Raw Milk In Massachusetts, April 14, 2010

Here's what's new in raw milk in Massachusetts, as of today:

Buying Clubs In Peril

The State of Massachusetts is considering a regulation change that would make raw milk buying clubs illegal. Depending how the regulation is interpreted, it might even become illegal for me to go to the farm, buy raw milk for myself, and bring some back for my friend. For more information, see here. Please consider contacting your senators and representatives at the statehouse if you have feelings about this issue.

Whole Foods

Whole Foods has permanently discontinued the sale of raw milk nationwide, even in states where raw milk can be sold in stores. It is ironic, because the milk they will continue to sell, pasteurized milk, is not a "whole food". It has typically been centrifuged, separated, re-blended, pasteurized, homogenized, and fortified…at least!

This action by Whole Foods doesn't affect Massachusetts per se, because raw milk can't be sold in stores in Mass. And it's a federal crime to transport raw milk across state lines, so I know that none of you would ever do that, right? For instance, you would never visit Maine or Connecticut for the weekend, stop in a store on the way home, and buy some raw milk. (But if you did, I might recommend Golden Harvest Market, in Kittery, Maine, just off I-95 right over the New Hampshire border.)

Whole Foods said they say they were having trouble with their insurers, and that this affected their decision. There may be other, more political reasons for their change as well. For more commentary, check out what Cheese Slave had to say here.

Eastleigh Farm

And now for the good news: As of quite recently, raw milk is available at Eastleigh Farm in Framingham, Massachusetts. This is the closest raw milk farm to Boston.

For more information about how to get raw milk in Massachusetts, visit my blog post here or NOFA's Raw Milk Network.

For all of my previous posts on the subject of raw milk, click here.