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Oregon's dairy industry is revving up for a new fight over raw milk following the E. coli outbreak last month.

The

will gather legislators, producers and perhaps state agriculture officials this summer to discuss a possible crackdown on sales of unpasteurized milk in Oregon. Raw milk producers and consumers won't be invited.

"We feel that something needs to be done," said Executive Director Jim Krahn. "We've been saying this for a long time."

The outbreak was traced to raw milk from a Wilsonville farm that sold shares of its cows in exchange for milk. The milk tested positive for E. coli O157:H7, one of the worst foodborne pathogens. It sickened nearly 20 people, including four children who were hospitalized with acute kidney failure. At least two of them could face long-term complications.

That outbreak came 13 years after Oregon first clamped down on raw milk, banning store sales but allowing small farms to sell on-site with no regulatory oversight.

Krahn thinks that's too loose. "I would hope that something would be done to protect children," he said.

But outbreaks still happen in the 20 states that ban all sales. And Oregon authorities worry a prohibition would drive raw milk producers and their devoted customers underground.

Pasteurization of milk, heating it to kill harmful organisms, began in the United States in the 1900s but didn't become prevalent until after World War II.

Few people drink it -- less than 3 percent according to a state survey -- but they tend to be passionate about the product. Some like the rich, creamy taste. Some support local farms.

Shannon Trayhorn, a 39-year-old college-educated mother of seven in Troutdale, grew up drinking raw milk in Idaho, but her family lost its supplier and switched to pasteurized milk when she was 15. After repeated visits to the emergency room a decade ago, she combed the Internet for information and switched back to raw milk as part of cleaning up her diet.

"My kids are definitely healthier," she said. "They'll get constipated, runny noses, stuff like that if I use store-bought milk."

Trayhorn buys from a woman in Boring who has one cow. Like any farm that sells raw milk in Oregon, her operation is not inspected. But Trayhorn doesn't worry: She has quizzed the woman herself, checked the cows and watched her milk.

"I like our law because it grants us a certain amount of freedom," she said.

When raw milk was sold in Oregon stores, dairies were inspected about every six weeks and the milk was tested for harmful organisms. But a 1992 outbreak linked to Thomas Jersey Dairy in Tigard shifted sentiment and triggered a lengthy battle -- owner John Thomas spent a night in jail for defying a court order barring sales.

The dairy association favored a total sales ban, but state legislators opted for a compromise. A 1999 law barred retail sales but allowed farms with up to three lactating cows to sell raw milk on site provided they don't advertise.

Oregon has had a few raw milk outbreaks since then -- including one from a prison farm and another during a farm tour -- but none involving sales until last month.

sold cow shares to nearly 50 families in an unregulated operation. Herd-share farms can circumvent Oregon's limit on the number of cows because their shareholders are considered owners.

Raw Milk by the Numbers

States that ban all sales:

20

States, including Oregon, that allow farm or other specified sales:

18

States that allow retail sales:

12

Percentage of U.S. milk consumers:

3 percent

Outbreaks in Oregon since 1990:

5

Ban on retail sales in Oregon:

1999

Latest outbreak:

April 2012

Washington allows raw milk sales in grocery stores, but only from licensed Grade A dairies. Herd shares are licensed as well. They're both inspected several times a year, and the milk is tested monthly for pathogens.

"A segment of the population is very committed to raw milk," said Kirk Robinson, food safety specialist at the Washington Department of Agriculture. "We're better off regulating these folks."

But demand has increased in Washington, with raw milk dairies up from two in 2004 to 36 today. And the outbreaks haven't stopped. Since 1999, 60 people have gotten sick in Washington from raw milk, compared with 20 in Oregon.

Health officials in Oregon say costly spot testing can't guarantee safety, and regulating raw milk sales would provide a false sense of security.

An all-out sales ban is another alternative. Dr. Barbara Mahon, co-author of a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said there are twice as many outbreaks in states that allow any sale of raw milk.

"When it's legal, more people drink it, and when more people drink it more get sick," Mahon said. "I feel like people have lost sight of how dangerous it really is."

States with prohibitions see outbreaks, too. Iowa, for example, has banned sales since the 1980s. But about 30 people fell ill in 2004 and again in 2005 at community events where raw milk was served.

Dr. Gary Oxman, health officer of Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties, said a ban on all sales in Oregon would foster a black market. As it stands now, consumers who want to buy raw milk generally have to go to great lengths to track it down.

"I think the Oregon law does a good job of preventing uninformed consumers from getting the product," Oxman said. "It's not perfect, but you can't get (sick) by accident."