After reading the Milk Moon chapter in Jessica Prentice's book Full Moon Feast , I felt compelled to swear off pasteurized milk so I began doing more research to find out if I could actually find a source of non-pasteurized milk, i.e. raw milk. The deeper I dug, though, the more hesitant I became. There is a lot of controversy swirling around the safety of raw milk. Yet in the 1920s in this country raw milk was readily available and consumed. What changed?
The industrialization of the milk industry led to increased overcrowding and unclean conditions which in turn led to a need for pasteurization. In the pasteurization process, Dr. Mercola explains, the delicate good proteins in milk are changed into not so good proteins that are thought to cause things like allergies and asthma (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoPiNASGeWo&feature=related). Even lactose intolerance is thought to be caused by over pasteurization. Jessica Prentice tells us that in pasteurization “lactase, the enzyme naturally occurring in milk that digests lactose, is destroyed but not the lactose.”
In building a case for raw milk, Jessica Prentice also cites a number of studies that have shown certain cultures known for their robust health as cultures where they have access to and drink lots of raw milk. The emphasis in these societies has been on quality not quantity of milk. In our culture there has been a “minimum of emphasis on the health of cows and the nutritional quality of milk and a maximum on quantity of milk at the lowest cost production.” This has essentially left us with miserable cows and over processed milk.
While there are convincing arguments in favor of raw milk, personally I need to do more research before I’m comfortable fully committing myself. For the moment, I am sticking with organic milk which I hope (although I'm not confident) ensures that I will not be supporting inhumane farming practices.
And if I change my mind, I know that I do have a choice. California is one of the states where raw milk is legal and I could buy it conveniently in a grocer. If you want to find out if raw milk is legal in your state and/or where to find it, Campaign for Real Milk (www.realmilk.com) is an excellent resource.
Paul, my partner on this project, is much less hesitant than I am about raw milk. In fact, he is in the process of buying two goats. I’m looking forward to hearing about his raw milk experiences.
I am adding one recipe from the Milk Moon chapter to our reception menu:
Creamy Salad Dressing, pg. 94
(crème fraiche, egg yolk, olive oil, white wine, salt, pepper)
1 comment:
I've tried Organic Pastures Raw Milk [http://www.organicpastures.com/] which is pretty tasty. The whole milk doesn't feel as thick and there are noticable yummy undertones to it. I bought it from Whole Foods. I can't vouch for it being more tolerable for people with milk allergies though since I dont have that problem.
California is also trying to pass law AB1725 that would ban Raw Milk. The law was blocked for now.Hearings will be taking place in the upcoming month. For more info check out http://www.organicpastures.com/March24_letter_8.html
I started making cheese about six months ago and the problem I encountered is that every store seems to only sell ultra-pastuerized goat milk. The ultra-pasteurization process changes the milk protein structures so it wont form curds and whey properly thus no cheese. I talked to a few commercial and hobbyist goat farmers but nobody would sell me either raw or regular pasteurized milk directly b/c of liability issues. Thus my wanting to own goats to avoid this whole ridiculous issue.
As for cow's milk, I normally buy Strauss Organic
http://www.strausfamilycreamery.com/
They are a local dairy that has very tasty milk. Most places I shop carry them unlike the raw milk which i have to go out of my way. I tend to buy raw as a treat. Strauss also comes in glass bottles that you get a return deposit on so you aren't adding more trash to the landfill. And the price is roughly the same as other organic milks after you subtract the bottle deposit.
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