Another raw milk outbreak has sickened at least 24 people, including several children, in Colorado. Since June 10, 24 people who reported drinking raw milk from Billy Goat Dairy in Longmont have become ill with campylobacter and/or E. coli O157:H7. Two children have been hospitalized, one has been released.
Lab tests have confirmed the presence of campylobacter and E. coli 0157 in the victims. Both types of bacteria are found in the intestines of animals and can be passed in their feces to food, water, and milk products that haven’t been pasteurized.
Boulder County Investigating the Outbreak
In response, the Boulder County Public Health Department (BCPHD) has ordered Billy Goat Dairy to stop all distribution of its raw milk products yesterday. A team of state and local health investigators visited the Longmont dairy Thursday morning to collect samples from the goats.
The Billy Goat Dairy operates a goat share program in which individuals buy a share of a goat and in return receive raw, unpasteurized milk. BCPHD staff is in the process of contacting every household who participates in the goat share operation in order to determine if they have become sick and, if so, to collect samples. They are still waiting on responses from several households.
“We strongly advise residents to avoid consuming any raw milk or milk products,” said Murielle Romine of the BCPHD. “It can be extremely dangerous, particularly for young children and people with weakened immune systems.” She added “We’re still trying to determine if it’s isolated or ongoing. It is just very hard to gauge at this point if there is an exact date of suspect milk.”
When asked how long the investigation would take, she responded “As long as we continue to discover new cases, the investigation will continue.”
The Goat-Sharing Program
Through the dairy’s goat-share program, individuals buy a share of a goat for $40 a month and in return receive one gallon of raw milk a week. Unpasteurized milk can legally be sold in Colorado if it’s part of a herd-share arrangement.
Refrigeration problems were cited in the public health order as a potential source of contamination. Raw milk must be cooled to below 45 degrees within two hours of milking, according to Colorado law.
Billy Goat owner Bill Campbell said he noticed issues with his refrigerator and adjusted its settings on June 11, and he has been seeking ways to cool his milk faster since then. “Just after Father’s Day, I started to try to cool the milk faster prior to bottling,” he said. “I’m already working on a couple of really cool things.”
Campbell said he has received many phone calls of support and offers of help with refrigeration from friends and acquaintances. He received a grade A license to produce raw milk certified by the State Board of Health in 2009.
Some Raw Milk Facts
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), between 1998 and 2005 there were identified 45 outbreaks of foodborne illness tied to raw milk. These outbreaks accounted for 1,007 illnesses, 104 hospitalizations and two deaths.
While most milk is pasteurized, raw milk is not. During pasteurization, the temperature of milk is raised to at least 161 degrees Fahrenheit for more than 15 seconds, and then rapidly cooled. In addition to helping extend milk’s shelf-life, many harmful bacteria are destroyed, including E.coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter and Listeria.
Symptoms of Campylobacter include fever, diarrhea (sometimes bloody), abdominal cramps, nausea, and vomiting. Serious cases can lead to Guillain–Barré syndrome, permanent paralysis, and possibly death. Symptoms of E. coli include severe diarrhea (frequently bloody), abdominal cramping, and sometimes vomiting. Serious cases of E. coli can lead to Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) causing kidney failure and possibly death.
