State orders recall of raw milk sold west of Modesto for second time in 15 months
A producer of raw milk west of Modesto is recalling some of the products because of concern about bacteria, a state agency announced Wednesday.
It is the second time in about 15 months that Valley Milk Simply Bottled has been found to have Campylobacter jejuni during routine testing at the dairy farm, the California Department of Food and Agriculture said.
No illnesses were reported in the current recall or in the one from March 2019.
The current recall involves plastic gallon jugs under the labels “Valley Milk Simply Bottled Raw Milk” and “DESI MILK Raw Milk” that were purchased between June 19 and 30, or any product with a “code date” on the container of July 9 or earlier.
Consumers should dispose of these products if they bought them, CDFA said.
Representatives of the company, on Maze Boulevard about four miles west of Modesto, could not be reached for comment. Its Facebook page makes no mention of the recall.
Quarantine suspends milk sales
The business is under quarantine, meaning it must stop selling milk from its cows, CDFA spokesman Steve Lyle said by email.
“The investigation is ongoing, and distribution of milk by the farm has been suspended by the quarantine order until inspection and additional testing finds that the facility and milk meet all applicable standards,” he said.
The business is one of five raw milk producers in California. This niche is a tiny part of the dairy industry, where pasteurization to kill bacteria is the norm. Raw milk advocates say this process impairs the taste and nutrients.
These operations still have to meet standards for bacteria and other concerns, CDFA said.
Severity varies for consumers
Campylobacter jejuni can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever, the agency said, and most people recover completely. The symptoms usually occur two to five days after exposure and last about a week. Some people have no symptoms.
CDFA warned that a small percentage of people could have joint pain and swelling after infection. The bacteria also can lead to Guillian-Barre syndrome, which causes weakness and paralysis several weeks after the initial illness.
Valley Milk Simply Bottled has no connection with Valley Milk LLC, which produces milk powder in west Turlock.
More information on raw milk is on the CDFA website.
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 4:23 PM.
