ND Alert on HB 1131: Support Raw Dairy Product Sales in North Dakota (House cmte)

Tell House Ag Cmte to Vote YES on HB 1131, Jan. 17th

Support Raw Dairy Product Sales in North Dakota

House Bill 1131 (HB 1131), legislation that would legalize unregulated sales of raw milk products direct from a farm to an “end consumer” is before the House Agriculture Committee and is scheduled for a hearing Friday, January 17 at 8:30 a.m.

Last session the state enacted legislation legalizing unregulated sales of raw milk from farmer direct to consumer; HB 1131 is a great opportunity to further expand consumer choice and enable the farmer to make a better living.

ACTION TO TAKE

1. Call and/or email House Agriculture Committee members and ask that they vote YES on HB 1131. Below are Talking Points you may want to include in your message.

It is especially important to contact a committee member if you are a constituent; see individual list below. You may copy/paste this block of addresses to email all committee members:

mbeltz@ndlegis.gov; dorihauck@ndlegis.gov; kanderson@ndlegis.gov; gdobervich@ndlegis.gov; dhenderson@ndlegis.gov; dholle@ndlegis.gov; jahoverson@ndlegis.gov; dhkiefert@ndlegis.gov; denehring@ndlegis.gov;

solson@ndlegis.gov; nrios@ndlegis.gov; cschreiberbeck@ndlegis.gov; btveit@ndlegis.gov; dvollmer@ndlegis.gov

2. Attend the Friday 8:30 a.m. hearing on January 17th and testify before the House Ag Committee and/or submit testimony through the online portal by 7:30 a.m. January 17th.

Submit testimony (.pdf or .txt files) and register to testify remotely or in person at

https://ndlegis.gov/legend/committee/testimony/public-testimony/3810/?hearing=9860

Scroll down the webpage, enter your contact information then under “Agenda” select the appropriate options for “8:30 AM | HB 1131”.

In-Person Meeting Location:

Room 327C, ND State Capitol

600 East Boulevard Avenue

Bismarck, ND 58505

TALKING POINTS

1. Tell your story of how raw milk products have benefited your health or the health of your family member.

2. Raw milk products have a great track record for food safety. Products like raw butter and raw kefir have few, if any, illnesses attributed to their consumption.

3. Passage of HB 1131 would enable farmers to make a better living. Making products like raw yogurt and raw kefir generate a better return for the farms than do sales of fluid raw milk. There is booming demand not only for raw milk but for other raw dairy products as well.

4. The bill supports consumer choice. The consumption of all raw milk products is legal in North Dakota. Consumers should be able to obtain those products from North Dakota farmers.

Further alerts will be sent out on HB 1131 as events warrant.

CONTACT INFORMATION

House Agriculture Committee for 2025 regular session –

https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/committees/house/agriculture

Please contact your representative directly if listed below. To find your legislator, enter your address “house number” only and your zip code then scroll down to your street address at
https://ndlegis.gov/legend/constituent/districts/public/find_my_legislator/

Rep. Mike Beltz (R-20), Chairman

Hillsboro, ND

Cell 701-430-1209

mbeltz@ndlegis.gov

Rep. Dori Hauck (R-36), Vice Chairman

Hebron, ND

218-790-1345

dorihauck@ndlegis.gov

Rep. Karen A. Anderson (R-19)

Grafton, ND

Cell 701-520-0559

kanderson@ndlegis.gov