State searches second Minnesota farm in raw milk probe
WORTHINGTON, Minn. — State investigators searched a second Minnesota farm that may have illegally sold raw milk as health officials investigate an E. coli outbreak that sickened several people, officials confirmed Monday.
WORTHINGTON, Minn. — State investigators searched a second Minnesota farm that may have illegally sold raw milk as health officials investigate an E. coli outbreak that sickened several people, officials confirmed Monday.
The state’s investigation began after E. coli traced to unpasteurized milk products sickened at least eight people. The southern Minnesota farm blamed for the outbreak — the Hartmann Dairy Farm near Gibbon— has been searched twice. The farm has disputed allegations that its unpasteurized milk caused the E. coli outbreak.
A farm in central Minnesota, Schlangen Family Farm near Freeport, was searched earlier this month, state Agriculture Department spokesman Michael Schommer said Monday.
At least two state investigators and two sheriff’s deputies went to the farm, Minnesota Public Radio News reported over the weekend. They took milk and other samples from the farm, and seized farm management records.
According to a search warrant and accompanying documents dated June 21, investiga-tors were looking for evidence that Alvin and Alice Schlangen were selling raw milk, meat and produce without the required licenses or permits, and without proper labeling.
“The investigation is looking into alleged unlawful sale of farm products, potentially including raw milk and adulterated or misbranded food,” Schommer told MPR.
Evidence that the Schlangens were illegally selling raw milk first turned up during a June 15 inspection of the Traditional Foods Minnesota Warehouse in Minneapolis, according to the search warrant.
The owner of the farm, Alvin Schlangen, told MPR in an e-mail that the state embargoed most of the food inventory on his farm during the search.
Asked if he sold unpasteurized milk, Schlangen’s said “we have acted as an agent.” He also said he recommends unpasteurized milk over what he called manufactured milk.
Federal and state regulators said raw milk carries a risk of disease because it hasn’t been through the bacteria-destroying pasteurization process. But interest in raw milk has been growing among people who believe pasteurization reduces milk’s beneficial nutrients.
Some farms and consumers have established networks to distribute it, even though Minnesota law limits the sale of raw milk except for “occasional purchases” at farms where it is produced.
Nine U.S. states allow retail sales of raw milk, while another 19 — including Minnesota — allow only direct sales from farmers to consumers.
At least one Minnesota raw milk producer, the Kalisch Family Farm near Ogilvie, has said it’s getting out of the business.
“We are currently closed for business,” the farm said in a message posted on its website. “If anything changes we will e-mail those members on our website. Thanks for your e-mails, concerns and friendship.”
RSS Feeds