February 19, 2013
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Editorial Board
Opinions
P.O. Box 371
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0371
Re: February 13, 2013, Today’s Topic: RAW MILK – “Another CDC study shows potential peril of raw milk” – “For the sake of the state’s dairy industry and the health of its citizens, Wisconsin should stay clear of raw milk sales.”
Dear Editorial Board:
Enclosed is a “RAW MILK…Make It Legal!!!” bumper sticker to display in your editorial department so that the staff is reminded of the thousands upon thousands of people worldwide that drink regulated and unregulated raw milk without worry. The raw milk movement is not a bunch of on-the-fringe weirdoes living in the wilderness and eating nuts, grubs, and dirt. We are people from all socio-economic levels, young and old, healthy and not so healthy. Our goal is to keep our freedom and right to choose healthy foods for ourselves and our families. We support natural farming methods. Your anti-raw milk opinion lacks substance, logic, and facts because it fails to include data from pro-raw milk experts that repudiates misleading information. Also, your use of “potential risk” is a scare tactic. Life itself is a “potential risk!”
Enclosed are just a few articles that should spark “Hey, there’s more behind this raw milk issue than what meets the eye!” These articles were from a Google search and provide information that you should be including in your analysis. The largest USA organic raw milk dairy, Organic Pastures of Fresno, California, is suing the FDA over an interstate ban. Also, in 2012 the owner of the dairy, Mark McAfee wrote the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) about a previously written study “filled with highly erroneous and very misleading information.” Why haven’t you followed-up with Mark McAfee, one of the many raw milk experts available and willing to share the truth?
This new CDC study that you chose to rely on as a basis for Wisconsin to keep organic raw milk away from consumers is irresponsible. You didn’t provide the actual numbers or breakdown of each product. The percentages mean nothing! The CDC is one of many of the federal government agencies that do not have a credible record of protecting the people. Along with the Food & Drug Administration, General Services Administration, Security Exchange Commission, the CDC is part of government waste and ineffectiveness. More approved drugs, bigAgri foods, and imports from China have seriously injured and/or caused deaths in the thousands, while raw milk related illness is miniscule with usually an underlying non-raw milk issue. Raw milk experts have the non-skewed facts that you should be considering for your raw milk opinion pieces. You owe it to your readership to provide all the facts without bias.
I am aware of medical professional groups and dairy industry business associations that are adamantly against raw milk and none are impressive. The dairy industry and unions have dollar signs in their eyes and a fear of the public’s continued interest in clean organic foods. Medical doctors do not learn enough about nutrition, and dieticians, unfortunately, still follow an upside-down food pyramid while pushing artificial ingredient filled foods. Apparently, you are unaware of the underground medical doctors and degreed nutritionists that are further educated of and support clean organic food based healing and the value of raw dairy. These healthcare professionals fly under the radar of the mainstream medical community for fear of being ridiculed and ostracized. Their patient base includes those that mainstream medicine has failed, and the success stories are amazing.
Past raw milk articles in the Journal Sentinel usually referred to raw milk advocates’ “claims of health benefits” but never provided expert facts or documented results. Instead, during the 2010 raw milk bill battle in Wisconsin, the Journal Sentinel quoted the anti-raw milk stance from a southwest Wisconsin farmer and nutritionist that blogged about feeding milking cows doughnuts and cookies and practicing their farming technique of the confined cows laying on compost that is manure and sawdust tilled three times a day. The son became sick drinking raw milk. Of course, the boy became ill from drinking raw milk from that farm! (Article enclosed) This farm is a Foremost provider, so thankfully it can be cleaned up. And, the milk’s nutritional value was compromised even more so prior to pasteurization.
Cows on pasture, eating an exclusive diet of grass and hay, have produced healthy raw milk for thousands of years. Please read Dr. Ron Schmid’s book, “The Untold Story of Milk” before you write raw milk stories or opinions. Knowing your farmer is most important and legalizing raw milk for farm-to-consumer sale with protections for the consumer and the farmer is needed. There are trusting consumers that might not realize there are “dirty farmers.” Regulations are needed to protect raw milk consumers from doughnut, cookie, manure/sawdust mishandled cows and their farmers. There are farmer organizations that support raw dairy and know their industry from the bottom on up. These are true raw milk experts.
Governor Doyle messed up with vetoing the raw milk bill, and you messed up with your recent opinion piece. The bill was Doyle’s opportunity to promote economic growth in the small raw milk market niche and the beginning to protect and help the consumer and farmer. Now your opinion piece wants to protect the “state’s vital $26 billion dairy industry” and the health of its citizens by banning wider raw milk sales. It’s obvious that you refuse to acknowledge a safe and viable legal raw milk farm-to-consumer market niche for Wisconsin’s organic small family farms and the potential economic boost for the surrounding rural communities. Instead, you chose to protect bigAgri under the guise of a safety scare. This is definitely a David and Goliath situation that is not going away until the rights of individuals are free from government’s ill informed protection.
Respectfully written,
E-Mail:
P.S. Enclosed is an extra “RAW MILK…Make It Legal!!!” bumper sticker for Rick Barrett. My husband and I have a few thousand of the bumper stickers, and we or the raw milk movement are not going away. The bumper stickers have been sent as far away as Australia.
cc: Rick Barrett
Rep. Chris Danou
Sen. Glenn Grothman
Gov. Scott Walker
Enclosures: 4th Annual International Raw Milk Symposium
Cheeseslave
Dairy and Health on the Farm Blog by Laurie A. Kyle
Food Safety News
Mark McAfee Letter to CDC
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Editorial Board
Opinions
P.O. Box 371
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0371
Re: February 13, 2013, Today’s Topic: RAW MILK – “Another CDC study shows potential peril of raw milk” – “For the sake of the state’s dairy industry and the health of its citizens, Wisconsin should stay clear of raw milk sales.”
Dear Editorial Board:
Enclosed is a “RAW MILK…Make It Legal!!!” bumper sticker to display in your editorial department so that the staff is reminded of the thousands upon thousands of people worldwide that drink regulated and unregulated raw milk without worry. The raw milk movement is not a bunch of on-the-fringe weirdoes living in the wilderness and eating nuts, grubs, and dirt. We are people from all socio-economic levels, young and old, healthy and not so healthy. Our goal is to keep our freedom and right to choose healthy foods for ourselves and our families. We support natural farming methods. Your anti-raw milk opinion lacks substance, logic, and facts because it fails to include data from pro-raw milk experts that repudiates misleading information. Also, your use of “potential risk” is a scare tactic. Life itself is a “potential risk!”
Enclosed are just a few articles that should spark “Hey, there’s more behind this raw milk issue than what meets the eye!” These articles were from a Google search and provide information that you should be including in your analysis. The largest USA organic raw milk dairy, Organic Pastures of Fresno, California, is suing the FDA over an interstate ban. Also, in 2012 the owner of the dairy, Mark McAfee wrote the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) about a previously written study “filled with highly erroneous and very misleading information.” Why haven’t you followed-up with Mark McAfee, one of the many raw milk experts available and willing to share the truth?
This new CDC study that you chose to rely on as a basis for Wisconsin to keep organic raw milk away from consumers is irresponsible. You didn’t provide the actual numbers or breakdown of each product. The percentages mean nothing! The CDC is one of many of the federal government agencies that do not have a credible record of protecting the people. Along with the Food & Drug Administration, General Services Administration, Security Exchange Commission, the CDC is part of government waste and ineffectiveness. More approved drugs, bigAgri foods, and imports from China have seriously injured and/or caused deaths in the thousands, while raw milk related illness is miniscule with usually an underlying non-raw milk issue. Raw milk experts have the non-skewed facts that you should be considering for your raw milk opinion pieces. You owe it to your readership to provide all the facts without bias.
I am aware of medical professional groups and dairy industry business associations that are adamantly against raw milk and none are impressive. The dairy industry and unions have dollar signs in their eyes and a fear of the public’s continued interest in clean organic foods. Medical doctors do not learn enough about nutrition, and dieticians, unfortunately, still follow an upside-down food pyramid while pushing artificial ingredient filled foods. Apparently, you are unaware of the underground medical doctors and degreed nutritionists that are further educated of and support clean organic food based healing and the value of raw dairy. These healthcare professionals fly under the radar of the mainstream medical community for fear of being ridiculed and ostracized. Their patient base includes those that mainstream medicine has failed, and the success stories are amazing.
Past raw milk articles in the Journal Sentinel usually referred to raw milk advocates’ “claims of health benefits” but never provided expert facts or documented results. Instead, during the 2010 raw milk bill battle in Wisconsin, the Journal Sentinel quoted the anti-raw milk stance from a southwest Wisconsin farmer and nutritionist that blogged about feeding milking cows doughnuts and cookies and practicing their farming technique of the confined cows laying on compost that is manure and sawdust tilled three times a day. The son became sick drinking raw milk. Of course, the boy became ill from drinking raw milk from that farm! (Article enclosed) This farm is a Foremost provider, so thankfully it can be cleaned up. And, the milk’s nutritional value was compromised even more so prior to pasteurization.
Cows on pasture, eating an exclusive diet of grass and hay, have produced healthy raw milk for thousands of years. Please read Dr. Ron Schmid’s book, “The Untold Story of Milk” before you write raw milk stories or opinions. Knowing your farmer is most important and legalizing raw milk for farm-to-consumer sale with protections for the consumer and the farmer is needed. There are trusting consumers that might not realize there are “dirty farmers.” Regulations are needed to protect raw milk consumers from doughnut, cookie, manure/sawdust mishandled cows and their farmers. There are farmer organizations that support raw dairy and know their industry from the bottom on up. These are true raw milk experts.
Governor Doyle messed up with vetoing the raw milk bill, and you messed up with your recent opinion piece. The bill was Doyle’s opportunity to promote economic growth in the small raw milk market niche and the beginning to protect and help the consumer and farmer. Now your opinion piece wants to protect the “state’s vital $26 billion dairy industry” and the health of its citizens by banning wider raw milk sales. It’s obvious that you refuse to acknowledge a safe and viable legal raw milk farm-to-consumer market niche for Wisconsin’s organic small family farms and the potential economic boost for the surrounding rural communities. Instead, you chose to protect bigAgri under the guise of a safety scare. This is definitely a David and Goliath situation that is not going away until the rights of individuals are free from government’s ill informed protection.
Respectfully written,
E-Mail:
P.S. Enclosed is an extra “RAW MILK…Make It Legal!!!” bumper sticker for Rick Barrett. My husband and I have a few thousand of the bumper stickers, and we or the raw milk movement are not going away. The bumper stickers have been sent as far away as Australia.
cc: Rick Barrett
Rep. Chris Danou
Sen. Glenn Grothman
Gov. Scott Walker
Enclosures: 4th Annual International Raw Milk Symposium
Cheeseslave
Dairy and Health on the Farm Blog by Laurie A. Kyle
Food Safety News
Mark McAfee Letter to CDC
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