Page 89 - Winter2020

country is being produced very cleanly, resulting the milk and keeping it cold. Consumers, too, The NIH- and
in low bacteria counts. work to make sure their raw milk is kept cold
Most of the potential beneficial bacteria and does not ferment. Keeping raw milk cold USDA-funded
to be found in milk is from either fecal or soil allows it to retain its sweet taste and gives it a study found
origin. Yes. . . dirt is very good for you, and a longer shelf life. no pathogens
little poop does not hurt either. It has long been One useful point of information from the
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understood that living in a farm environment has government-funded study was the finding that in raw milk.
substantial health benefits over living in urban “spontaneous fermentation does not grow ben-
environments. However in our modern world eficial lactic acid bacteria.” This means that the
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1
with immune-compromised consumers, the raw very clean, low-bacteria-count raw milk that is
milk standards have had to change. For raw milk currently available in the U.S. may not ferment
to be legal for sale and safe for the general pub- very well in the traditional way. Generally, raw
lic (including immune-compromised people), milk consumers who intentionally ferment their
it must be very hygienic. It can no longer have milk will do so by adding beneficial bacteria
dirt or poop in it. So all that is left is clean, deli- such as a yogurt starter or kefir grains. Kefir in
cious, safe raw milk from deep inside the cow’s particular is associated with a wide number of
or goat’s udder. The government-funded study health benefits, including lower blood pressure,
tested retail raw milk samples and found zero decreased insulin resistance, tumor suppression
pathogens! The researchers stated, “[Raw] milk and prevention and improved composition of the
samples in the present study were screened for gut microbiota. 16-19
Listeria spp., Salmonella enterica, and E. coli
O157:H7. None were detected.” This should be THE BOTTOM LINE
1
celebrated as true progress toward farm cleanli- The NIH- and USDA-funded study found
ness and testing. no pathogens in raw milk. This is further confir-
1
mation of the findings published in the January
FERMENTING RAW MILK 2020 Journal of Epidemiology and Infection,
For thousands of years, people have known which concluded that “raw milk can be produced
how to ferment or “clabber” raw milk by simply with a high level of hygiene and safety.” 20
leaving it at room temperature. In the absence The government-funded study focused on
of refrigeration, people from traditional cultures antibiotic-resistant genes, which can prolifer-
often consumed raw milk in fermented form. ate in raw milk that is left at room temperature
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Such milk would have contained ample benefi- for hours. However it is no surprise that raw
cial lactic-acid bacteria from the small amounts milk, like breast milk and many other foods,
of dirt or manure present on the udders and teats contains antibiotic-resistant genes. The pres-
of the milk animals, and would therefore have ence of antibiotic-resistant genes is not an issue
quickly fermented at room temperature. unless the balance of good bacteria in the gut
In modern times, raw milk consumers have gets disrupted. Moreover both breast milk and
largely lost their taste for spontaneously fer- raw milk are known to promote the growth of
mented, sour raw milk. Instead raw milk farmers beneficial bacteria such as bifidobacteria. The
and consumers aim to maintain the sweet flavor study completely ignored the growing body of
of fresh milk as long as possible. The farmers do evidence showing that children who drink raw
this by thoroughly cleaning the udders and milk- milk have decreased rates of asthma, allergies,
ing equipment to ensure the milk will have low eczema, ear infections, fever and respiratory
bacteria counts, as well as by rapidly chilling infections. 21-23
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INFORMATION RESOURCE FOR WAPF MEMBERS
Consult with Pete Kennedy on state laws, regulations and policies including food freedom legislation and issues regarding
consumer access to raw milk, cottage foods and on-farm meat and poultry processing. (Pete cannot give individual legal
advice or recommend support for or opposition to pending legislation.) Contact Pete at pete@realmilk.com.

WINTER 2020 Wise Traditions 87