Some legislators say it should be easier for Minnesota consumers to buy raw milk, a position that puts them at odds with health regulators and most of the state's dairy industry Companion bills introduced in the Minnesota House and Senate on Thursday would legalize direct farm-to-consumer sales of unpasteurized milk at farmers markets, as well as deliveries to private homes and private buying clubs.
Current state law allows sales of unpasteurized milk only at the farms that produce it.
No action is scheduled so far on the bills, which were introduced by three Senate Republicans and four House Republicans, but they come amid a crackdown by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture on raw milk sales, including a legal battle with southern Minnesota dairy farmer Michael Hartmann. The state claims milk from his dairy near Gibbon has sickened at least 15 people.
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