Farmer sour over 'ancient' Ontario law banning raw milk

An Ontariodairy farmer who was charged after illegally selling unpasteurized milk says the provincial law is outdated, adding that he has about 150 regular customers and a three-year waiting list.

MichaelSchmidt'sfarmnear Durham, in southwestern Ontario north of Guelph, was raided by police and provincial authorities on Nov. 21. He was charged with operating a milk plant without a licence.

'It's such an ancient law. I'm not saying that everybody should drink raw milk, but I'm saying people should have a choice.' -Farmer Michael Schmidt

Health officialssay pasteurization, the process of heating a food to a specific temperature then cooling it, eliminates disease-causing bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli O157:H7 the same strain that contaminated the drinking water to deadly effect in Walkerton, Ont.

However, unpasteurized milk can be purchased in some European countries and a number of U.S. states.

"It's such an ancient law. I'm not saying that everybody should drink raw milk, but I'm saying people should have a choice," Schmidt said.

"People are grown-up enough and informed enough that they can make their own choice and the government doesn't have to tell them what to drink."

Shareholder system

To skirt the provincial law, he set up a shareholder-style arrangement where the cows are co-owned by the customers.Schmidt then charges for feeding, milking and taking care of the animals.

He said about150 families have bought into the system and others are ona three-year waiting list to join in,"begging and begging" to be involved.

On Tuesday,Schmidt was still providing the contraband dairy products to somecustomers.

However, medical authorities warned that unpasteurized milk can pose a danger.

"If it's not properly handled, it becomes very hazardous, especially for children," said Dr. Hazel Lynn, the medical officer of health at the Grey Bruce PublicHealth Unit.

Convicted in 1994for selling raw milk

During the raid a week ago, police and officialsswooped in and closed off Schmidt's lane as he was leaving the farm on a weekly milk run.

Soon, the whole farmyard was packed with vehicles and armed officers secured his buildings. Schmidt said he had to waitin his kitchen for 7 hours as officers seized most of his processing equipment, dairy products and accounting files.

He said officials told him they had been investigating hisoperation for eight months but he questioned why it took them so long.

"They could have given me a phone call and I would've told them, 'Yes, I do that,'" he said.

He said authoritieshaveknown of his operation for more than a decade and he doesn't know why they decided to pounce now.

In 1994, he was convicted for selling unpasteurized milk. Schmidt saidthe fact that he continued to sell it was widely known and publicized in local newspapers.

The dairy farmer has been on a hunger strike since his farm was raided, saying it is his only line of defence.

He wants the government to bring his equipment back, reimburse him for the damages done and back off until the issue is dealt with either by the provincial legislature or in court.