Des Moines, Iowa — One hundred members of the Iowa legislature have voted to let Iowa dairy farms sell raw milk.
If the governor signs the bill into law, it would still be illegal to sell unpasteurized milk at farmers’ markets or in restaurants, but raw milk and products like cheese or yogurt made with raw milk could be sold at the farm where it’s processed. Senator Jason Schultz, a Republican from Schleswig, celebrated last (Monday) night as the senate was on the verge of taking final action on the bill.
Forty-nine legislators in the House and Senate voted against the bill. Representative Megan Srinivas, a Democrat from Des Moines, says drinking raw milk can be dangerous and as an infectious disease doctor, she’s treated several children who were exposed to bacteria in raw milk.
Representative Bobby Kaufmann, a Republican from Wilton, says people have been consuming raw milk for thousands of years.
The dairy industry opposes the bill, arguing if there’s an outbreak of serious illness associated with raw milk, then all milk sales will decline. If the bill becomes law, raw milk sold at an Iowa farm would have to be stored below 45 degrees and sold within seven days of a cow being milked.
