Milking the Pasteurization Controversy

Another offshoot of the natural―good―processed―bad―mindset is growing in the dairy segment with increased pressure for loosening the restrictions on the sale of raw, or unpasteurized, milk. Proponents such as “A Campaign for Real Milk,” a project of The Weston A. Price Foundation, claim pasteurization hinders vitamin and mineral absorption, causes a host of ills, such as asthma, immune disease and lactose intolerance. The group points to the decline in fluid milk sales as proof of their assertions that people are growing ill from its consumption.

On the other hand, there’s no doubt that milk is a wonderful medium for bacterial growth. An Ohio State fact sheet on pasteurization mentions the FDA and Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition published guidelines that established a list of a literal who’s who of pathogens in raw milk and milk products: Salmonella spp., Staphyloccocus aureus, Campylobacter jejuni, Yersina enterocolitica, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli (both enterotoxic and enteropathic), E. coli 0157:H7, Shigella spp., Streptococcus spp., and Hepatitis A virus. Bewteen 1998 and 2005, the CDC identified 45 U.S. foodborne illness outbreaks attributed to unpasteurized milk, or cheese from unpasteurized milk that resulted in 1,007 illnesses, 104 hospitalizations, and two deaths. A list of scientific investigations by the CDC underscored the problems that can and have occurred.

If that’s your cocktail of choice, go for it, I say. Maybe wash down a plate of steak tartare and a couple of raw oysters with a nice glass of raw milk. But if sloppy practices can lead to lethal peanut butter―a product historically known for its relative safety, raw milk sounds like a health crisis just waiting to happen.

-Lynn A. Kuntz