Another look at the laws about raw milk

Contrasting Ontario Laws and Acts about Raw Milk in Courts with other Major Jurisdictions (Part 2)

by Raoul Bedi, BASc

I – Introduction :

Last week we listed some of the major acts, laws and regulations being cited by Crown Lawyers in the latest manifestions, in the form of the 2 applications listed below, in the never-ending case(s) against Organic Raw Milk and its adherents, consumers, supporters, co-op members, farmers and producers in Ontario and Canada. For brevity’s sake we gave only the relevant sections from the Ontario Milk Act and Milk Regulations to begin with .

We then observed, in Newmarket Court, the Crown Lawyers for Gavin Downing, director for the Milk Act, and the York Region Municipality, systematically work through all of those major acts, one by one in great detail, stating first which sections were violated, what they say and mean, and then the evidence (from myriad affidavits, discovery and testimony) to support their claims of violation, and punishment(s) sought.

In addition to all the Acts and Regulations listed last week and again today, the Crown’s Legal team consisting of 4-5 lawyers, also cited 6-10 examples of Case Law which we will not list here. Of interest was the fact that they cited case law from England to justify the enforcement of certain bureaucratic regulations, and the need for concomitant restraining orders where they have been continually violated.

The SUPREME IRONY here is that they failed to cite the most important Laws and Statutes of all , from the United Kingdom , namely that Fresh, Organic Raw Milk from Grass-fed cows is 100% legal and freely available from Her Majesty the Queen’s homeland . Please see https://www.food.gov.uk/business-industry/farmingfood/dairy-guidance/rawmilkcream#toc-4

How can this be one might ask ?

Gandhi was inspired by Leo Tolstoy

In case you were wondering what a post on Ghandi is doing on a raw milk blog, it’s because farmer Michael Schmidt has said that Mahatma Ghandi was an inspiration for his work on the food rights issues around raw milk in Canada. From Jennifer Hunter in the Toronto Star:

Author Ramachandra Guha, seen in Toronto, says Gandhi was deeply influenced by the philosophy of Leo Tolstoy. Photo: BERNARD WEIL / TORONTO STAR

“When Mahatma Gandhi was a young man, he was like many other young men: eager to earn a suitable living and support his family. It was his experiences in the world outside India — studying law in London, practising as an attorney in South Africa and cultivating friends from all walks of life and religions — that profoundly influenced his philosophy of passive resistance and transformed him into a globally important, if austere figure. Gandhi’s formative years are the subject of Ramachandra Guha’s book, Gandhi: Before India. Guha was visiting Toronto from his home in Bangalore, India….”

About a raw milk consumer initiative

From Margo McIntosh:

It has been pointed out to me that some people do not approve of the rawmilkconsumer.ca initiative because we are asking for legal government regulated milk.  We are not and I will explain in a moment.  Some have said they would support it if it was linked to Cow Share Canada, others that they wouldn’t support it if it was linked to Cow Share Canada etc. etc.  Some seem to think that this initiative was spearheaded by Michael Schmidt, others that think we are doing this behind his back.  Neither of these has any speck of truth to it.  Michael knows what we are doing but has had no influence on anything we do. In fact he has not given any input nay or for.  I welcome his input but it won’t change what we do as a working group.

I thought this was explained clearly but let me give it another go.  We are collecting consumer support to take a package of raw milk information to our MP’s and MPP’s in order to give them another perspective to look at this from that isn’t the current dogma from Health Canada.  I became very aware that many of the politicians no nothing about safe raw milk being consumed in all the other G8 countries and half the US.  They also have no idea that the reported outbreaks and illnesses from raw milk, when taken in the larger context of total illness from raw foods of any kind, is very small.  We have someone working on a paper for research and one for how this is regulated in other countries.

It was four years ago today that Ministry of Natural Resources officers raided Glencolton Farms over raw milk

Michael Schmidt has chosen these pictures to represent this decisive event in the history of raw milk in Ontario:

First block all traffic in or out of the farm

The Truth about Raw Milk

The following is reprinted from a two-part series on the Agriculture Society blog, written by Raine Saunders (see bio at bottom of post):

Raine Saunders, with her son. See biographical info at bottom of this post. Photo from her blog, "Agriculture Society".

“Raw milk is a hot topic in the news and media these days. And with good reason. It’s a subject that is near and dear to my heart, and it’s very important to become informed about it, but not because drinking it will make you sick.

Today you will read about the history of pasteurization and the health benefits of raw milk as discussed by health professionals, two journalists, and a steward-conscientious and progressive dairy farmer.

The second installment, Part II of this series will cover my family’s personal testimony of consuming raw milk, what to ask your farmer when buying raw milk, and action steps you can take to assure raw milk is available in the future for everyone.

The reason why raw milk is so important is because of its value as a nutrient-dense and versatile food that has been consumed for thousands of years by people all over the world to maintain health. And now more than ever, raw milk is a symbol of our freedoms and rights as citizens of this country, to preserve our abilities to be able to have access to real food that nourishes our bodies.

Statements to media by Eastern Ontario Health Unit were later shown to be false when lab results disclosed — much like the current controversy in B.C.?

Here are two stories by Ian Cumming, originally published in the Ontario Farmer in 2007, sent in to the Bovine by Michael Schmidt, as an example of how media releases from government health officials are not always based on fact. For more on how this story unfolded, see “2007 Story of the Bogus Bad Cheese and the Eastern Ontario Health Unit“. More evidence to support the theory that you shouldn’t believe anything until it’s been officially denied.

Column 315, by Ian Cumming:

Ian Cumming

In mid – July, a press release from the Eastern Ontario Health Unit about a group of people getting sick from eating on farm manufactured cheese, was printed – as fact – in a host of a papers from the Glengarry News to the National Post.

A press release is a quick and easy way to file a story – too quick and easy. Not a single reporter asked to see the test results of the cheese. Which incidentally showed no campylobacter in either of the samples sent to a licensed lab by both the on farm cheese maker and the Health Unit themselves.

Despite no verifiable proof the press release linked the campylobacter infection in the dozen sick people to the on farm made cheese they consumed, but forgot to mention the chicken and mayonnaise – also great carriers of campylobacter – they might have ate.

Wisconsin raw dairy farmers & friends urged to speak up at DATCP meeting

This excerpt is from the PPJ Gazette:

“DATCP board is meeting on Nov 11th with public comment period beginning at 10:30 am in Madison. Max Kane called me with this information. Attached is the agenda and members bio provided by Max.

Karen Schultz is the DATCP employee in legal services who takes minutes for these meetings.  Her number is 608-224-5023. I called her this morning. She told me that public comment period begins at 10:30 am. We can register the day of the meeting, Karen said if not many people show up each person can talk for 5 minutes, if many people show up everyone get 2 minutes.

DATCP board is the group that approves administrative rule changes.!!! This board approved the rule changes that is putting so much pressure on the raw milk producers today.

What do you think of asking your consumers to go to Madison and be at this meeting.  If we can get 200 people it will set a tone of seriousness.  Now is the time!  I believe we need  people from each group to attend.

Is cow’s milk only good for calves?

There’s been controversy for a while now in nutrition circles, with some saying dairy is unnecessary in the human diet and others saying that while commercial pasteurized milk and milk products may be associated with health problems, raw dairy is altogether different in its effects on the body and is actually a valuable food.

Cow's milk is for calves, right? Are humans the only mammals to drink the milk of another species? Could be... but I'm pretty sure we're also the only mammals who use the internet. Your point?

Here’s an excellent summary of the case for milk and specifically, the case for raw milk, as part of a healthy diet. This article is written by Karen Railey B.S., CNC. It was originally found by Audrey, and circulated by Beverley. Audrey found it in “Chet’s Day” health news letter. Karen Railey, who wrote this piece, is also the author of the how-to guide “How to improve fading memory and thinking skills with Nutrition“.

A few fascinating factoids regarding pasteurization and homogenization

The following is excerpted from “One Mother’s Thoughts — Milk 101: The Skinny on Pasteurization, Homogenization and Dating of Milk“, from Peach Blog‘s May 9th newsletter. Text bolding added for emphasis by The Bovine:

“HOMOGENIZATION
Fat is less dense than water so cream (fat) floats above the watery part of the milk, naturally. Homogenization forces the cream (fat) to stay combined with the watery part by exposing the milk to high pressure, turbulence, and shock waves. When milk is homogenized, it MUST be pasteurized, as it goes rancid very quickly. On the other hand, HTST Pasteurized milk does not NEED to be homogenized because it won’t separate as the enzymes are not destroyed as much because only light pasteurization is used. Spokane Family Farm’s milk falls into this category. It is Pasteurized Non Homogenized, and can still be used for cheese making. UHT Ultra Pasteurized milk is ALWAYS homogenized to mix in the unsightly dead sludge that would form at the bottom of the carton without homogenization (out of sight out of mind). Making cheese with UHT Ultra Pasteurized milk will not work as there are not enough live enzymes remaining to grow.

Social-freedom dimension of politics

Here’s National Post columnist Karen Selick on Libertarianism, or “social freedom vs state social control” as another dimension of the political spectrum, a spectrum that’s so commonly regarded as simply a choice between economic freedom (right) or economic intervention by the state (left):

“The following is an edited excerpt from Karen Selick’s recent presentation to the Manning Networking Conference and Exhibition in Ottawa.

Perhaps the best way to explain libertarianism is to show you the graph developed in 1969 by an American named David Nolan. Nolan observed that the traditional political spectrum of “left versus right” is spectacularly unilluminating. There are simply too many nuances in political ideology to map the differences on a single dimension.

So Nolan said, “Let’s add a second dimension — a vertical axis perpendicular to the traditional left-right spectrum.” His political map looked like an L-shaped graph.

On the horizontal axis, we plot economic freedom. The more economic liberty you support, the further along this axis you are. If you believe in capitalism (minimal taxes and unregulated markets), you are out at the right. The more government control you support, the closer to the origin you are. So if you believe in socialism (high taxes, the welfare state and extensive regulation of the marketplace), you are all the way to the left.

On the vertical axis, we plot “social” freedoms. The more social liberty you support, the further up you are. So if you believe (for instance) that we should legalize gun ownership, marijuana ownership, raw milk, surrogate pregnancy, prostitution, pornography, gambling, polygamy and so on, you are up at the top. The more government control you support, the further down you are. If you believe that the government should criminalize all those things, you are down at the bottom.