A bill that would legalize the sale of raw milk in grocery stores and at farmers markets in Iowa has cleared a House subcommittee. Representative Bobby Kaufmann of Wilton led passage of the 2023 Iowa law that has allowed unpasteurized raw milk to be sold on dairy farms where it’s produced and he’s sponsoring the bill to expand its sale to other sites.
Farmers selling raw milk directly to consumers say they’re concerned about expanded retail sales. Lakaya Tenley and her husband of Mechanicsville have 10 Jersey cows and she says they couldn’t shift to selling their raw milk elsewhere. She asked legislators to instead address state regulations that are going to limit their on-the-farm expansion plans.
Abby Costello raises dairy cows and sells raw milk, butter and cheese from a small store in Linn County called ABC Acres.
Costello supports the move to allow raw milk sales at farmers markets since it would be a transaction between the farmer and the consumer. Robert Horst, a farmer from Bristow, is president of the Iowa State Dairy Association. He says pasteurized milk is heavily regulated and one of the safest products sold in a grocery store and there should be safety standards for raw milk, too, to guard against food-borne illnesses.
Dr. Kenneth May, president of Iowa Veterinary Medical Association, says the organization has safety concerns about expanding the sale of raw milk to farmers markets and grocery stores — especially now that bird flu has been detected in Iowa dairy herds.
Others who testified at Tuesday’s subcommittee hearing said Iowans should be able to decide for themselves whether to buy raw milk, while a doctor who’s also a legislator said there are known risks from consuming raw milk. According to the Association of Food and Drug Officials, there were nearly 450 confirmed cases of illnesses in Canada and the United States that were linked to raw milk between 2007 and 2020. Twenty-eight percent of the patients had to be hospitalized and five died.
