Raw, farm-fresh milk is a legal, traditional food in Minnesota; however, the current, outdated law requires it to be obtained “at the farm.” This restriction creates hardships for Minnesotans to obtain farm-fresh milk and for farmers wishing to sell farm-fresh milk, since it is wasteful, unwise, and impractical to have many city consumers drive to where the farm-fresh milk is produced.
THE SOLUTION
Remove on-site purchase requirement since it is not possible for some people and impractical for many people to face the perils of lengthy road travel in order to access the raw milk from the farm.
These bills cost nothing for the state to implement. They simply improve practical access to an already legal food.
In Minnesota, farm-fresh milk is a traditional, cultural food consumed by many families for generations.
Raw milk consumers are rational people making educated choices by studying the health aspects, meeting the farmers and visiting the farms. They choose their food and their dairy farmer carefully.
Our urbanized society is different from when the current purchase restrictions were established. The restrictions need to be removed to reflect the current times, and to be less discriminatory toward those who rely on public transportation or who are disabled, blind or unable to drive.
These bills support family farms, rural economies, sustainable farming, healthy citizens, and Food Freedom.
Raw milk produced for human consumption is safe. There are 2 forms of milk production. One type of milk must be pasteurized. The other type is produced under different conditions and can be consumed raw.
Pasteurized milk is a processed food. Nutrition and health professionals recommend less processed foods.