Constitutional Battle For Fresh Milk Expands To BC
January 20th, 2011 | Food Security, Our Food, Alice Jongerden, food, freedom, health, michael schmidt, raw milk, real food, rights
Fresh Milk advocate Alice Jongerden filed an application today in the New Westminster courthouse in British Columbia to challenge the constitutionality of the prohibition against the production and distribution of Fresh Milk.
Alice Jongerden, the founder and former operator of a 450-member Fresh Milk cowshare in Chilliwack, BC, has been under attack by the Fraser Health Authority since 2009. In March 2010, the Health Authority obtained an order preventing Ms. Jongerden from distributing Fresh Milk for human consumption. In December 2010, Ms. Jongerden was cited for contempt for breaching the March 18, 2010 order, although no penalty was imposed. She has since ceased operations.
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Ms. Jongerdens is now applying to set aside the March 18, 2010 order on the basis that the order is founded on a constitutionally invalid law. She says that she and the other members of Home on the Range have a constitutional right to make nutritional choices. If the March 18 order is set aside, she will resume operations at Home on the Range.
“Fresh Milk is a nutritional choice about what I want to put into my own body. It’s a long-term health choice to choose fresh milk over industrial processed milk”, said Ms. Jongerden. “Laws that prevent Canadians from choosing healthy food and inflate the cost of healthy food are making us sick.”
Ms. Jongerden’s constitutional challenge joins the Ontario challenge spearheaded by Ontario dairy farmer Michael Schmidt, whose successful defence of Fresh Milk charges is under government appeal before the Ontario Court of Appeal. Mr. Schmidt now manages the Chilliwack cowshare where milk is produced and distributed as a cosmetic product, something the Health Authority assumes is a guise to allow determined Fresh Milk drinkers to circumvent Provincial regulations.
“Fresh Milk is a healthy choice,” said Mr. Schmidt. “Canada is the only G8 country that bows completely to the processed milk lobby. Canadians need the right to choose fresh wholesome food over processed food.”
More information here.
Jason Gratl of Gratl & Company is counsel for Ms. Jongerden for her constitutional challenge.
This post is part of Fight Back Fridays over at www.foodrenegade.com
Thanks Hannah! I really appreciate your point about how the health industry is really involved in doing business with disease instead of really protecting we the people’s health.
Raw milk IS a nutritional choice. We are fortunate that in California, raw milk is legal. It is frequently tested and often exceeds the cleanliness standards of pasteurized milk.
However, like in Canada, there are several places in the US where raw milk is illegal or is under attack. Its crazy, but we have to fight for our right to choose healthy unprocessed foods. Just goes to show how big those agri-business lobbies are – they funnel tons of money into putting people like Jongerdens out of business to protect their own interests (making people sick so they will buy more drugs).