H -°, L 7° | Tomorrow: 
H 17°, L 4°Hundreds of people registered to speak at a public hearing in Eau Claire Wednesday for a bill to remove the ban on the production and sale of unpasteurized milk.
According to the bill, in order to produce and sell the unpasteurized milk, a farmer would have to obtain a raw milk production permit from the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
The bill also contains a clause that would remove the farmer from being held liable for selling any product that contains raw milk that might make someone sick.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, statutes in Wisconsin have prohibited the sale of unpasteurized milk for more than 50 years. However, dairy producers in the state have tried to get around this through strategies like cow shares and food clubs.
“The statutes were enacted for compelling public health reasons,” a statement from the WDATCP said. “These efforts by a small number of producers have led us to take enforcement action and have brought us here today.”
Co-sponsor of the bill Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, said WDATCP should allow people to drink raw milk if they want to, and people who drink raw milk in his district are aware of the risks.
“Currently, after approximately 15 years of allowing farmers to sell raw milk, an over-staffed Department of Agriculture is stopping people from drinking raw milk,” he said. “The people who drink raw milk in my district are the more well-read health-conscious people in my district.”
Many people are very concerned over the health risks involved with the sale and consumption of raw milk, including the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians.
Larry Pheifer, spokesperson for the Wisconsin Academy of Family Physicians, said they are opposed to the bill, and while many issues fall to consumer choice, this is definitely not one of them.
Pheifer said he is concerned because raw milk contains harmful bacteria, including E. coli and salmonella. They believe symptoms ranging from simple nausea all the way to death can arise from consumption.
One of the main arguments against the bill is the people who make this choice will eventually become sick, and the increased costs of health care will burden the general public.
University of Wisconsin law professor Peter Carstensen said in an e-mail to The Badger Herald there are significant risks associated with raw milk, hence the requirement for pasteurization. However, an individual can argue that an adult fully informed of the risks should have the right to take the risk and drink unpasteurized milk.
Carstensen stated if the risk will cause this person to “impose costs on members of the health insurance pool to which they belong or society in general, then one can argue that this is a public health issue.”
The solution as he sees could be that an individual who consumes raw milk might have to pay an additional “raw milk rider” on their health insurance, forcing them to pay the costs of the increased risks themselves.
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This is hogwash presented by WAFP & WDATCP. There is more nutrients, essential nutrients in raw milk that pasturize can’t compete with. Many people whom are so called “allergic” to milk are actually unable to digest pasturize milk because the nutrients needed for assimilation are cooked “pasturized” out of milk. My forefathers didn’t die at 90-100+ years of age from raw milk!
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My daughter, sister, and I are lactose intolerant. Based on the claim that raw milk is more digestible than pasteurized milk, we bought shares in a farm and bought some milk, but we still couldn’t digest it, even as raw kefir. This great “advantage” of raw milk is mentioned a great deal and probably brings in a lot of customers, but is there any science behind this, that is, have there been any studies that have found the likelihood that a lactose intolerant person could truly digest it? I think people certainly should be able to drink raw milk if they want to, but it isn’t right for the sellers to lead people on that raw milk is some kind of “cure” for lactose intolerance.
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I attended this hearing & gave my testimony. The amount of supporters (500?) favoring this bill & driving very long distances (such as myself- 4 hours) to be heard far outweighed the handful of a few DATCP gov’t representatives (maybe 20?). WE started at 10 AM & continued to at least 8pm when I left
This is my testimony that I gave & was reiterated throughout several other testimonies. RE: Senate Bill 434 and Assembly Bill 628 - Vote YES
Dear Senator�s & Representative�s: Please support & vote YES to Senate Bill 434 and Assembly Bill 628 to legalize the sale of PURE unadulterated and unpasteurized milk, butter & cheese.
Wisconsin consumers should have the right to purchase PURE unpasteurized milk legally from our farmers.
Consuming raw milk products is not dangerous and is NOT A Safety or public health risk issue.
We, the Wisconsin consumer are choosing to vote with our dollars by purchasing organic, RAW & locally grown food such as fruit, vegetables, beef, poultry, eggs. Wisconsin consumers should also have the same legal right to purchase our dairy products, unpasteurized, from our farmer!
We, the Wisconsin consumer�s, are choosing to purchase our food locally to not only reduce interstate transportation & related carbon emissions, but we are choosing to purchase locally grown raw food to also support our small farmers and sustainable agricultural practices and also so we know exactly where and how our food is grown. Please don�t allow this bill to fail.
Consumer demand & sales of wholesome and organic & raw locally grown foods in Wisconsin and the United States is continuing to see record growth, and that momentum is not going away. This demand is witnessed by the rise and success in the number of local farmer�s markets and proliferation of Urban Gardens such as Growing Power in Milwaukee. This demand is also witnessed by the success & healthful response of health minded television programs such as the Biggest Loser.
In a time of epidemic obesity, diabetes and massive food recalls by industrial food giants, educated consumers are reaching out for better food choices. Wisconsin consumers have a right to purchase unadulterated food!
Why has the Wisconsin Department of Agricultural Trade and Consumer Protection opposed to legalizing the sale of unpasteurized, PURE milk?
Our state�s law and statutes are contradictory, for example:
The Wisconsin Dept of Agricultural Trade & Consumer Protection states on it own website, under FAQ, that YES, it IS legal for farmers, their families and household guests to consume their raw milk. Based on this statement by the dept., it is clear that The Safety and public health risk of consuming raw milk is NOT AN ISSUE.
Cigarettes, Hand Guns and Junk Food are all LEGAL consumer choices in Wisconsin, but purchasing Raw Milk is Illegal? Is this really advancing consumer protection?
Dear Senator�s & Representatives, PLEASE vote YES to support & move this bill forward to allow PURE, unpasteurized milk and dairy products to be accessible and sold legally to Wisconsin consumers. We are committed, determined and we are growing in numbers and we are not going to go away.
Thank you very much for representing your constituent�s voices!
Lisa A. Jacobson Milwaukee WI
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I was raised on “raw” milk, as were my six siblings and many other farm kids through out the American heartland. We kept one cow for family milk and hand milked it twice daily for family consumption.
The fresh (not ‘raw’) milk was strained through a paper filter (think ‘big coffee filter’)to remove any macroscopic debris and immediately chilled in a cold water bath to reduce bacterial activity and assist natural separation of the majority of the cream (butter fat) from the milk. The cream/butterfat was hand skimmed off into the butter churn and, with much ‘elbow grease’, churned into butter. Or it was stored in the refrigerator for daily use. The ‘skimmed’ milk was far richer in butter fat and flavor than any of the ‘whole milk’ (3.25 percent butter fat) available at the grocery store today. The richness of the fresh cream defies modern comparisons. You have to experience truly fresh cream, so thick that a spoon will stand up in it, to understand what you are missing with the pallid offerings from the grocery store! Same goes for fresh milk!
If the any of the milk ‘soured’ before it was consumed, it was usually fed to the pigs, as they relished it.
Like all fresh foods, care in storage, preparation, and use of fresh milk must be exercized to prevent contamination. It’s just common sense and no more difficult that properly processing your own meat for family consumption. Finally, your nose and taste buds are the final arbiters. If it doesn’t smell or taste good, don’t eat or drink it!