Cowsharing raw milk cosmetic farmer in Australia meets the Dairy Authority

From Paul Marks on Alternative Law Journal:

“Tyler set up ‘My Cow’, a cow-share program, about six years ago. Applicants purchase a one per cent share of a cow for $27.50. Shareholders then pay a small monthly boarding fee. Each share yields 6.5 litres of raw, unprocessed milk monthly. Shareholders may either collect the milk from the dairy or, if they pay a delivery fee, from one of a number of suburban Adelaide collection points.

A raft of Legislation, Regulation, Standards and Codes of Practice apply to milk production. Accreditation by the Dairy Authority is required to produce, transport or process milk. The sale of raw drinking milk is not permitted. A recent Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (‘FSANZ’) review of restrictions on the production and processing of raw milk decided ‘the risks associated with raw drinking milk cannot be reduced sufficiently and such products present a medium to high level of public health and safety risk’.

Farmer Michael Schmidt calls B.C. raw milk cosmetics battle “ridiculous”

From the Owen Sound Sun Times:

Durham area raw milk advocate Michael Schmidt and his four year old son William at his Durham area farm on Friday September 30, 2011. James Masters\The Sun Times

DURHAM – Local raw milk advocate Michael Schmidt’s appeal of a British Columbia judge’s contempt of court finding against him is based what he views as the lack of proof anyone drank his milk and lack of clarity of the court order he was found to have breached, he said Tuesday in an interview.

Schmidt said he restructured a Chilliwack, B.C. dairy farm to produce cosmetics to comply with an injunction which ordered him and others not to package and distribute unpasteurized milk for human consumption.

But Superior Court Justice Randall Wong called the cosmetics claim a “ruse” and found Schmidt and farm owner Gordon Watson in contempt of the court by violating the injunction.

Michael Schmidt reflects on the Little Chilliwack Dairy Court Drama, part 2

Michael Schmidt continues with his review of the BC raw milk trial. Part 1 is here, if you missed it.

Photos from the operetta Milk Trial by Jury

I returned home to Ontario on a West Jet red eye flight. I was relieved that Nobody around me noticed, that I was out on bail for conspiracy to kidnap sheep. 

Lawyers worked frantically to make sure that I can continue to play my role in the six act drama of our “little Chilliwack dairy”. No doubt it would be the best scenario in the “Hunt for Michael Schmidt” if I  would be punished and locked up for 45 days as Susan Beach demanded before the “Sheep Heist Trial” even starts.

What an honor to travel 13500 km in less than 12 days to be on the BC stage of justice.

[Editor’s note: Michael had to return to Ontario after Act 3 of the trial, in order to obtain permission to go again out of the Province, since his original permission had been for only been for the trial’s anticipated duration of Feb 13-15th, and now it seemed the proceedings would take a few days longer than planned for.]

The BC raw milk court proceedings

Wondering what happened in court out there in B.C. last week, with Fraser Health accusing Michael Schmidt and Gordon Watson of contempt of court? Well, the author of the Bank of Common Sense blog has been public spirited enough to write it all up and post the story, so we can all follow along:

From the Bank of Common Sense:

The accused men, Michael Schmidt and Gordon Watson, with raw milk, on the courthouse steps in British Columbia. Photo from the Food Renegade.com. Click image to go to source post.

“Why is raw milk such a contentious issue? I’ve gone through the big picture regarding raw milk in the previous link. But considering in British Columbia this affects a few hundred people, it seems that it’s out of line to spend over $200,000 in court fees.

I just spent a few days watching a court proceeding in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Cosmetic use of milk goes way back

From Hella Delicious:

Image: Rare mosaic etching by IREL. Click for details

“…Cleopatra is renowned for being an incredibly beautiful woman, many people put this down to her habit of bathing in fermented mares’ milk and modern research has discovered the benefits of lactic acid on cleansing skin and smoothing wrinkles. One thing that is not generally stressed when mentioning Cleopatra is that she was also a brilliant strategist on many levels.

Saga of the little Chilliwack dairy

From Michael Schmidt:

Some of the members of the Little Chilliwack Dairy that could.. Photo via Michael Schmidt

Preface

In a surprise move Fraser Health lawyer Susan Beach took sick leave and Gordon Watson’s and my 55,000 dollar contempt of court hearing was “indefinitely postponed”, agreed on by all parties.

Susan Beach is the second lawyer having been bestowed with the responsibility to erase the little Chilliwack dairy, who needed to remove herself. Guy McDonald had to do the same a few years ago due to a mysterious illness.

This begs the question, is this Little Chilliwack dairy, “that could, would and should” in fact making Government lawyers sick?

Bollywood star washes with raw milk

Just in case anyone thought that the idea of using raw milk products for skin care purposes was some kind of made-up fantasy, here’s a story from India about a beautiful film star sharing her skin care and beauty secrets:

From The Times of India:

Dig that raw milk skin tone. Star of the Indian screen, Aditi Rao Hydari, reveals that yes, she washes her face with raw milk. Click image for photo source.

“Actress Aditi Rao Hydari shares her beauty secrets with us.

Skin-tillating! I do some yoga and dance, this makes my skin glow. I keep my skin clean and healthy. An oatmeal pack made at home is what I use for my skin and wash my face with raw milk, some vitamin C and vitamin E serum and moisturiser.

Mane point: Oiling my hair twice a week with organic virgin coconut oil from Navdanya (an organic food store), hair spas as often as possible, Kerastase shampoo for sensitive scalp and a hair mask from Kerastase sum up my hair care regime. This is my regular hair care regime. For the red carpet, I love tousled hair, a side braid or a delicate updo that reveals the neck. My favourite look is that of Audrey Hepburn’s from Breakfast At Tiffany’s.

Michael Schmidt’s B.C. raw milk farm “Our Cows” searched by health officials

From Robert Freeman in the Chilliwack Progress:

"Our Cows" members share a day on the farm. Photo from Hella D blog. Click to go there.

“A search warrant was executed by health officials last week at the Chilliwack dairy farm at the centre of the raw milk controversy in B.C.

Nothing was seized during the Aug. 25 search, but Fraser Health Authority spokesman Roy Thorpe-Dorward said photographs of the farm on Prairie Central Road are being reviewed to determine if a permanent court injunction issued last year against distribution of raw milk is being obeyed by the current farm owner. 

Judges and legislators the missing link in raw milk “food rights” recognition?

David E. Gumpert looks at how recent raw milk food rights cases have played out in legislatures and in the courts, on the Complete Patient blog:

“…Now, all that may be infringements on our rights, but until we get judges and legislators and governors agreeing with us, we’re skating on thin ice. And the best way to begin doing that is to accumulate evidence that raw milk is much safer than the “experts” would have the public think.
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For a taste of what could well happen in the U.S. in the event food rights advocates begin winning some court cases, one need only look northward, to Canada. Since Michael Schmidt’s victory in an Ontario court backing his right to make milk available to a private group of cow share owners, not only has the Ontario government appealed to a higher court, but other Canadian provinces are cracking down harder than ever on raw milk providers.

Raw milk cosmetics for helath & beauty

From the website showing101.com:

Everyone has their own take on "health". But I'm guessing this is by a non-native English speaker.

Chilliwack, British Columbia, Jan. 5 (AP) – A Canadian raw milk dairy ordered the sale of unpasteurized milk for human consumption is rebranding the product as a “body lotion”.

Picture used to illustrate the concept of "raw milk body lotion" in the story on the Helath and Beauty website.

Our cows milk in Chilliwack, British Columbia, was ordered to stop distributing raw milk for human consumption because of its status as a health hazard under the Public Health Act to rebrand the province by leading representatives of the Company raw milk enzymatic Cleopatra’s Body Lotion, reports The Globe and Mail on Tuesday.

The 22-dairy raw cream sales also help as a massage.

“This is a covert attempt unsought way around the law,” said Robin Smith, Executive Director of the British Columbia Milk producers Association. “It is a sham cows in Cleopatra’s robes.”