Still illegal in many places, raw milk has acquired a frontier mystique. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) actively discourages its consumption and prohibits its transportation across state lines. Off-farm retail sales of raw milk are now legal only in a handful of states. About 35 states allow farmers to sell raw milk on the farm, and 15 have made all sales anywhere illegal.
In New Hampshire, consumers can purchase raw milk directly from the farmers who produce it. In addition, small farms without a license from the New Hampshire’s food protection program may sell up to five gallons of raw milk per day. Seven farms, including Brookford Farm, are licensed to sell unlimited raw milk directly to consumers, but are subject to inspections and milk testing several times a year. Brookford Farm’s milk operation is inspected and regulated by the FDA.
Most states require milk to be pasteurized, or heated, to prolong its shelf-life and destroy micro-organisms that could cause illness. The French microbiologist Louis Pasteur invested pasteurization in the 1860s. At the time, many cattle were fed low-quality food and housed in crowded, unsanitary conditions. Even under ideal circumstances, milk might remain unrefrigerated for several days during its journey from cow to consumer. As a result, this milk could be riddled with disease-causing bacteria. Pasteurization was the only way to make milk safe to drink. As the process has been standard for many years, it is now widely assumed that all raw milk is dangerous.
However, the demand for raw milk has grown in recent years as consumers worry about the long-term effects of the chemicals and growth hormones used in conventional dairy farming. Proponents of raw milk claim that pasteurization destroys or damages many of milk’s nutrients. They also believe that it’s more nutritious and easier to digest than pasteurized milk, and that it builds immunity. However, even the most ardent advocates are quick to admit that they wouldn’t drink raw milk from an industrial dairy farm. They’ll only drink it when they have first-hand knowledge of the farm – and preferably the cow – that produced it.
Earlier this year, the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund sued the FDA’s parent agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, challenging the agency’s prohibition on the interstate shipment of raw milk. The suit maintains that the prohibition infringes on personal privacy by violating the rights of consumers to produce, obtain, and consume the foods of choice for themselves and their families. As of September 2010, the suit is still pending.
