Consumers who want unpasteurized milk have to work to find it. It's against federal law to transport it across state lines, and most states don't allow it to be sold in stores off the farm. Twenty states prohibit raw milk sales altogether.
The government says the milk is unsafe because of the pathogens cows may encounter on the farm. A wide variety of pathogens besides campylobacter, can be found in raw milk - including salmonella, listeria, E. coli, and others - and those sickened could suffer from stroke, kidney failure, paralysis, or death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency points out that raw milk killed many people - especially young children - before the onset of pasteurization, which kills disease-causing germs by heating milk to high temperatures for a specific period of time.
The CDC says that pasteurized milk is rich in proteins, carbohydrates, and other nutrients, and that heat only slightly decreases thiamine, vitamin B12, and vitamin C.
While the government contends that milk is a minor source of those nutrients, raw milk advocates say that's proof that pasteurization makes milk less wholesome and pure.
The government doesn't keep records of raw milk consumption or sales, but it's clear that the product is popularized by a larger food movement that encourages less processing and more "real food." Raw milk goes a step further than organic milk free of added growth hormones. Organic milk, too, has enjoyed a sales boost in recent years.
The owner of the Pennsylvania dairy, Your Family Cow farm in Chambersburg, posted a message on the farm's website last week saying that several customers had called to say they had been experiencing "acute diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps."
Owner Edwin Shank said in the posting that the farm's testing had shown samples to be negative for campylobacter and speculated that the illnesses may be from another cause. But the Pennsylvania Health Department has linked the outbreak to the farm, and a spokeswoman for Maryland's Health Department says an unopened bottle from the farm tested positive for campylobacter.
One person is also sick in New Jersey and two in West Virginia, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Thirty one people are sick in Pennsylvania, many of them in Franklin County, where the farm is located.
Pennsylvania has had at least seven disease outbreaks linked to raw milk consumption since 2006, involving almost 200 people, according to the Health Department. Pennsylvania is one of 17 states where some raw milk sales are allowed, according to the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture.
