yes I drink raw milk but shhhhhhhh

I can't believe in this age that are so many rules on drinking raw milk. I can drink mix drinks, I can smoke but I cant drink raw milk without going through so much restrictions and we feel like we are carring illegal moon shine on the way home hahaha.

I was going to get ourself a cow because I found out when ever I drink the regular milk at the store I would get really sick with the raw I dont its been wonderful.

We were lucky to find a local producer. In Texas we can buy it from the farm, but even so they watch him like a hawk. My kids havent gotten sick with a cold in over a year since we started drinking it. I didnt realize that milk actually has vitamin C when its still raw. I love the rich cream on the top.

Here was an interesting article on it

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1598525,00.html

 

I didn't realize there were regulations (laws??) against selling raw milk. I get very suspicious when the government "worries" so much about MY well-being. It's pretty sad when the government doesn't trust us to make such decisions for ourselves. I guess it just proves that we are only free to do what we are allowed to do.
Hmm, I wonder if there's a hidden agenda somewhere in the world of milk marketing?

I'm going to talk to my brothers about this one. They have both worked as dairy farmers and in the dairy industry. One of my brothers even worked as a Borden "cowboy", driving the real-live Elsie around the country in her "Cowdillac".

And I agree, raw milk is yummy.

 

It's been in the news here in Ohio. I guess a lot of people have bought a "part" of a cow, because it's illegal to sell it. This way, they can say they have part ownership of it. And, of course, the government is giving them grief on THAT!!!

Seems to me, that if an adult makes an educated decision to drink this knowing fully well it doesn't have a governmental "stamp of approval" and is willing to take whatever "chances" that it's "not safe", what's the problem? My only complaint would be if the milk was being sold and people THOUGHT they were getting the same stuff they get in the store.

 

We have a dairy here in PA that sells raw milk. They are inspected every 2 weeks! It's ridiculous the amount of restrictions placed on them!

Another local dairy has changed over to non RBST milk - so it has no growth hormones...still pasturized, though.

We MAY go over to raw milk. It's much more a gallon, though. Why is the good food always mroe expensive!

 

I have interested to try milk straight from the cow. My husband loves whole milk but we stay at the 2% most of the time.
I just want to be able that I have had a fresh cup, KWIM? My dad use to by beef and pork from a friend when I was growing up. Haven't done it since the friend passed on.
My husband picked up a book about a Dairy Farm. At the end they say they buy their milk from the store. Why waste the money when you have milk right there in your own backyard?

 

That is so interesting. I like your reference to moon shine, my hillbilly side of the family still makes it.

 

My family drinks whole milk - about a gallon a day. I have never had raw milk. Is that just straight from the cow? Sorry for my ignorance on this subject! My dh has been saying we should buy a cow when we finally make the move to our land in the country because we drink so much milk.

 

My mom used to be the same way as you, she could nto drink pasturized milk but straight from a cow she loved!

 

Our Dairy farmer gets inspected each week at his farm. He is very clean his dairy plus the cows are pastured raised on grass and only supplemented with other food if grass is low. He does not medicate only for the basic law required for yearly cows for Tb etc...

He is also making other products like cheese and cottage cheese from raw milk, he also sells the cream too. There is no mistaken raw milk from regular milk at the store not only by the cream up on top of the bottle but the taste is really good. If you like 2% you will think this is too rich. I have some families in our group mix it with water which actually makes more.

By not Pasteurizing it you get the enzymes still in it that help you digest it. The FDA in a 2004 report says that is not true however why is it when I drink store bought I get stomach cramps and get sick while if I drink the raw milk I am perfectly fine. This is not in my mind either when I first tried it over a year ago I was reluctant and even a bit scared to even try it. Drinking milk was like drinking nails to me, even the thought of it made my stomach turn. I drank it and nothing happened. I was thrilled. Now if I drink a lot I will get sick to my stomach abit cause I think I will always be a bit lactose.

We have a lot of kids in our group who couldnt drink milk before but can with this milk and are staying much healthier. One kid in our group had asthma really bad especially at night and the mom said she went in his room because she was concerned she didnt hear him like she normally did breathing really heavy. They had been drinking the milk for two weeks and he was breathing normally.

One of the reason they started Pasteurizing was not only to make it more clean cause some of the dairys back then were really dirty but also for longer shelf wear. Ours is drawn the day before cant get it any fresher then that

There is a lot of debate out there on it. All I know is that we love it and have been on it for over a year and will continue to be on it. Even if people dont like it, its sort of like homeschooling the choice should be given to us not the government.

Here is a great video on it from the Mercola.com health page that I love if you dont read up on then at least watch this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo5QAxXHQOQ&mode=related&search=

Sam

 

They started pasteurizing when tuberculosis was so prolific - and it saved MANY people's lives! Cows can - and do! or at least did, before regulations were put into place - get TB and can - and did! - pass it on to humans when they drink the milk. Thousands and thousands of people died every year from it. So it is a good thing, really. Is there still a need for it? Well, it depends on who you ask, I suppose. TB is actually on the rise again, and the strains that are circulating are immune to most of the antibiotics that we have. It's a nasty disease and we have a lot to be thankful for!

 

Yes your right cows can carry tuberculosis, and years ago the unclean dairys with giving the cows waste grains from the brewerys didnt help either.

Cows can also carry mad cow disease, and all kinds of other nasty stuff as any other animal that we consume. It all comes down too are they clean and have been tested before giving to the consumer.

Farmers in the state of Texas that sell raw milk must have the cows tested for TB and get their cows milk and manure tested a lot in our farmers case each week. I am more worried about someone sneezing on me that has TB since some strands can be airborne.

So if the cows are now tested these days why is it still against the law?

The same farmer that sells to us also sells to Bordens. As for other states or people owning their own cows I imagine that is up to them to test for tb. Its crazy not too.

Personally I wouldnt even coop with someone that is not clean or give their yearly shots to their cows if i owned my own cow I would give them their yearly shots too.

I do warn if you decide to try raw milk to make sure where it comes from and how they take care of their cows and what they eat, and what shots they have. Also as any food left out that gets warm it will spoil and be bad for you. Shelf life for raw milk is only two weeks while pasteurize is up to 3months. How old is your milk?



Sam

 

I know someone who is into the gras fed cow and raw milk movement. Many such folks buy cow shares to have access to milk in their states, depending on the laws.

Yes TB and Ecoli are the primary concerns.

Many in this movement feel that if the cows are grass fed instead of primarily grain fed, that they will be healthier and less apt to have these diseases.

Just do your research and consult with your pediatrician before making a decision.

The way I see it, we are not meant to drink much milk after early childhood and I tend to eat cheese, and other products instead.

 

I think if you owned your own cow though you could be sure it was fed right and takenc are of properly so as to make your fresh milk healthy too
I would love to own a cow, but then I will need someone who knows about all the details that I only know vagley about to take care of it fro me so Id have to hire a rangler hehe.

 

I spoke with my husband about this and he said in his opinion raw milk is the best. His uncle owned a dairy farm in Wisconsin and he used to visit. He said that was the best milk he ever had and of course they made their own butter and cheese too.

I think owning your own cow would be safer too. You'd know if your cow had all shots and how clean the process was.

 

I can tell you right now no doctor or especially a pediatrician is going to ok drinking raw milk its unheard and they could get in trouble I imagine. They are not going to go against the FDA.

There are some exceptions with doctors who are really health conscious and have looked into it with research who might say YES!

My Chiropractor on the other hand who we see more often then my pill pushing doctor loves to recommend raw milk said he grew up on it and even buys my pastured eggs from me. He is very health wise and is constantly researching different natural methods.

Everything on our own farm is grass fed. Our lambs, laying chickens, broiler chickens, turkeys and even our rabbits which get grass clippings and other veggies from the organic grown garden. We believe that is what God intended the animals to eat. If given a choice of an open grain field or a lot with brush and weeds my goat will take the weeds anyday hehe



Sam

 

thats cool Ranchermom , I dont always follow what Doctors say anymore espeically if they re just following some government office that has no real control over my choices heheh

 

I have been seeing this conversation a lot lately it seems! As a farmer - I get into it to. No I don't have a cow, and I don't have raw milk at this time. I want to, and actually a friend has some dairy goats and we will be switching.

Cows are ruminents - period. It's a fact. A rumen is NOT designed to process grain and so when you feed a cow grain it causes excess bacteria and other wonderful things to start growing and causing more problems. For meat animals (we grass-feed all our ruminents from start to finish - no grain) - if they would place the animals in the pasture for their last 60 days it would REDUCE the amount of ecoli in the animal 80%.

A lot of the TB was caused by unsanitary and unhealthy conditions.

If you can't get a cow, go ahead and try a goat... a good dairy goat will produce almost a gallon a day whereas a cow will produce up to 5 gallons a day.... a lot of people (myself included) find a goat a lot more manageable.

 

I have friends who have goats, I wonder if thats why I never asked lol

 

We drink raw milk here too! It's actually cheaper per gallon than organic milk where we live. I was used to skim milk so didn't think I would like it, but I love it! We buy a lot of things from a local farm, milk, beef, chicken, cottage cheese, yogurt and a few others. I'm so happy I found that farm!!

 

Do you have to feed your chickens anything else? I was under the impression that chickens can't get everything they need from grass. We buy chicken feed but I'd love to eliminate it! And in PA in the winter, I can't see how they could make it without some kind of supplement.