Why is Raw Milk Illegal?

In Finland it is not illegal yet, but I am quite sure one day it is, since we are a part of EU and EU is known for ridiculous rules... Raw milk is fine, but most people do not have common sense! They leave the milk on the table like they do with processed milk, that is dangerous, not the milk itself.

So people need to get educated properly.

Homogenization over here in Finland is even worse than anywhere else. Nowhere else people get sick from milk like here. Meaning homogenization has been linked to all kinds of symptoms from stomach issues to heart diseases.

Great posting!

I would like to try Raw Milk. Goat's Milk from the store was sort of like cold melted cheese. Even if Factory Dairy Cows could be pastured for a short while every few days - this would be a great change for the animal and the product as well. Everyone should have a choice as to what they want to buy - yes - some dicersity. Great Hub, good videos and excellent information. Thanks.

This is a very good hub, a topic that needs to be discussed before it's too late.

I am an advocate of fresh, raw milk myself; my family and I are currently raising a cow for milk right outside!

I have to keep from laughing whenever anyone says homogenization is for the good of the customer. Ha!

I'm going to share this hub!

I do have to say tho, hormones are not given to the cows to keep them alive and going in sick conditions. They give the hormones so that they can get them all pregnant at the same time. Its to increase fertility.

Fantastic article, it hit home with me bacause i am just preparing an article on pasteurization that i am going to link to this article. it´s true, there is nothing wrong with fresh milk if it is handeled properly. the problem now is we just want huge quantities of products every single day, which equals carlessness in getting hold of it. i drank raw milk as a child and i´m still alive to tell the tale. thanks again. voted up and tagged

Zoe, what an excellent idea!

Let’s put that warning on raw milk as a condition to making it legal to sell. That way, people who want raw milk can easily get it, and people who adhere to FDA reports can stick with their pasteurized milk.

Sounds like a win-win situation to me!

n states where raw milk is sold in grocery stores, at farmers markets, or even on the farm, I would like to see this warning label in large, bold, conspicuous print:

Warning: Unpasteurized milk, also known as raw milk, is a raw agricultural product and may contain harmful bacteria (not limited to E. coli, Campylobacter, Listeria, and Salmonella) and can lead to serious injury and even death. Pregnant women, infants, children, the elderly, and persons with lowered resistance to disease (immune compromised) have higher risk for harm, which may include bloody diarrhea, vomiting, fever, dehydration, Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome, Guillian-Barre Syndrome, Reactive Arthritis, Irritable, Bowel Syndrome, miscarriage, or death.

Note: Raw Milk must be kept refrigerated at 40 degrees at all times.

I tried raw milk from a farm share in Vancouver BC and it made me and my family very sick, it also can cause serious illness in a child, I think it is unsafe after my personal experiences.

It's often hard to fathom how are government structures laws they say are to protect us. I don't drink raw milk personally-not much of a milk drinking, but I enjoy cooking and love to make cheese with raw milk. There is a major flavor difference.

Would be very fun to learn to make goat cheese! There is a well-known dairy in this area that makes award-winning chevre. Gives me something to aspire to.

Brie, I finally found a goat dairy. I would have had no objections to raw cow milk, but the goat dairy was a much shorter drive.

I think I am going back to their dairy and buy more milk. The taste? Very good. When the raw goat milk first hits your taste buds, you can sort of taste that quality we're familiar with from goat cheese, but that quickly recedes, and the rest of your sipping, you'd swear you're drinking regular cow milk. I don't think they make goat cheese, because of the labor involved, but I do have some sources for that.

Goat milk has more calcium than cow milk, and is generally higher in trace elements like selenium, as well as electrolytes like potassium.

Woo hoo!

The reason for the raw milk controversy is because big pharma and the general allopathic community KNOW that it heals diseases and better yet, prevents them. Raw milk would also put dentists out of business. I have never heard of raw milk causing strep throat and I have been drinking it for almost 15 years with no ill effects. The positive results: No cavities, root canals or other dental disease. Reversal of acid wear on front teeth. No gray hair at the age of 47, soft smooth skin, an average appearance of 10 years younger than my age, amazing stamina. I will never be sold that raw milk causes disease, In fact new reports are coming out about raw milk curing cases of Hepatitis C where tests of previously infected came back PCR negative. My sister completely eradicated stretch marks that she had for 8 years since the birth of her daughter within 3 months of drinking raw milk. The only difference in her diet. So no, no matter how many "reports" I hear about raw milk dangers, I have chosen to go by my own judgement.

Raw milk contains bacteria; it's pasteurized to get rid of bacteria. When I was a child (in NY) I was often given fresh raw milk (uncle had dairy farm), & it almost always resulted in strep throats. Whether cows are basically healthy and have 'had their shots' isn't relevant. When I moved to CA I was surprised to see raw milk being sold in grocery stores. Not for anything in the world would I touch that stuff again.

Of course there’s more to it than the money, it’s called “Agenda 21”.

On the theme of suppression of healthy foods, I thought this FDA warning letter was interesting. They warn that walnuts can be classified as illegal drugs if you tout the benefits of the omega-3 content:

http://www.fda.gov/iceci/enforcementactions/warnin...

(And yet, Cheerio’s and Frito Lay can say right on the package that they are “Heart Healthy”.)

You can find similar warning letters on the FDA site for other extra healthy foods like tart cherries, apricot seeds, and of course raw milk. I believe the letter is the precursor to the SWAT Team raid if the recipient doesn’t comply with the presumed “law of the letter”.

By the way, have you heard of “cow sharing”? It’s a way to sell raw milk legally while it is still in the cow - but the FDA is now onto it.

Raw milk is illegal because the food mafia and the pharma mafia make the laws. These criminals would lose a lot of money if raw milk would be legal everywhere.

I once lived down the road from a farm and bought milk and butter from them. The butter was almost like cheese, so flavorful. When we moved away and bought molk from a store, we noted it looked thin and blue. It took a while to get used to the almost tasteless stuff.

Have I tried raw milk? Yes.

Long before my D2 problem, I had a Summer job on a fire crew with the Forest Service. One of the people on the entomology crew kept a goat. I had the opportunity to try raw goats milk, straight from the goat. That is D2-free; so it probably would have been okay for my sleep years later.

These days, I'm somewhat allergic to dairy protein of all kinds. However politically incorrect real butter is okay. Go figure.

I really enjoyed reading this hub, thanks for sharing! I'm all with you on raw milk. Why not drink it straight from the source like we always have until industry stepped in the way!? I personally don't drink any animal milk, but if I did I would have to make sure it was raw and farm fresh, and it would probably have to be goats milk as well.

Another thing I dislike about supermarket milk is the labeling misconception. They label it as 1% or 2% fat and that's a big lie! 2% milk actually has 35% of it's calories coming from fat. The 2% comes from the fact that the milk is dilute, meaning you are paying mostly for water. Very expensive water. When I started a vegan diet, I lost 10 pounds in two weeks, I wasn't heavy, but now I'm down to my ideal weight. Now I eat cheese occasionally but I've kept the weight off for good.

I have a personal issue with supermarket milk. Many years ago, I had a humongous sleep debt. Then one fine day, I had an intuition that milk was the root of the problem; so I stopped drinking the stuff. Then over the next several months, I was extremely sleepy, and eventually caught up on most of the lost sleep. By the way, cheese was ok.

I now realize that the big problem FOR ME was the Vitamin D2 that's added to the milk. (Mushrooms also contain D2.)

But if I eat Vitamin D-rich fatty fish for example, I'm getting D3, rather than D2. And the right amount of D3 is ok for me.

Caveat: I have Dysfunctional Sensory Integration. Certain sensory inputs that are ho-hum for most people can knock me for a loop.

Rated interesting.

Yes, any natural product capable of attracting SWAT Team raids has got to be something that will keep you healthy in a big way. I’m not much of a milk drinker, but now I want to try some raw, or maybe some raw yogurt.

Congratulations on your avoidance of processed foods and the benefits it brought. My general rule is to stay far away from anything that is FDA APPROVED – food or otherwise.

Excellent article!

This is something I have never understood either. I don't understand why it is the government's business to stop the sale of raw milk, they allow so many other things that aren't healthy- but raw milk is illegal to protect us??

We have goats, so we have all the raw milk we want. And can sell "pet food" to people that want it

I don't understand the raw milk thing either. We use to drink raw milk all the time. I think there is just no reason for it. I saw the farmer on TV they put in jail for selling it. You would have thought he was selling drugs. I never heard that there were deaths from drinking raw milk. Voted on your hub.

There's a little store down the street that sells milk with the clabber on top. Amazing.

Our state is OK with the sale of raw milk. Of course, you've got to travel to the farm to get it.

I do envy Eric with his goats. There is a well-known goat dairy in the next county that sells their raw goat milk, but it's usually available only in summer. I've decided I need some of their goat milk! The goat milk one can buy in the grocery is flat terrible!

Thanks for writing this hub. Can you foresee moving out to the country someday, and having your own milk cow, Brie?

Thanks for the awesome hub. I really like this one its full of facts and is still interesting to read I want to try raw milk now.