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States are allowed to write their own laws governing the sale of raw milk. But thanks to a 1987 ordinance passed by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), all milk sold across state lines, even between two states where raw milk sales are legal, must be pasteurized.
We think that’s wrong. So, on September 26, the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) will join our allies at the Real Food Consumer Coalition, the Organic and Natural Health Association and the American Grassfed Association to bring the truth about raw milk to Congress.
Would you love to visit a grass fed family farm where you can fill up a glass bottle with farm-fresh raw milk from a vending machine explicitly made for this purpose? In the U.K., this is not at all unusual. In fact, raw milk vending machines are becoming increasingly popular, including the one recently installed at Home Farm, a dairy farm in Hassop, England.
In a very quiet decision that received surprisingly little media attention even within the natural foods industry, the board of directors of Organic Valley recently voted 4-3 to ban the farmers which make up its 1600 small farm cooperative from selling raw milk to consumers on the side.
Exciting news! The first ever Congressional debate and vote on raw milk happened in the U.S. House of Representatives last week.
Unfortunately, Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-Ky)’s amendment to the Farm Bill, intended to overturn a 1987 ban on interstate sales of raw milk, was defeated.
So what’s next? We push the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to exempt raw milk farmers from regulatory enforcement if they provided a clear warning label and instructions for milk pasteurization.
TAKE ACTION: If your member of Congress voted against Massie’s amendment to allow interstate sales of unpasteurized milk, send him or her a letter that provides more information on why consumers should have the freedom to buy raw milk.
If your Member of Congress voted to respect your right to drink raw milk, send him or her a letter to say “thank you, now please take the next step.”
On the side of the road in an unmarked white van, the award-winning investigative journalist Nelufar Hedayat, known for her global stories about women’s rights and cultural issues, such as The Traffickers, meets an undercover reporter working for the animal advocacy organization Compassion Over Killing. The unidentified man shares secret clips from his time spent on a dairy farm in the Northeast.
In Canada, it’s illegal to sell or give away raw milk, a law that’s enforced in many provinces. In Ontario, distributing raw milk was long considered to be a regulatory offense punishable by fines, but as of January 2018 an order issued by Ontario’s Superior Court calls for anyone who distributes or sells raw milk in the area to face years in prison. Members of one area food co-op believe the Ontario injunction violates their constitutional right to access raw milk, and they’ve filed a motion to have the injunction stayed.
Researchers have found that cows fed a 100 percent organic grass and legume-based diet produce milk with elevated levels of omega-3 and CLA, and thus provides a markedly healthier balance of fatty acids. The improved fatty acid profile in grass-fed organic milk and dairy products (hereafter, 'grassmilk') brings the omega-6/omega-3 ratio to a near 1 to 1, compared to 5.7 to 1 in conventional whole milk.
We were furious when the Trump administration’s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reversed Obama’s decision to ban chlorpyrifos, a pesticide that causes neurological damage, especially in children.
We were equally dismayed when Trump’s U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed rolling back animal welfare standards for organic production.
But as long as Trump has his scissors out, there is at least one piece of “red tape” we wish he would cut: The U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) ban on raw milk.
The Real Food Consumer Coalition has drafted a legal petition asking the FDA to let raw milk dairy farmers distribute unpasteurized milk in interstate commerce, as long as it bears a warning label and instructions for safe handling.
We’re asking our networks to support Real Food’s petition by asking the FDA to lift its ban on raw milk.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Trump to Lift the FDA’s Ban on Raw Milk!
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