Fraser Health has not yet reached an agreement with the Home on the Range cow share co-op to allow it to distribute raw milk from its 22 cows, according to authority staff.
Home on the Range director Michael Schmidt told Business in Vancouver last week that the health authority said it was OK for him to distribute the raw milk as long as it was labeled as a cosmetic bathing lotion that was not fit for human consumption.
“Our position remains the same. They said that they were going to do something differently but whether that contravenes legislation remains to be seen,” said Fraser Health director of public affairs David Plug. “We’ll look at it and talk to our legal counsel and Health Canada, which regulates cosmetics and evaluate and get back to him.”
Fraser Health issued a cease-and-desist order last spring to former Home on the Range operator Alice Jongerden for violating the Public Health Act, which forbids the distribution of unpasteurized milk and dairy products. The health authority won a court injunction and Jongerden was eventually charged with contempt of court for continuing to operate her dairy.
Enter Schmidt. He arrived in B.C. recently from Ontario, where he beat 19 charges last year related to distributing unpasteurized milk. He wants to repeat that success here.