The Raw Deal

One of the presentations focused on the dangers of raw milk. The display featured an illustration of a glass marked "raw milk" with a red line drawn through it. There was also a photograph of an infant and a young boy looking at each other; the caption read, "Examples of persons at risk from consuming raw milk." The display was based on an FDA report on illnesses caused by raw milk over the last five years. According to the report, there have been 18 "outbreaks" of bacterial illness involving raw milk or raw milk cheeses in 15 states. Those outbreaks have sickened 451 people, a few of those seriously enough to be hospitalized. The report lists types of bacteria that might be found in raw milk, including campylobacter, escherichia, listeria, salmonella, yersina and brucella. It also lists diseases raw milk products can cause, such as tuberculosis, diphtheria, polio, strep throat, scarlet fever and typhoid fever.

Three of the report's authors, all FDA employees, are on hand for the presentation. I introduce myself and tell them I'm writing an article about Fallon and the raw milk underground.

They groan audibly. All of them.

It is safe to say that the FDA is exasperated with Fallon and her raw milk ilk. The FDA says raw milk advocates ignore science and put their faith in dubious anecdotes about its supposed health benefits. Some of those advocates claim that raw milk can treat high blood pressures, urinary tract infections, diabetes, obesity, chronic fatigue syndrome and so on.

At these and similar assertions, the FDA researchers shake their heads (literally -- I saw them shake their heads). They say that science simply doesn't back up those claims. They acknowledge that pasteurization does destroy some vitamins and enzymes in milk, but they say those losses are negligible. When I ask what they think about feeding raw milk to infants, their expressions become very serious. "The question is," says Cynthia Leonard, one of the report's authors, "do you want to want to play Russian roulette with your baby's life?" This is a favorite FDA analogy, used in interviews and written materials.

I ask the three researchers if any of them has ever tried raw milk. Two say no. Leonard, however, says she has. In fact, she grew up on a farm in Georgia where everyone drank raw milk. Did anyone ever get sick?

"No," she says. "I mean, not that I remember. Although maybe we got sick and didn't know it was from the milk."

Fallon argues that raw milk is unfairly singled out by the FDA. "My god, people get sick from lettuce. People get sick from mayonnaise. People get sick from drinking water," she says. Fallon points out that it's not as if pasteurization of milk is completely safe; in fact, she keeps a list of news reports about outbreaks involving pasteurized milk. As for linking raw milk to deadly diseases, Fallon laughs. "Give me a break!" she says. "Show me a case where that's happened."

I asked the FDA exactly that. In an e-mail, John Sheehan, director of the agency's dairy and egg safety division, wrote that he didn't know of any cases in the United States in the last 20 years. But, he added, "that doesn't mean that they can't or won't occur again if the frequency of consumption of raw milk increases or continues unabated."

That, Fallon argues, just confirms her point. "We're not saying that you can't get sick from raw milk," she says. "We're just saying the risk is very, very low."

The disconnect between raw milk advocates and health authorities runs deep. To understand how deep, it's good to know a little about the history of pasteurization.

In the late 19th century, bad milk was killing babies by the thousands in American cities. In New York City, nearly a quarter of babies died before their first birthday, and tainted cow's milk was largely to blame.