Raw milk sales bill narrowly gains traction in La. Senate

BATON ROUGE - The Louisiana Senate will debate whether the state should lift its ban on sales of unpasteurized - or "raw" - milk.



After two years of rejecting the bill, a reorganized Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted 3-2 to advance to the full Senate for consideration a proposal allowing sales of raw milk from farmers to the public.



Supporters of Sen. Eric LaFleur's proposal said people should get to decide what they drink. Sierra Majors, who has a small dairy farm, says Louisiana is one of only eight states that ban sales of unpasteurized milk.



Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain and Louisiana's chief health officer Jimmy Guidry raised safety concerns about raw milk, because it doesn't go through the heating process designed to kill harmful bacteria.