White Gold
WORTHINGTON, Armstrong County — If the Wilson family, owners of Le-Ara Farms, lived in New York or Ohio or Maryland, they could find themselves in jail.
In Pennsylvania, however, the dairy farming family is allowed to produce and sell raw milk.
Most other states have outlawed the practice of selling milk that has not been pasteurized or homogenized to the public.
Pasteurization is the heating of milk to kill bacteria, and homogenization is the process of breaking up butter fat into smaller cells.
Milk bootleggers and underground sellers smuggle the white gold across state lines, feeding a growing base of buyers who believe the unprocessed milk is better for them, is a miracle cure or just tastes better.
Instead of prosecution, however, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has established a certification program that includes stringent oversight of the dairies and their products.
The Le-Ara Farms on Winfield Road just over the Armstrong County line is one of the few raw milk farms in Western Pennsylvania.
Content cows stand in their stanchions surrounded by clean straw, greeting visitors to the Wilson farm with the warm smell of animal, not manure.The Wilsons have lived on this land since 1894 with five generations working the acres and animals. Milk production stopped in 1966 with Dick and Shirley Wilson raising sheep, cattle and crops.Their daughters, Lesa and Lara, began buying cows for their 4-H projects, making up the base of the farm's current herd of 80.Lara Shields said Monday after research on her part, the family decided to give raw milk sales a try."It was economic," she said in the milk room of the barn, equipped with a holding tank and milking equipment."When the price of milk went so low a couple of years ago, we decided to apply for the raw milk license as a way to make more money for the farm," she said.In 2009, the Wilson farm sold its milk for processing to Marburger Dairy for $1.20 per gallon, while selling raw milk directly to customers for $5 per gallon.It's been five years since the family got its certificate from the state, a long, open-ended process that includes inspections and laboratory testing."Once you get the certificate it doesn't mean you just get to keep it," Shields said. "They are always looking over our shoulder," she said about the Department of Agriculture.Shields said initial individual customers came to the farm looking for milk that did not contain growth hormones, which the Le-Ara cows have never received. Later, customers came for the raw milk."We find they are usually from Pittsburgh or Butler, from the city more than our neighbors," Shirley Wilson said.Shields said customers want the milk because of the flavor and the nutritional value.The raw milk contains the cream, all the butter fat, and is considered a whole food or complete food by nutritionists."Pasteurization gives the milk a burnt flavor," Shields said, with Shirley adding the family drinks raw milk. "That's what I grew up on."
There are 127 certified raw milk producers in Pennsylvania with just a handful in the western region. But Justin Fleming, the state Department of Agriculture's spokesman, said demand is growing.Bill Chirdon, director of the Bureau of Food Safety, said while the state allows farmers to be certified for raw milk sales, "They are held to a higher standard" for herd health and cleanliness."Milk is a perfect food, so if there is a mistake in handling the milk or if a farmer's water is bad or if the cows are sick, people drinking that milk can get sick as well," he said.As an example, Chirdon explained milk that has been pasteurized and homogenized has a refrigerated shelf life of 21 to 24 days, while raw milk might have a shelf life of 10 to 12 days.In areas of the world without reliable refrigeration, milk is sterilized and in some cases can remain refrigerated for up to two years, Chirdon said.His department is on the lookout for diseases like tuberculosis, spread by cows through unprocessed or poorly processed milk and cheeses. Other diseases include brucellosis or undulant fever, which killed Henry Ford's son Edsel in the early 1900s, and listeriosis, found in any food that has been contaminated with the bacteria."If we find any problems on a farm, we will work with the farmers to get it corrected, which we do about 85 percent of the time," Chirdon said.As for why Pennsylvania allows raw milk sales, Fleming said the reasons are economic, a way to help family farms remain in production."Raw milk equals economic profit," he said. "Since so many states don't allow it, we provide a market for those who want it in other states."A farm in Lebanon sold more than 1,000 gallons of raw milk in 2009, with the majority of customers being from Maryland, Chirdon said.Chirdon said there are scientific reasons to drink raw milk. They include the breakdown of lactose sugars during pasteurization."It does taste better because of the lactose sugars being whole, giving fresh milk a good and clean taste," he said.There are no significant nutritional differences between raw and pasteurized milk, Chirdon added.
Yet the fight around raw milk continues in other states. An Internet search uncovers articles from human and animal doctors decrying the risks of raw milk, including one from the Bovine Veterinarian Magazine titled, "Raw Milk: Playing with Fire."But there are groups fighting back, including Real Milk, a project of The Weston A. Price Foundation, which studies the human diet globally.Real Milk and the foundation also formed the Farm-Consumer Legal Defense Fund to help with legal costs of raw milk farmers and customers.Sally Fallon Morell, president of Real Milk, said the group found raw milk is more nutritious and easier to digest than processed milk and provides good bacteria."Recent studies show that raw milk helps combat allergies and asthma, makes for superior strong bones and teeth, and may help children with autism, who can be picky eaters, remain calm while receiving a more complete diet," Morell said.The future of raw milk consumption in the nation hinges on better education of the benefits as well as ensuring good practices in the manufacture and handling of the milk.While the controversy surrounding raw milk has lessened in Pennsylvania because of its certification process, Morell believes the state still demands too much oversight for farmers.However, Morell does agree with Chirdon and Fleming on one point: economics."Raw milk is an economic benefit for Pennsylvania farmers, who are able to make really good money selling raw milk to customers in neighboring states."
