CODEX said to include “best practices” to regulate raw milk; New Zealand law

Dear Michael,

I am one of the cowshare people from Vancouver.  If you remember, I was the one who asked if we can use Codex Alimentarius to our advantage.  I did quite a bit of digging around since then, and to tell you the truth, I found much of the worry and concern about Codex to be over-blown, to the point of fear-mongering.  Specifically, here are a few issues I found:

1.  If you remember, much was made about “Codex coming into effect January 1, 2010” and there was MUCH concern about it.  Many people heard that date and panicked.  But of course, that date came and went with nothing to show for all the hype.  However, with my research, there was NOTHING to back up this claim of January 1st, 2010, except the desire of the original Codex creators to have the Codex in place by the end of 2009.  That desire was expressed somewhere around 50-60 years ago.  It turns out, the Codex has already been in place since January 1, 1995, when Canada officially joined the WTO, and ratified the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Agreement (SPS).  The SPS gave “teeth” to the Codex by including it as one option (although, the easiest option) for a State to implement acceptable international safety practices for internationally traded goods.

Cheap food versus quality of life

Tom Philpott, writing on Grist.org:

Graphics above via Grist.org

“For decades, the federal government has watched idly while a few gigantic companies grabbed ever-greater control of the food industry. As big players gobble smaller ones, they concentrate power at the top of the food chain — and apply relentless pressure to cut costs, giving rise to many of the things I hate about the food system. Workers, farmers, the environment, animals, public health — all get abused so that mega-retailers like Walmart, meat producers like Smithfield, and corn processors like Cargill can keep costs down while profitably selling cheap food.

Musings of a new raw milk drinker

From Josee’s blog “Through the Thorns to the Stars”:

The Author, Josee

That’s right! We’ve been waiting for this opportunity since the beginning of July. It’s official now, we have joined a herdshare program. Hubby and I have been reading about the benefits of raw milk for a while and are quite convinced that raw milk from a real feed cow is healthier.

I’ll admit though that when Hubby brought home our first gallon of raw milk I was both thrilled and slightly anxious. I fully trust the herdshare program that is supplying our milk. I know that their cows are very well treated and the milk is expressed and stored in an extremely sanitary manner. But still I felt a little anxious. Why? Well… I’m choosing to do the opposite of what I have been told to believe and say as a nurse. Not long ago I would have gladly stood beside those health officials that claim that “any possible benefits [of raw milk] are far outweighed by the serious risk of illness from drinking raw milk” (Health Canada).