Page 90 - Summer2008

A Campaign for Real Milk

TESTIMONY BEFORE THE CALIFORNIA SENATE AGRICULTURE
COMMITTEE AND THE SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE
ON FOODBORNE ILLNESS
April 15, 2008
By Sally Fallon

Thank you, Senator Florez, for the opportu- visit to the doctor for any reason and no asthma
nity to testify before the joint committees today. attacks—except for one, a serious attack that
My name is Sally Fallon. I am testifying in my occurred after the boy consumed pasteurized
capacity as the president of the Weston A. Price milk while on a family trip.

Foundation, a nonprot nutrition education foun- The third involves an autistic eight-year-old
dation; as the founder of A Campaign for Real boy who had not spoken a word since the sud-
Milk, which advocates the consumption of un- den onset of autism at the age of two. After two
pasteurized whole milk from pasture-fed cows; months on raw cow’s milk, all autistic behavior
and as secretary of the Farm-to-Consumer Legal disappeared and the child began to babble as a
A Campaign Defense Fund, which provides legal defense of prelude to speech. The only dietary or treatment
for Real Milk farms engaged in raw milk production and di- change was a switch from pasteurized to raw
rect farm-to-consumer sales. Most importantly, milk.
is a project of I am testifying here today in my capacity as a Now please imagine the joy and relief that
the Weston A. mother. raw milk has given to the families of these
Price And it is as a mother that I will start with children—an end to suffering, an end to worry.
Foundation. three testimonials typical of those we receive Family life can be normal and happy again. It
To obtain almost every day. One comes from a physician is testimonials like these that make us so pas-
some of our who prescribes raw milk to his patients, often sionate about having access to raw milk, and

with remarkably benecial effects. One dramatic so concerned about the manner in which access
informative case involved a nine-month-old boy who had had to raw milk has been undermined in the state
Real Milk three ear infections in three months. The child of California with the stealth passage of AB
brochures, had received a number of formulas based on 1735, a law that mandates standards so strict
contact the processed cow’s milk and soy protein, and the that commercial production of raw milk will
Foundation at mother had even tried pasteurized goat milk. become impossible. Our experts here today will
With each formula the child suffered recurrent testify to the fact that the 10 coliform limit is not
(202) vomiting, diarrhea, failure to gain weight and only unnecessary for the safety of raw milk, but
363-4394. thrive, and he had been ill with either viral or would actually make raw milk more vulnerable
Check out our bacterial infections almost continuously since to pathogens.
website, early infancy. After the mother switched to a Make no mistake, those who worked behind
www. formula based on raw goat milk, however, the the scenes for the passage of this law, and our op-
diarrhea and vomiting ceased and the child be-
ponents testifying today, do not want the sickly,
RealMilk.com gan to gain weight. One year later he has normal asthmatic or autistic child to have access to
for additional growth and is perfectly healthy. Nature’s perfect healing food. Although couched
information The second comes from a Weston A. Price in terms of public safety, AB 1735 has nothing
and sources local chapter leader who reported on a two- to do with safety and everything to do with pro-
of Real Milk year-old boy with very serious asthma. After tecting California’s annual $4.5 billion industrial
the mother put the boy on raw cow’s milk the dairy industry, which has to be propped up with
products. child went through the entire winter without a an average of $1.6 billion in subsidies every year.
88 Wise Traditions SUMMER 2008