states will extend to all the objects, which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and prosperity of the state"

https://www.google.com/#q= federalist+no+45

It doesn't take a "living documentarian" consteeetutional super genius like you and Comrade Chairman Flex-O-Bumble to see what the framers obviously had in mind.

"liberties and properties of the people"

Quack - Waddle - COMMERCE.

Is the State selling milk or is that exchange of property [commerce] effected between "the people"?

"I forget - Which part of the constitution specifically delegates, to the Federal Gooberment, the power to regulate the milk supply?"

In 1884, the exportation or shipment in interstate commerce of livestock having any infectious disease was forbidden. A statute passed in 1905 forbade the transportation in foreign and interstate commerce and the mails of certain varieties of moths, plant lice, and other insect pests injurious to plant crops, trees, and other vegetation.

In 1912, a similar exclusion of diseased nursery stock was decreed, while by the same act and again by an act of 1917, the Secretary of Agriculture was invested with powers of quarantine on interstate commerce for the protection of plant life from disease similar to those above described for the prevention of the spread of animal disease.

"Somebody lying here, boss."

Yes, the CDC

Feds Taint Raw Milk Investigation; Soil Farmer’s Reputation

The FDA has spent years aggressively warning people against drinking raw milk with the claim that it causes hundreds more foodborne illness outbreaks than pasteurized milk. Yet, there have been no cases of listeriosis attributed to raw milk consumption going back forty years, or more.

Unlike raw milk, pasteurized dairy has been linked to several deaths in the past ten years.

Prior to the false claim from the CDC, there have been no reported illnesses associated with Miller’s Organic Farm in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.

“This recent release from the CDC is a deliberate attempt to tarnish raw milk and present false and defamatory information,” says Sally Fallon Morell, president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, a nutrition education non-profit based in Washington, DC. “This is a witch-hunt against raw milk. This is clearly not a case of illness associated with raw milk, but rather an agency with an agenda.”

They also didn't think to define commerce.

Are the state governments effecting the exchange of property [commerce] (the property being milk in this case) between themselves -- or is that activity effected per the liberty and discretion of "the people" as to how they see fit to exchange their private property ?

"They also didn't think to define commerce."

Nor did they define "keep", "bear", or "arms" in the second amendment. Nor "just" compensation in the fifth amendment. Nor a "speedy" trial in the sixth amendment. Nor "excessive" bail in the eighth amendment.

In 1884
In 1912

What year was Federalist paper 45...

"concern[ing] the lives, liberties and properties of the people,"

...written?

"What year was Federalist paper 45..."

The same year as Federalist 42 in which James Madison wrote, "The necessity of a superintending authority over the reciprocal trade of confederated States has been illustrated by other examples as well as our own."

Looks a lot like the regulation of commerce among the several states, don't it?

Got private property?

"Do states sell milk?"

Irrelevant. Congress has the power to regulate commerce among the several states, not by the several states.

What does this mean? Is milk a property of the people or of the state?