Raw milk investigation spreads to Traditional Foods Minnesota

By Erin Carlyle Fri., Jun. 18 2010 at 7:45 AM

Categories: How We Live

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Image courtesy of kthread on Flickr

Drinking raw milk isn't illegal, but why anyone would want to is beyond us. Hasn't it been a good idea to heat milk and kill off bacteria since Pasteur came up with pasteurization?

Raw milk from Minnesota left eight people sick with E.coli in May and June, and apparently the state thinks there's more to be worried about. The state's investigation into the raw milk trade is spreading out to more farms, according to Minnesota Public Radio.

The original investigation centered on the Hartmann Dairy Farm in Gibbon, Minnesota, which was blamed for the E.coli outbreak that sickened eight people. Now, state health investigators are looking at Traditional Foods Minnesota, according to MPR. At least one of the dairies listed at its Minneapolis site advertise raw milk. Health officials haven't confirmed their probe, but a a farmer that sells with Traditional Foods told MPR that the investigation was related to raw milk.

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Late to the thread, but…. No, raw milk isn't just for hippies. yes, raw milk can be dangerous… any food can be. Yes, the government means well, but they are reactive when it comes to food born health concerns. Yes, pasteurized is less nutritious. No, the problem isn't necessarily with raw milk, rather an unsanitary condition at a farm and the perhaps improper handling AFTER it leaves the farm. Yes, we need to take responsibility for what we put on/in our bodies. KNOW your farmer, know your food.
Wow- Wake up- Pasteurization sounds great to protect the public from "Industrial Cows" The poor things are sick- But REAL Milk from Healthy Cows---That is completely different. You may not remember when Milk was a wholesome treat. I support Whole Raw Natural Milk- with all its enzymes and nutrients intact- when produced from pastured cows- As nature intended. Let's try to shake our selves awake from some of the brainwashing. Most people can't even tolerate that stuff they call milk anymore--
If 8 or so people got sick in that time period from raw milk, I wonder what percentage of E.Coli cases that represents. The most common vectors of the bacteria are hamburger, spinach, lettuce, cookie dough, pizza, and water. According to the MN state health website, 120-165 people are confirmed with E.coli annually, making raw milk cases less than 5% of total confirmed E.Coli victims. This looks to be a case of an unsanitary dairy farm, and the raw milk hysteria resulting from this seems silly. Not all raw milk is evil, just as not all bagged spinach is evil.
Raw milk tastes better than pasturized milk, has more nutrients (pasturizing kills most of the vitamins and other nutrients), and I can actually drink it. Chronic bronchitis was diagnosed by a doctor as i stayed awake coughing all night long. I was prescribed 3 inhalers. Then I realized that when I took my other medications with milk at night, I coughed. When I took them with water, my stomach was upset, but no cough. Switched to raw milk, still no cough. That tells me that what I actually had was an issue with the pasturized milk. I have since stopped all inhalers and switched doctors. I believe I should be able to consume raw milk if I wish, no matter what state I live in.
Raw milk has nourished the human race for thousands of years. Let people drink it if they (and I) want to. We let people drive cars, eat processed, chemical filled food, take handfuls of pills to lose weight, feel happy and have an erection. Microwave in plastic, become obese and do nothing about it but blame "bad genes" and allow people to spray pesticides and herbicides in our neighborhoods...which is the greater evil?
I spoke with Doug Schultz of the MN Dept of Health who confirmed that his department is not involved in this investigation. http://www.fairfoodfight.com/blog/el-drag%C3%B3n/mn-dept-ag-cracks-down-traditional-foods-warehouse-update The investigation of Traditional Foods of Minnesota Warehouse is being conducted by the MN Dept of Ag. No "health officials" are involved.
Please note I corrected the links: Quality raw milk is much safer than driving a car. Farmers have to learn how to make quality milk right, just like car makers have to make cars right. Raw milk drinkers also have to learn how to drink it right. Please check out these resources: www.RawUSA.org www.realmilk.com www.amazon.com/Untold-Story-Milk-Revised-Updated/dp/0979209528/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276914872&sr=8-2
Quality raw milk is much safer than driving a car. Farmers have to learn how to make quality milk right, just like car makers have to make cars right. Rawmilk drinkers also have to learn how to drink it right. Please check out these resources: RawUSA.org realmilk.com http://www.amazon.com/Untold-Story-Milk-...
AND, I really AM A CRIMINAL because of the fact that I have aided & abetted* in a crime by buying unpasteurized milk from my farmer, right? I guess the state will start cracking down on buyers too??? We should be locked up, shouldn�t we? Start posting MOST WANTED posters (should have milk mustaches). Media news reports: �Thousands, of MILK OUTLAWS are on the loose!"? And yet if I, hop scotch just over the state line and lived in Illinois, bought unpasteurized milk, I�m a law abiding citizen. Where is the LOGIC in this? No logic. *Aiding and abetting applies to someone who assists or helps one or more other people commit a crime. To be held accountable as an aider and abettor, you must know of the criminal objective and do something to make it succeed. For example, if you drive your friend to a meeting where you know your friend is going to buy drugs, you may be an aider and abettor in the drug transaction. The dairy industry opponents don't want this pasteurization issue exposed or healthy raw milk legalized b/c they have would have to expose how much contamination actually goes in the conventional dairy system sold in the stores. That 'crap' is factory or CAFO milk.... full of dead bacteria. But hey, it's been cooked - pasteurized, GROSS! Think of that dead bacteria the next time you reach for a plastic jug of milk at a convenience store!
PS--to Erin Carlyle, the author, perhaps you should actually research a subject to find out WHY people would drink it instead of starting your article with a snarky statement such as, "Drinking raw milk isn't illegal, but why anyone would want to is beyond us. Hasn't it been a good idea to heat milk and kill off bacteria since Pasteur came up with pasteurization?" Isn't it a good idea to get lots of vitamins and enzymes in our food? I am more disturbed by ultra-pasteurized milk products, where a container of milk can sit unrefrigerated on a shelf for 6 months. Isn't anyone else disturbed by that? Long shelf life always = fewer nutrients. I drink raw milk and eat raw butter in Illinois, because I want the health benefits. The fact that they taste heavenly is merely a bonus. I can get E Coli from eating a cheeseburger at a fast food joint--or eating spinach, or peanut butter, etc.. I can get Salmonella at Subway in Illinois, apparently. I place a lot more trust in the local farmer who raises the cows on pasture (100%) more than a large corporation with minimum wage employees. I'll take my risks with a nice cold glass of raw milk, thank you very much!
Wow, Kirk. Your name is apparently not a misnomer. Many raw milk consumers actually aren't hippies, unless you think farmers are hippies, which would be interesting. Many also have a pretty big libertarian streak to them. But I guess you don't care about details. What this comes down to is the right to access and consume the foods that the INDIVIDUAL deems most important for his or her own health. As the first commenter said, a consumer could buy the raw milk and heat it at home to kill pathogens if he or she chooses to do so. Or pour it down the drain. What matters is the right to choose for oneself.
Stupid hippies! But hey, isn't it their right as adults to potentiality poison themselves. It is infringement on basic personal freedom. Now if they give this to their children, thats a different story. That's potential child endangerment. It's like that woman Stephanie Smith from Minnesota who became severely ill with an E. coli infection from a "tainted" hamburger. She sued Cargill and won. This was even though she obviously ignored the "cook meat thoroughly" recommendation that appears on ALL raw meet products. Ever heard that you can grow psychedelic mushrooms using unpasteurized cow's milk? http://www.mushroomgeeks.com/forum/index.php
Of course we should just blindly assume that DNA testing oversight by gov�t agencies, bureaus & regulators protecting the dairy industry might not be corrupt or commit any fraud such as MMS (Minerals Management Service) with Deep Off Shore Oil Drilling? Yes, I suppose, in blissful ignorance, we could rely exclusively on the germ theory from 1850�s to support pasteurization.... since we have not made any advances since?? But wait, "Bernard was right, the germ is nothing--the milieu ?[the environment within] is everything." ?- Louis Pasteur (on his deathbed)... The real challenge lies in producing superior dairy products. This is possible on healthy farms & healthy soil with sustainable agricultural practices, but certainly NOT CAFO's. AND...If pasteurization (heating) is supposedly the final solution to safety (in �conventional� industry thought), then I too, can heat unpasteurized milk for it to be deemed safe, right? So why am I being prevented from buying unpasteurized milk or farmers from selling to me if I can cook it? Why are only �processors� allowed to do so? It OBVIOUSLY all boils down to protecting the industry & controlling the market. This truly is a anti competition situation in Wisconsin, an Antitrust issue. Anti competition & monopolistic practices is THE issue that needs to be addressed in the Wisconsin Dairy industry, to get things to change & moooove in a new direction. Maybe there is a REASON why Dept of Justice & the UDSA is coming to Madison WI to address Anticompetitive practices in the DAIRY industry???? http://www.justice.gov/atr/public/workshops/ag2010/index.htm#pr?