PASA News |

Alert on New Milk Regs

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has chosen August as the best time of year to release a whole stack of proposed new regulations for dairy production.  The kicker is that the required 30-day comment period will be over with at the end of this month, just before the time when all of us might actually find some spare time to focus on the 100+ mind-numbing pages involved.
 
Frankly, I had hoped to send out a much more thoughtful analysis of the situation, but it has been difficult at this time of year to spend as much time on this matter as it deserves . . . and just imagine how much MORE difficult it must be for those dairy farmers who will be affected by the proposed changes to spend much time studying them now.  So, first and foremost, we are asking that all of you who can do so at this time please contact PDA and the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC), insisting that the public comment period for the new Dairy Sanitation regulations be extended to 90 days, beginning August 1, 2009.   The relevant addresses can be found at the bottom of this email. This needs to be done especially on behalf of all those farmers who do not have Internet and email accessibility, and will be counting on us to buy them some more time! 
 
In the meantime, I also want to equip you all with the information you will need to begin studying the new regulations.  Useful documents   1) the original notice letter we received, 2) a cut-and-paste version of the specific raw milk provisions included in the new regs and 3) a chart, provided to us by PDA, showing the proposed changes in bacterial count standards.  The latter piece will be the subject of the public hearing mentioned in the attached letter – we will have a representative there, but see no issues here that differ dramatically from current practice.  For those wanting to peruse the entire document, you can find it at the following link, though please be aware that you must use the “next” in the menu at the top twice in order to see everything, and also that this representation does not show you the differences as compared to current regulations:
 
http://www.pabulletin.com/secure/data/vol39/39-31/1402.html
 
In addition to being present at the public hearing, and insisting on the extension of the public comment period, PASA will also be submitting full written comments before the end of August, focusing mostly on the raw milk section of these regs, and we will make those available to you when they are completed.  Right now we plan to comment on at least the following sections:
 
59a.406          Animal Health
59a.408          Regular testing of raw milk
59a.409          Violations of raw milk testing standards
59a.410          Location of raw milk packaging facilities on the dairy farm
59a.411          Label content review by the Department
59a.413          Enforcement: Suspension or revocation of a raw milk permit
59a.416          Enforcement: Seizure, condemnation, denaturing or destruction of raw milk; exclusion for sale
 
There are actually many sections of these regulations that we believe could have been better stated, and we would have preferred a chance to comment before these were published in the PA Bulletin, but apparently that’s not the way things get done.  We urge each of you with an interest in these issues, or just an interest in standing up for those farmers who will be affected, to at least read the introductory pages (1 thru 5), the proposed regulations on raw milk, the section on milk labeling (59a.14 – we’ll have some comments there as well) and any other section that interests you. You may want to prepare comments before the end of the month, just in case the public comment period does not get extended.  Such comments, and especially now the request for extension, should be directed to the following:
 
PA Dept of Agriculture
Bureau of Food Safety
Division of Milk Sanitation
2301 North Cameron Street
Harrisburg, PA 17110-9408
Attn: Paul Hoge
 
Copy to:
 
PA Independent Regulatory Review Commission
333 Market St, 14th Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17101
 
In either case, please make clear that your comments are directed toward the proposed Chapter 59a Milk Sanitation regulations published in the PA Bulletin on August 1, 2009.  Also feel free to copy me on anything you send, as it will help to inform our thinking along the way. 
 
I’m sorry to fill the end of your summer with this concern, but then, we really have no choice.  The timing of these proposed regulations could/should certainly have been better. As always, thanks to all for your help!
 
Brian Snyder, Executive Director
brian@pasafarming.org