Raw Milk Could be legal again in Maryland
***TAKE ACTION***
Hearing Scheduled for Cow Share Bill in Maryland!
UPDATE: The hearing was January 28th and was a huge success. We still need calls and emails to the committee. Please keep them coming! See below.
House Office Building, Room 241
6 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401
1:00pm January 28 2014!
Directions: Lowe House office Building Annapolis MD
Prior to the hearing, on January 22 2014 from 9:00am-1:00pm supporters will host a virtual lobby day (the real lobby day is canceled due to weather and poor road conditions) to ask legislators to support the bill. Additional details for the lobby day, see the facebook event.
Please keep emailing and calling committee members! This is essential! Make sure to include your address!
Questions or to submit written testimony for the hearing, please contact John Murphy jdm2147 at gmail.com
Posted 1/14: The Maryland General Assembly is considering lifting the ban on raw milk by reinstating cow shares which have been criminalized since 2006. This bill would do wonders for Maryland farmers who wish to engage directly with eager consumers wanting raw milk from their own animals. This legislation, once passed, would repeal the ban on cow shares (and goat) and allow people to contract directly with the farmers of their choice for raw milk.
Please support this by taking action, below and sharing with others!
A bill legalizing RAW MILK via cow shares in Maryland is in the Health and Government Operations Committee. Please call and ask Delegates to SUPPORT HB3
Delegates Jim Hubbard and Nic Kipke have introduced a bill, HB 3, legalizing cow shares, it is in committee right now. Your calls matter more than you would believe!! Please contact the committee members immediately to express your support of HB3.
Background: In April of 06, The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene issued a change to the existing regulations in MD to redefine a cow share as a sale of raw milk specifically to make cow shares illegal. Until then, cow shares were a viable means of Maryland consumers to obtain raw milk from Maryland farmers. We have been working for years to gain our full right to purchase raw milk from the producer of our choice. Reinstating the right to contract with farmers in a cow share is a great first step. With this law in place, we will once again have the choice to support Maryland farmers by engaging with them for our raw milk needs.
ACTIONS
1. Call or email the members of the House Health and Government Operations Committee and ask them to SUPPORT cow share bill HB3 (contact info below) When you call or write, please emphasize that you’d like the choice to be able to obtain your milk from within state. Please also explain the amount of money you are currently spending in other states because of the ban on raw milk in MD. Make sure to include your address!
2. Call and email Delegate Jim Hubbard and Delegate Nic Kipke and thank them for sponsoring the legislation:
James Hunnard james.hubbard@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3103
Nic Kipke nicholaus.kipke@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3421
You can use the wording below as a guide for your email (please add your own words expressing why you care about access to fresh milk with a focus on choice and economics)
“Please support bill HB3, introduced by Delegates Hubbard and Kipke. I support the right of farmers and consumers to engage in contract. The passage of this legislation will create untold economic opportunity for Maryland farmers. Thank you for your support.”
Please include your address in all emails!
Talking points
- Maryland Dairy farmers have lost millions of dollars to PA raw milk producers.
- The Maryland dairy industry needs to find another way to earn income. Maryland has lost hundreds of dairy farms over the past 20 years. They need another form of income to give them options.
- There is access to raw milk in 35-40 states. Maryland is behind the curve in access to raw milk.
- The consumption of raw milk is legal in Maryland. Why do consumers need to cross state lines to exercise a right they have?
- Access to raw milk can provide other income opportunities for Maryland farmers and small farm prosperity.
- Raw milk has a good overall track record for safety.
- Rural economies have been declining over the past few decades. This is a way to strengthen rural economies once again and see them prosper.
CONTACT INFO:
Chairman: Peter Hammen peter.hammen@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3772 Vice-Chair: Shane Pendergrass shane.pendergrass@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3139 Committee Members Eric Bromwell eric.bromwell@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3766 Bob Costa bob.costa@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3551 Bonnie Cullison bonnie.cullison@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3883 John Donoghue john.donoghue@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3125 Donald Elliott donald.elliott@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3118 Frank William william.frank@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3793 Ariana Kelly ariana.kelly@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3642 Wade Kach a.wade.kach@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3359 Susan Krebs susan.krebs@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3200 Pat McDonough pat.mcdonough@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3334 Dan Morhaim dan.morhaim@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3054 Peter Murphy peter.murphy@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3247 Shirley Natahn-Pulliam shirley.nathan.pulliam@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3358 Nathanial Oaks nathaniel.oaks@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3283 Joseline Pena-Melnyk joseline.pena.melnyk@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3502 Justin Ready justin.ready@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3070 Kirill Reznik kirill.reznik@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3039 Shawn Tarrant shawn.tarrant@house.state.md.us Phone: 410-841-3545 Veronica Turner veronica.turner@house.state.md.us Phone: 301-858-3212 Sponsors: James Hunnard james.hubbard@house.state.md.us Nic Kipke nicholaus.kipke@house.state.md.us All emails peter.hammen@house.state.md.us shane.pendergrass@house.state.md.us eric.bromwell@house.state.md.us bob.costa@house.state.md.us bonnie.cullison@house.state.md.us john.donoghue@house.state.md.us donald.elliott@house.state.md.us william.frank@house.state.md.us james.hubbard@house.state.md.us a.wade.kach@house.state.md.us ariana.kelly@house.state.md.us nicholaus.kipke@house.state.md.us susan.krebs@house.state.md.us pat.mcdonough@house.state.md.us dan.morhaim@house.state.md.us
Liz Reitzig
Wherever you are in your personal journey toward clean living and local food, thank you for joining me in mine. I look forward to sharing it with you.
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I GREW UP ON RAW MILK FROM MY GRANDPARENTS DAIRY FARM IN DELAWARE. I SUPPORT RAW MILK!!!
The dangers of raw milk have nothing to do with what the cow eats or what drugs she doesn’t get.
It’s dangerous because of the diseases it can transmit.
http://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/rawmilk/raw-milk-index.html
Also, pasteurized milk is just as healthy to drink.
http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4383
Craig, there have been far more disease out breaks from pasteurized milk, from spinach/salads, from commercially raised eggs, from peanut butter, from commercially raised/processed meats etc. than there have been from raw milk. And there are many, MANY people who drink it regularly. Last estimate I believe was around 3 million in the US. They sell raw milk from VENDING MACHINES in France, and they aren’t getting sick from it. Raw milk literally has it’s own immune system, it kills off bad bacteria that may invade it. Don’t just swallow (pun intended) what the CDC says. Do research on it.
Craig, most people who are interested in raw milk have much more knowledgeable than these “blanket” links you have provided. You’ve said: “The dangers of raw milk have nothing to do with what the cow eats or what drugs she doesn’t get. It’s dangerous because of the diseases it can transmit.”
The dangers of our milk supply ARE because of what the cow eats AND what drugs the cows DO get. That is why people want the right to purchase raw milk without the govt doing “sting” operations.
Hi Craig, Raw milk actually has the ability to heal some diseases. I am living proof that raw milk can reverse osteopenia. Also, there are other legal things in our culture that are actually very dangerous, like guns and swimming pools. Don’t you think we ought to have a choice about milk for goodness sake!!!
Just because YOU believe it’s dangerous doesn’t make it right to make it illegal for those of us that believe it’s SAFER than pasteurized milk.
exactly Heather…Craig and others will have the choice…he can still buy his preferred type of milk.
My grandfather was a dairy farmer in Texas when pasteurization was first being required. He and a group of other dairymen didn’t believe milk should be pasteurized. They conducted experiments feeding raw and pasteurized milk to rats – similar to those conducted by Randleigh Farms in California from 1935 to 1940. Rats fed raw milk had good development and healthy fur. Rats fed only pasteurized milk had poor development and ruff fur or hairless areas. There were other markers they noted but I don’t have all the details. There were many published studies carried out during the 1920s, 1930s and… Read more »
So True !! Thanks for the posting !! Raw Milk is Whole,Pure and Perfect created by GOD. Until man got his hands on it and destroyed it.
Juliette, I believe people should be able to choose raw or pasteurized milk, without the government attempting to stop or sway them one way or the other. The thing is, when pasteurization was first begun, it really DID save thousands of lives, mainly children. That, however, was because of the terrible filthy conditions the milk was being produced and “processed’ under. The cows were sick, the equipment was filthy, and it was killing people. (Look up “swill milk”, it will make you sick.) BUT now that we can sanitize and have a proper knowledge of how food borne illness is… Read more »
This bill is an amazing start for the availability of raw milk in Maryland! I drive to Pennsylvania every other week for raw milk and raw cheese. I buy lots of other things while I’m there–apples, wine, lunch, etc. It would be a positive addition to the state’s economy, unlike all those casinos. (Sorry, I had to say it.) Thank you, Delegates!
[…] The first story is about Tyson recalling 34,000 lbs of mechanically separated chicken. The second is an announcement that the State of Maryland is considering decriminalizing raw milk. […]
Read “Pittanger’s Cats” It is a study done by a medical researcher on raw milk and nutrition that everyone who thinks raw milk is dangerous should read. It’s an easy read. All four of my children were raised on unpasteurized goat milk. None of them has allergies, all have very strong bones and teeth. Each is healthy and intellectually able to think for him or herself. Raw milk is nutritious, delicious and has far more benefits than pasteurized milk due the fact that heat destroys the enzymes and alters the vitamins so that they are not processed well by the… Read more »
My family has been drinking raw milk for several years with zero ill effects. When I drink pasteurized milk I develop symptoms normally associated with Lactose Intolerance. I believe almost nothing with a “gov” attachment or association anymore. Having worked for them I don’t trust them. Like the old saying goes, “If their lips are moving they’re lying.”
I loved to drink a raw milk. Only you should boiled it.
Hormones in a food is a direct path to obesity and cancer!
I called and left a detailed message for my Delegate, Nathaniel T. Oaks. Asking him to please support HB3.
I have to say cowshares are expensive and a pain. I predict Marylanders would still get milk from PA through the buying clubs. I’m in Virginia where cowshares are legal and we get out milk through a farmer in PA. A gallon of raw milk of good raw milk from an Amish farmer in PA is $6 and with the buying club transportation allowance, it is $7. Meanwhile, the cowshares will run you at least $8/gallon, plus you have more upfront costs and no flexibility about how many gallons you get each week. So why don’t you just propose a… Read more »
[…] Greener Pastures Ahead for Raw Milk in Maryland? […]
Don’t be discouraged if this bill languishes for a while. you have yet to hear from your opponents. And you will.
As the origin of the bill in Massachusetts to make herdshare legal three years ago, I am still waiting on a vote The opponents initially included the Farm Bureau as well as regulators. But the Farm Bureau has softened its pose and more and more supporters are tipping the balance in favor of passage. It takes time, and so very importantly, very noise public support. Let your Farm Bureau and legislators and elected officials know you won’t give up.
Hi Brigitte,
Thanks for your kind words!! We’ve been working on this for 8 years. Democracy is not always so democratic! This bill, in each of its forms over the years, has had huge public support! I hope that many supporters from all over the state will continue to make this an issue!
Thanks for your support!
Doing this right now.
[…] schedule–all the votes for every piece of legislation in his committee. Please keep up the calls and emails to the committee members and ask for a vote on […]
[…] The Maryland General Assembly is considering lifting the ban on raw milk by reinstating cow shares which have been criminalized since 2006. This bill would do wonders for Maryland farmers who wish to engage directly with eager consumers wanting raw milk from their own animals. This legislation, once passed, would repeal the ban on cow shares (and goat) and allow people to contract directly with the farmers of their choice for raw milk. http://nourishingliberty.com/raw-milk-could-be-legal-in-maryland/ […]
[…] in committee never-never-land, not getting voted on and not getting withdrawn. It was frustrating after all the momentum we had built up, but still, the experience this year was a bit different than in past years, when our proposals […]