Got (Raw) Milk? NJ's Surprising Split Over Pasteurization

Passions are running high in Trenton and throughout New Jersey these days over a topic that would not normally inspire strong feelings: milk.

Advocates of a bill (A-743) that would permit the sale of raw, unpasteurized milk in the state have been pushing for its final passage before the end of the legislative session next month. Opponents have been equally vocal.

Both sides packed a hearing last week of the Senate Economic Growth Committee, which needs to vote the bill out to get it to the floor of the upper house and then to the governor. Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union), committee chair, announced at the start that the bill did not have enough votes to pass. After hearing a number of speakers on both sides of the issue, he promised to hold another hearing and call for a vote before time runs out. The Senate has called sessions for January 5 and January 9, but no committee hearings are scheduled yet.

The question is whether New Jersey should regulate and allow farms to sell raw milk and other unpasteurized dairy products to consumers.

Currently, 30 states allow raw milk sales, according to the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture. Of those 30, 13 restrict sales to the farm where the milk is produced. Five states have toughened quality standards for unpasteurized dairy products during the last three years.

Proponents say unpasteurized milk tastes better and attribute numerous health benefits to it -- from relief from allergies and asthma to curing cancer. At the very least, they say, the issue is one of consumers’ rights. There’s an economic argument, as well: Since New Jerseyans already buy raw milk by crossing the border to Pennsylvania or New York, where sales are legal, why shouldn’t farmers here be able to benefit from that business?

For opponents, the issue is strictly one of safety: Unpasteurized milk can carry such dangerous bacteria as salmonella, e. coli, and listeria. Both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn people not to consume raw dairy products, and the CDC states that doing so has led to more than 1,800 reported illnesses, 195 hospitalizations, and two deaths between 1998 and 2009.

While both sides engage in a heated debate, Assemblyman John DiMaio (R-Warren) and one of the bill’s sponsors, noted that the Assembly easily passed the measure last March after it was amended so that raw dairy products could only be sold at farm stands.

DiMaio, whose district includes some of North Jersey’s prime farmland, said allowing farmers who wish to sell raw milk products could help them stay in business. The Garden State still has 87 dairy farms, though that’s just a fraction of the 3,500 that were here in the 1960's.

“This would be a value-added product farmers can sell if they choose for $8-to-$10 a gallon at the farm,” DiMaio said. “This is a very simple bill that can help farmers remain viable.”

Dr. Ted Beals, a nationally known supporter of raw milk, told the Senate committee that while there is a risk of getting sick from raw dairy products, it is still very low: Of 10 million people consuming unpasteurized milk products each year, an average of 35 get sick.

“If this milk was as hazardous as it’s being portrayed, it would have been eliminated from people’s diets long, long ago,” he said.

Continue reading this story in NJ Spotlight.

NJ Spotlight is an online news service providing insight and information on issues critical to New Jersey.