State Senate Approves Raw Milk Bill

[Chajara]

State Senate approves raw milk bill - JSOnline

Yay! Now it goes to the Assembly, but if it becomes law then it will be legal in Wisconsin to visit a family farm and buy raw milk directly from the farmer. Hopefully the Assembly votes in favor of consumer choice and leaves the bill unchanged.

I maintain that if I can buy sushi (raw fish) or a pack of cigarettes then I should have the right to buy raw milk. After that I can choose to pasteurize it myself, make it into cheese, or simply enjoy it ice cold straight from a clean pitcher in the fridge. So long as small-scale dairies are maintaining good cow health, pasturing their animals, disinfecting udders before milking, and keeping equipment sterile and storage tanks at the proper temperature there should be no issues.

A good day for those of use who choose to support our local farmers rather than big agribusiness

 

[Exiledoomsayer]

Anybody wanna start a pool with how long untill some moron sues a farm for getting sick from the milk cause it didnt have a exentsive idiots guide label on it warning of everything?

 

[rambot]

Kudos! I think that is SUCH a brilliant idea!

 

[Chajara]

Anybody wanna start a pool with how long untill some moron sues a farm for getting sick from the milk cause it didnt have a exentsive idiots guide label on it warning of everything?

There is a requirement that the milk is labeled saying it doesn't have the protection of pasteurization and shouldn't be consumed by the elderly etc. Hopefully that will be enough.

 

[mont974x4]

This is great news, and I must admit to being surprised.

 

[ACougar]

Hopefully more states will adapt similar measures.

State Senate approves raw milk bill - JSOnline

Yay! Now it goes to the Assembly, but if it becomes law then it will be legal in Wisconsin to visit a family farm and buy raw milk directly from the farmer. Hopefully the Assembly votes in favor of consumer choice and leaves the bill unchanged.

I maintain that if I can buy sushi (raw fish) or a pack of cigarettes then I should have the right to buy raw milk. After that I can choose to pasteurize it myself, make it into cheese, or simply enjoy it ice cold straight from a clean pitcher in the fridge. So long as small-scale dairies are maintaining good cow health, pasturing their animals, disinfecting udders before milking, and keeping equipment sterile and storage tanks at the proper temperature there should be no issues.

A good day for those of use who choose to support our local farmers rather than big agribusiness

 

[DaisyDay]

Kudos! I think that is SUCH a brilliant idea!

Which, making raw milk legal or suing for damages when they occur?

 

[DaisyDay]

There is a requirement that the milk is labeled saying it doesn't have the protection of pasteurization and shouldn't be consumed by the elderly etc. Hopefully that will be enough.

It's the children, not the elderly, who were dying like flies before milk pasteurization became law.

 

[wpiman2]

Don't worry; once Obama rams through Obamacare after bankrupting the insurance companies we will all be covered for doing dumb things; like drinking unpasteurized milk.

 

[ThankGodforGod]

Quick anatomy lesson folks, please pay attention.

Notice the cow's anus is right over the cow's utters? Are you seriously telling me that you can see no problems with drinking something expressed from this region before it was sterilized? Would you eat food that I had soaked in a toilet bowl for a couple of days?

 

[Autumnleaf]

There is a guy who had cancer and used cows milk to make antibodies to the cancer. He drank it raw and it cured him. Cooking foods kills germs, it also denatures some proteins which we might be better off leaving the way they are.

 

[Chajara]

And here we go.

People are already drinking unpasteurized milk at phenomenal rates despite it being illegal in so many places. Udders are sanitized before milking and cows that are allowed to eat grass don't have the problems with acid-resistant E. coli that corn-fed cows do. Also, if you think the huge "farms" where cows are milked for regular cheap pasteurized milk are anything close to clean you are sadly mistaken.

This is about choice. People choose every single day to smoke cigarettes, eat sushi, leave their egg yolks runny (Or consume the whole egg raw right out of the shell), and eat rare steak (I won't eat my steak any other way, though I only eat grass-fed beef nowadays). If you think the idea of raw milk is gross then don't drink it. Problem solved. But don't interfere with my choice to drink it if I want it.

For the record, I don't advocate giving raw milk to babies or small children any more than I'd give them a rare, bloody piece of steak. Kids under a year aren't supposed to have cow's milk anyway. My own babies are going to be drinking (raw!) breastmilk until at least a year and the solids they get will be safe. If they get any cow's milk after a year of age I can always take the raw stuff I intend to drink and pasteurize it myself before giving it to them.

 

[Mling]

I've been making yogurt out of raw milk from an approved farm for several months--love it, and no ill effects. If I had some though, that would be a risk I'm taking knowingly and willing.

 

[BotanicalBob]

Quick anatomy lesson folks, please pay attention.

Notice the cow's anus is right over the cow's utters? Are you seriously telling me that you can see no problems with drinking something expressed from this region before it was sterilized? Would you eat food that I had soaked in a toilet bowl for a couple of days?

Heathly, grass fed cow don't look like that.

 

[Billnew]

There is a requirement that the milk is labeled saying it doesn't have the protection of pasteurization and shouldn't be consumed by the elderly etc. Hopefully that will be enough.

I believe the warning label should be more inclusive.
Much like the egg warning most resturants offer to customers.

unpasteurized milk may be harmful to:
the very young
the very old
immuno-compromised people of any age
Women that are pregnant or nursing should consult a Doctor before use.
(this one goes for everything on earth, if your pregnant, check with your Dr before everything. breathing and bowel movements are exceptable, even encouraged, all else, check.)

Personally, I would not drink milk without it being Pasteurized, but my preference should not affect others educated decisions.

Of course people will sue, they sue for every reason already. The unpast milkers, will have to try to perfect the warning label to protect them from as many lawsuits as possible.
Will insurance cover unpasteurized milk sales?