Dairy Leaders Against Iowa Raw Milk Bill
Following a 37-13 Senate vote earlier this week, the Iowa Legislature has given final approval to Senate Bill 315 that would allow Iowans to purchase raw milk fresh from the farm.
Republican Senator Jason Schultz of Schleswig said he has waited 17 years for a raw milk bill to clear the Legislature.
Although, not all share the same excitement as Sen. Schultz. Several dairy organizations, including Iowa State Dairy Association and Iowa Dairy Foods Association, have registered to lobby against the bill.
National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) very much opposes the sale of raw milk and actively tries to monitor the issue at the state level to stop such efforts.
“Selling raw milk for human consumption is a demonstrated public health risk -- no amount of testing or added on-farm procedures are going to ensure the same level of safety as pasteurization,” Miquela Hanselman, manager of regulatory affairs with NMFP says.
Joining forces, Iowa Farm Bureau, the state’s dairy industry and Iowa grocers oppose the bill. Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, said raw milk should have a warning label because pregnant women are at serious risk of becoming ill from Listeria if they consume it.
“A warning label to prevent stillbirth, miscarriage, death of a newborn and illness of a pregnant mom I don’t believe is too much to ask,” Petersen stated in 2022.
Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls of Coralville said federal data shows at least 144 Americans had to be hospitalized between 1993 and 2012 after consuming raw milk.
“This idea that there’s no connections to hospitalizations or outbreaks is simply not true,” Wahls said.
“Selling raw milk for additional revenue on dairy farms isn’t worth the liability and larger risk to public health, and any illness outbreaks associated with raw milk would tarnish the dairy industry’s reputation for integrity and harm every dairy farmer nationwide,” Hanselman states.
A recent trend toward raw-milk bills in state legislatures is worrisome.
“But given our society’s current struggles with misinformation and a lack of understanding and appreciation for science – especially in the realm of medicine and public health – it is unfortunately not a shock,” Hanselman remarks.
Previous attempts to legalize raw milk sales in Iowa have stalled in the past two decades. The bill now is headed to Gov. Kim Reynolds for her signature.
