Sometimes Christmas gets so busy you forget one of the presents under the tree. An eager reader e-mailed yesterday to alert me to one such gift I missed: South Dakota's Department of (Big Corporate) Agriculture announced last month it was backing down from proposing rules that would have shuttered small dairies and raw milk producers.
Of course, to win this reprieve, small dairy operators like Lila Streff from Streff Ridge Farm Goat Dairy near Custer had to wage their own fight. Sitting on the sidelines in fighting this threat to small family famrs were the big operators like the Farm Bureau propaganda organs, who claim to want unity among all agriculture producers.
Keep alert, small dairies: Ag Secretary Bill Even says he's still looking to impose some sort of rules on small dairies. He at least says he's looking to talk to producers and consumers first before drafting the next set of rules. Wow—actually talking to the people your rules affect before proposing... what a novel concept!
I like the idea of getting back to basics and going natural with non-pasteurized milk. But there is on problem. I've been taught that its dangerous. Not that its going to make you sick all the time... ya just live in fear of the one glass.
ReplyDeleteThis why I would like to have an All Ages Home Ec type classes in the neighborhood. I would like to have these classes backed by science. Instead of having he said/she said from the next generation of message senders. Have the residents that take the class work through labs so they are armed with information and the know how and the proof of what works and what doesn't in the home.
I would love to get back to real milk, all I drink is chocolate to cover up the taste.
A. Dakota
ReplyDeleteA great way to start is to find people who drink raw milk and see that they are still living and breathing.
I think it is astonishing that people who think nothing of smoking, drinking copious amounts of alcohol, eating HFCS and pseudo fats made out of chemicals go ballistic when raw milk is mentioned. I do not mean you, I mean people like the SDSU extension agent who told me it was absolutely illegal to buy raw milk in SD.
Next-there are two books to read that are worth your time. "The Untold Story of Milk" by Ron Schmid and "The Raw Milk Revolution" by David E. Gumpert. Also visit realmilk.com which is sponsored by the Weston Price Foundation.
Can you get sick from raw milk? Yes, it is possible. But think about it, there was just ANOTHER ground beef recall recently, people have died from this, and spinach too. There is always a risk with food, the risk has grown exponentially w/the industrialization of agriculture, which the USDA and FDA seems to ignore, turning their attention to picking on those who do not have the $$$ to defend themselves. The beauty of raw milk is that you can visit the farm that produces it. One of the interesting things about raw milk is how many people who drink it who have never broken a bone, or heal quickly.
joelie
And good luck in your quest to enjoy real milk.
Well I don't have to go very far to find them. Both Grandparents were dairy farmers. Even after Grandpa sold the cows, we drank milk out of a gallon pickle jar from another farm.
ReplyDeleteA whole generation needs to be retrained from a smear campaign. Not just in milk but in all sorts of habits around the home.
I was scanning through the USDA website and I noticed a claim on there that you can't get sick on spoiled food. Its just unpleasant and won't get eaten. Now I'll probably have to hunt for a link. Anyway this left me completely confounded when I open the door to the fridge.
here's that USDA link on spoiled food. Lets see if I can get it to work.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.fsis.usda.gov/Help/FAQs_Food_Spoilage/index.asp#2
First of all it doesn't say you cant get sick.....it says "Most people would not choose to eat spoiled food. However, if they did, they probably would not get sick."
ReplyDeleteYour are taking the entire article out of context.
I work in the Dairy Industry if you want to drink raw milk go ahead. I would not recommend it especially if you have young or old and anyone with a compromised immune system. There were hundreds and hundreds of food borne illness and deaths liked to raw milk in the 1910's, 1920's and into the 1930's. Since then there have been very few. Nothing is ever perfect and things can happen. If someone offered me milk from a store that has been pasteurized I would drink no questions asked. If someone offered me raw milk I would say no way.
If you want to get back to more of the natural taste of milk buy Whole Milk or if you want to try Raw Milk I would look into a home pasteuirzer kit.
Matthew M. Siedschlaw