TN Alert – SB 358 Hearing for Raw Butter - The Weston A. Price Foundation

Support Legal Raw Butter –

Tell Committee Members to Vote YES on SB 358

There will be a hearing on SB 358, the Raw Milk Products bill, in the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee tomorrow (Tues., Feb. 26) at 1:00 p.m. in the Cordell Hull Building, Senate Hearing Room I. Please attend if you’re in the area.

Senate Bill 358 (HB 358), legislation that would legalize the sale of raw butter, is an opportunity to expand access to raw dairy products in Tennessee. The bill would allow those with a dairy plant license to sell raw at retail stores.

The bill would expand consumer choice and would provide a boost to Tennessee’s dairy industry.

ACTION TO TAKE

1. Call and/or email committee members asking them to vote “YES on SB 358 for Raw Butter”. See the list of members at the end of this email.

You may copy/paste this block to send an email to most of the committee members:

Subject: Vote YES on HB 358 Raw Butter

sen.paul.bailey@capitol.tn.gov, sen.art.swann@capitol.tn.gov, sen.jon.lundberg@capitol.tn.gov, Sen.Raumesh.Akbari@capitol.tn.gov, sen.dolores.gresham@capitol.tn.gov, sen.jack.johnson@capitol.tn.gov, sen.frank.niceley@capitol.tn.gov, sen.steve.southerland@capitol.tn.gov, sen.bo.watson@capitol.tn.gov

2. If you’re in the area, attend the hearing which is taking place at the Cordell Hull Building, Senate Hearing Room I at 1:00 p.m. Central, Tuesday, February 26, 2019.

Cordell Hull Building

Senate Hearing Room

425 5^th Avenue N.

Nashville, TN 37243 (directions)

TALKING POINTS

1. The bill will expand consumer access to nutrient-dense raw dairy products and keep more of the food dollar in the community.

2. SB 358 will enable the dairy farms that do have a dairy plant license to make a better living through the sale of a high demand value-added dairy product—raw butter. Even dairy farms without the license could benefit by having additional demand for their milk.

3. Raw butter has an excellent track record for safety. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), foodborne illness database which runs from 1998-2016 there is not a single case of foodborne illness attributed to the consumption of commercially produced raw butter; Organic Pastures Dairy Company (OPDC) in California has sold over 2 million pounds of raw butter without a single complaint.

WAPF will issue further alerts as events warrant.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS – Senate Commerce and Labor

Paul Bailey – Chair

sen.paul.bailey@capitol.tn.gov

615-741-3978

Art Swann – 1^st Vice Chair

sen.art.swann@capitol.tn.gov

615-741-0981

John Lundberg – 2^nd Vice Chair

sen.jon.lundberg@capitol.tn.gov

615-741-5761

Raumesh Akbari