Hi Folks,
This is occurring near to Homerville.
-----------begin AP quote------------------
Milk Law Said Goes Against Amish Beliefs
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 28, 2006
Filed at 3:43 a.m. ET
MOUNT HOPE, Ohio (AP) -- Arlie Stutzman was busted in a rare sting when an
undercover agent bought raw milk from the Amish dairy farmer in an unlabeled
container.
Now, Stutsman is fighting the law that forbids the sale of raw milk, saying he
believes it violates his religious beliefs because it prohibits him from
sharing the milk he produces with others.
''While I can and I have food, I'll share it,'' said Stutzman, who is due in
Holmes County Common Pleas Court on Friday to tell a judge his views. ''Do
unto others what you would have others do unto you.''
Last September, a man came to Stutzman's weathered, two-story farmhouse,
located in a pastoral region in northeast Ohio that has the world's largest
Amish settlement. The man asked for milk.
Stutzman was leery, but agreed to fill up the man's plastic container from a
250-gallon stainless steel tank in the milkhouse.
After the creamy white, unpasteurized milk flowed into the container, the man,
an undercover agent from the Ohio Department of Agriculture, gave Stutzman
two dollars and left.
The department revoked Stutzman's license in February. In April, he got back
his license, which allows him to sell to cheese houses and dairies, but
received a warning not to sell raw milk to consumers again.
''You can't just give milk away to someone other then yourself. It's a
violation of the law,'' said LeeAnne Mizer, spokeswoman for the department.
Organizations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to the American Dairy
Association have said that raw milk contains health risks because it has not
been heated to kill bacteria, such as E. coli.
Regulators want Judge Thomas D. White to formally order Stutzman to comply
with dairy laws. Stutzman said he is fighting the request on principle,
saying he should be able to share his milk.
Stutzman's Amish faith places an emphasis on the community. To preserve their
lifestyle, the Amish avoid the use of electricity and automobile ownership,
which would allow the outside world to enter unabated into their culture.
The Amish typically do not get involved in politics, unless laws impede their
ability to make a living or follow their religious beliefs. Stutzman said he
is getting some community support.
''It shows he's not going to be intimidated and he's going to do what he
thinks is the right thing,'' said his attorney, Gary Cox.
State officials said they sent the agent to his farm because they received a
tip from an anonymous neighbor about raw milk sales.
Stutzman, however, said he believes he was targeted because his cows are
partly owned by a group of 150 families in what is known as a herd share
agreement. Members pay him a fee for the cows and are entitled to a portion
of the milk.
Sales of raw milk are illegal in Ohio and 24 other states. But herd share
agreements take advantage of a loophole because the group is buying the cows,
not the milk.
Groups such as the Weston A. Price Foundation, which is dedicated to restoring
nutrient-dense foods to people's diets, advocate the consumption of raw milk,
saying pasteurization diminishes vitamin content and kills beneficial
bacteria.
For Stutzman, the herd share agreement gives him an outlet for his extra milk.
He also enjoys sharing his product with others who would otherwise not have
access to it.
''We know people are deprived of this real food,'' he said.
---------end AP quote----------
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Kindest regards,
========================
F. W. Owen
Owenlea Holsteins
9430 Spencer Road
Homerville, Ohio 44235
e-mail fwo@bright.net
home page http://www.bright.net/~fwo
voice & fax 330.625.2369
cell 330.635.2287
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