Raw milk supporters form action groups

The following news story is from the Canada Free Press:

This picture, in which farmer Michael Schmidt looks like the Che Guevara of raw milk, has been used to promote the CA-ARM raw milk action group.

“TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA –  In response to the increasing government offensive against raw dairy farms, U.S. and Canadian Alliances for Raw Milk (ARMs) were launched this month. These Alliances for Raw Milk (US ARM and Canadian ARM) and Family Farm and Food Freedom plan to promote connections between natural farmers and dairies and families who want fresh, wholesome and healthy natural food choices, based on their nutritional education and food traditions.

The ARMs and their members have declared they have the right and freedom to choose the foods they deem to maintain and restore their health and the right to farm their own land and trade/share the produce with others. The Alliances also come at a time of unwarranted and rapidly increasing legal, regulatory and enforcement actions by state, provincial and federal agencies against small natural, sustainable and organic farms and food operations, especially in the dairy arena.

The Canadian ARM is already organized in Ontario and British Columbia. In these two provinces raw dairy cow boarding programs are beset with regulatory harassment. These private agistment or cow boarding arrangements by their very nature are outside of the retail marketing system. The Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, works to defend the rights of these private contracts, with their built in transparency and accountability, to unregulated free trade.

Ontario farmer, Michael Schmidt, of Glencolton Farms, last year, sued the Canadian government for interfering with his right to farm, the judge’s decision in the case is due on January 21.  British Columbia farmer Alice Jongerden of Home on the Range Farm, has recently had her milk accused of high bacteria counts in the press by health officials. A California dairyman, Mark McAfee, who himself has suffered losses due to regulatory abuse, claims that Health Canda’s findings show disregard for established lab standards, old fermented milk, and show the presence of good bacteria and not bad bacteria.

In the U.S. the states of Wisconsin, California, and Ohio ARM’s are well underway with thousands of members and more states are pending. Sources in major U.S. raw milk groups say there is strong interest for the EU and Australia and India to join forces in the Alliance.

Michael Schmidt, internationally known farmer and co-director of Canadian ARM, said:

“Forming local state, federal and international alliances of concerned individuals is of utmost importance. What has to be burning in our soul, is the urge to be free and the determination not to be returned to a modern form of slavery. Blinded by wealth, comfort and convenience we are in grave danger of unconsciously consenting to the takeover of our well being by Government. This battle about raw milk is a battle about food freedom and our individual rights. This is not an isolated battle, this is a global issue beyond our imagination.”….”

Read the whole story on the Canada Free Press

By way of correction, we should say that Michael Schmidt is not suing the government but defending against charges brought against him.