Got Raw Milk?

Every morning, Amish farmer Amos Miller, who lives on 75 acres of land in Lancaster County, PA., gets up early to milk 43 Jersey cows. He also raises beef cattle and 150 pigs that dine on whey and organic oats, as well as chickens that peck for insects among the greenery. His sons are the horsemen of the family, raising standardbreds for transportation and brawny Belgians for mowing and harvesting hay. The animals live outdoors, grazing on grass and herbs. The Jersey cows’ milk and milk product—all unpasteurized—are sold to a nationwide network of private customers.

Amos Miller Organic Farm in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania. Photo courtesy of Robert Barnes Esq.

 Miller’s life sounds bucolic however, this year has been anything but, with the farmer coming up against the Pennsylvania court system in January. Two Shiga toxin illnesses producing E.coli in children, one in New York, the other in Michigan, were traced to Miller’s raw milk products. (Miller asked that his lawyer, Robert Barnes, respond to questions about allegations of food-borne illnesses originating from his farm. Barnes, however, couldn’t be reached for comment.) 

 It also came to light that Miller was selling raw milk without a permit, which is required by state law. The state attorney general initiated legal action against the farmer to prevent him from producing or distributing his products. Miller pushed back on the basis that his clientele was private. Lancaster County Judge Thomas Sponaugle ruled that Miller couldn’t sell his raw milk products without a permit, although immediate family members were allowed to consume them. Sponaugle then clarified that his ruling didn’t prevent Miller from selling his products in other states.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), however, doesn’t allow the interstate sales of raw milk if the product isn’t pasteurized. This prohibition has been in place since 1987, with sales having to meet the standards of the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance. This has been unsuccessfully challenged in the past by groups such as the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, which has long sought to sell raw butter interstate. But despite these rulings, to date, Miller has not been shut down.

 Pasteurization is a process discovered in the 19th century that involves heating products to 145 F, which kills off almost all yeasts, molds, and disease-causing bacteria such as Salmonella and listeria—potentially deadly if transmitted to people. Such pathogens are especially dangerous for children, reports the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Raw milk can be contaminated with any number of substances, including animal feces, bacteria from insects, rodents, or farm equipment, or drugs used to treat ill cows. Before pasteurization, raw milk products accounted for 25 percent of food-borne illnesses, including transmission of tuberculosis and typhoid. Since pasteurization, milk is traced to less than one percent of illness outbreaks. 

Pasteurization is a process that involves heating products to 145 F, which kills off almost all yeasts, molds, and disease-causing bacteria. Photo via Shuttertock

 The FDA lists 133 campylobacter, salmonella, and E. coli disease outbreaks in the US between 1987 and 2010 that were linked to raw milk and raw milk consumption. These outbreaks caused 2,659 cases of illnesses, 269 hospitalizations, and three deaths, according to the FDA.

 Miller says fears are overblown.  Government organizations such as the FDA are simply “trying to scare the people from drinking raw milk,” says Miller, who supports his legal battles with online fundraising. Miller is adamant that his products are more nutrient dense and tasty than pasteurized milk, in part because his cattle graze on green pastures in “God and nature.”

The health-conscious younger generation is especially supportive of Miller’s products, he says. “They’re looking for the real thing, real healing with nutrient-dense foods.” 

 The FDA stridently disputes health claims about raw milk products, such as improved asthma, allergies, lactose intolerance, gut health, and immune system. The FDA also disputes claims that pasteurization affects the taste of milk and milk products. 

Across the country, state laws on raw milk sales are as varied as a sampler quilt. Several sources provide a breakdown of state legislation, including the Raw Milk Finder and Britannica ProCon. Alabama bans raw milk sales to humans but not pets. Alaska has legalized the sale of raw milk and raw milk products, as  long as the producer has met regulatory requirements. Arizona is even more lenient, allowing retail sales. In Illinois, raw milk producers require two permits. In Kentucky, raw goat milk can be bought, but only with a physician’s recommendation. New York allows on-farm sales of raw milk. Three states Rhode Island, Nevada and Hawaii—have declared raw milk illegal. 

 Sally Fallon Morell is a Maryland raw milk producer with 25 cows who founded A Campaign For Real Milk in 1999. (Miller says that Morell inspired his father to become a producer himself in the early aughts.) Morell condemns the milk industry, saying that it has “demonized” small raw milk producers since the 1940s. Consumer pressure, however, is slowly overcoming this, and Morell says there are now more than 3,000 sources of raw milk in the country, up from 27 when she first began the campaign. These figures are supported by other unofficial raw milk sources such as Get Raw Milk. The eventual goal, says Morell, is to have “raw milk available in the stores for everybody.” 

Photo of raw milk for sale on Amos Miller Organic Farm’s website.

Morell’s vision aligns with Miller’s, who is determined to flout prohibitions preventing him from selling raw milk and raw milk products such as cheeses, butter, yogurt, kefir, and colostrum to his 2,000-strong Miller’s Organic Farm Private Member Association. Miller refuses to obtain a Pennsylvania permit, as he says it would restrict him to raw milk and hard cheese sales only. State permits don’t allow sale of the many milk-related products Miller provides to his private customers, who pay a one-time fee of $35 to join his association. Miller doesn’t like what he considers a power imbalance between state and farmer that results from having a permit. “As soon as they [the government] find something out of order, they would pull your permit and you’d be stranded.” 

 Although there aren’t any immediate legal actions against Miller from the FDA or the state of Pennsylvania, the Amish farmer says that he anticipates further court battles this year. If necessary, Miller will risk jail to defend his right to sell raw milk products without government oversight. 

Miller likens the consumption of raw milk products to the constitutional right to bodily autonomy and the right to control one’s body. His customers, he says, are well informed about the food choices they are making. “They’ve educated themselves and want to make their own decisions. Why can’t this be possible?”

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