Page 97 - Winter2017

RAW MILK UPDATES
By Pete Kennedy, Esq.

FDA SUIT TO SEIZE CAMEL MILK PRODUCTS
On October 19, 2017, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) filed a complaint with a federal
district court in Kansas to seize and condemn around $70,000 worth of raw camel milk, pasteurized camel milk,
raw camel milk colostrum, and raw camel milk kefir. The camel milk products are currently being held at a frozen
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food warehouse, My Magic Kitchen, located in Kansas City. The Kansas Department of Agriculture has placed all the
products under embargo, prohibiting their movement from the warehouse. All labels on the frozen products FDA
wants to seize bear the name Desert Farms; the Santa Monica, California-based company is the largest raw milk
distributor in the U.S. According to the complaint. Hump-Back Dairys of Miller, Missouri produced nearly all of the
product being held at the warehouse; the dairy is, by far, the largest camel milk producer in the country.
There has been a thirty-year ban on raw dairy products (other than aged raw cheese) in interstate commerce;
FDA interprets the ban to extend to raw camel milk products. In December 2016, Samuel Hostetler, the owner of
Hump-Back Dairys, received a warning letter from FDA. The letter to Hostetler warned that he was violating the
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interstate ban by shipping both raw camel milk and raw camel milk products in interstate commerce; Hostetler
responded to the warning letter by informing the agency that he would be complying with the federal regulation
establishing the ban.
Walid Abdul-Wahab, the president of Desert Farms, also received a warning letter from FDA in September 2016
but the letter did not mention the interstate raw dairy ban; instead the letter accused Desert Farms of violating the
law by shipping “new drugs” that were not approved by FDA in interstate commerce. The letter noted that Desert
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Farms was making health claims on its website and Facebook page about how camel milk was being successfully
used to treat various diseases, especially autism. The letter warned that the camel milk products were drugs because
“they are intended for use in the care, mitigation and treatment of disease.” As such they were “new drugs” that
needed approval from FDA before they could be marketed. The FDA approval for new drug processing can cost in
the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The FDA suit filed for the seizure and destruction of the camel milk products alleges that Desert Farms’ social
media pages (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram) linked to the company’s website contain claims that “dem-
onstrate that the camel milk products are intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention
of disease, including autism, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, viral infections such as hepatitis, the genetic
disorder Machado-Joseph, depression, gastrointestinal disease, heart problems, attention deficit disorder, autoim-
mune diseases, Hashimoto’s disease and cancer.” 4
What neither the warning letters nor FDA’s complaint for seizure allege is that the camel milk products are
adulterated or a threat to human health. As far as is known, there has never been a case of foodborne illness in this
country attributed to consumption of raw camel milk. Destruction of the camel milk products at the warehouse
would be an absolute waste of healthy food.
It is estimated there are over ten thousand families with autistic children in the U.S. that purchase raw camel
milk; many of these families pay eighteen dollars or more per pint for the product. There is a reason for that; par-
ents of autistic children have found that raw camel milk and camel milk products can alleviate the symptoms of the
condition known as autism spectrum disorder. The science backs them up. Pasteurized camel milk can be effective
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in alleviating the symptoms of autism as well, though not to the same degree.
Earlier this year, the FDA released an article on its Consumer Updates page titled, “Autism: Beware of Potentially
Dangerous Therapies and Products.” In the article FDA warns about taking camel milk as a treatment for autism and
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autism-related symptoms. When the FDA warns about taking a product for a disease, it is often because the product
is a threat to the profits of the pharmaceutical industry.
The FDA is seeking a court order to destroy over forty-three hundred eight- and sixteen-ounce bottles of camel
milk products; products that can help autistic children cope with their condition. The judge hearing the case has the
discretion to release the product to Desert Farms. If Walid Abdul-Wahab shows the court that any health claims are
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no longer on the Desert Farms website and social media and that he is willing to pasteurize the camel milk (with the
interstate ban, he would have no choice if he wants the product released) and label the milk containers accordingly,
the judge could release the product to Desert Farms. Healthy food like this should not wind up in a landfill.

WINTER 2017 Wise Traditions 97