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Summary of Raw Milk Statutes and Administrative Codes
(as of December 1, 2004)
March 22, 2005
Compiled by Pete Kennedy
We have added a new section to RealMilk.com
on a Summary of Raw Milk Statutes and Administrative Codes by State,
as of December 1, 2004.
The link is http://www.realmilk.com/milk-laws-1.html
This compilation was performed by Pete Kennedy, a lawyer who volunteered
his services to us for this purpose.
An Overview of U.S. State Milk Laws
In 1924, the United States Public Health Service (USPHS), a branch
of the Food and Drug Administration, developed the Standard Milk Ordinance,
known today as the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO). This is a model
regulation helping states and municipalities have an effective program
to
prevent milk borne disease. The PMO contains provisions governing the
production, processing, packaging and sale of Grade "A" milk
and milk products. It is the basic standard used in the Voluntary Cooperative
State -USPHS/FDA Program for the Certification of Interstate Milk Shippers,
a program all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U. S. Territories
participate in.
Forty-six of the 50 have adopted most or all of the PMO for their own
milk safety laws with those states not adopting it passing laws that
are similar. California, Pennsylvania, New York and Maryland have not
adopted the PMO.
Section 9 of the PMO states in part that, "only Grade "A"
pasteurized, ultra-pasteurized or aseptically processed milk and milk
products shall be sold to the final consumer, to restaurants, soda fountains,
grocery stores or similar establishments." In spite of 46 states
adopting the PMO, it is at least technically possible at the present
time to legally sell or distribute raw milk for human consumption in
32 states.
States legalizing raw milk sales or distribution have done so through:
Statute. Any state statute conflicting with Section
9 of the PMO overrides it.
Administrative rule or regulation. Any state regulation
conflicting with Section 9 of the PMO overrides it.
Policy. This would include cowshare programs in states
where even though there is a prohibition on the sale of raw milk, state
regulatory agencies have made a policy decision not to shut down cowshare
programs they know of that comply with state guidelines. State policy
sometimes does conflict with and override state statutes, administrative
rules or other written guidelines in the regulation of milk and milk
products.
Raw milk sales for animal consumption are at least potentially legal
in all states but one under commercial feed licensing laws. Except for
Michigan, not a single state law expressly prohibits the sale of raw
milk for animal consumption. The variables are the states' willingness
to grant licenses to producers of raw milk for animal feed and how strictly
state agencies would monitor licensees to make sure that raw milk sales
did only go for animal consumption. The PMO regulations do not apply
to
the sale of raw milk for animal feed.
Many states permitting the sale of raw milk for human consumption prohibit
the sale of most or all raw milk products. With yogurt providing the
highest profit margins of any raw dairy product, the benefits to farmers
of expanding state legalization of raw milk to include raw milk products
are obvious. Butter and cheese fall outside the PMO's definition of
milk products. They are manufactured milk products, not Grade "A"
milk products, and are generally regulated under a state's dairy manufacturing
laws. Farmers can typically sell raw cheese (at least raw cheese produced
according to federal guidelines) if they have obtained a manufacturing
plant license.
The state milk law summaries are based on research of the state statutory
and administrative codes and conversations with farmers and state dairy
officials. Any corrections are welcome.
Source:Grade "A" Pasteurized Milk Ordinance, 2003 Revision.
Link to raw milk state law summaries:http://www.realmilk.com/milk-laws-1.html
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