A prominent LA raw food store was raided a couple weeks ago by the L.A.P.D. Although it is legal to manufacture and sell unpasteurized milk in the state of California, you must have a permit and license to do so. Rawesome Foods is a members only raw food market that was raided due to "allegedly" selling products to non-members and illegal manufacture and sale of unpasteurized raw milk.
Armed officers followed owner James Stewart from his home to the Rawesome foods market to arrest him after a year long string operation, and was then charged with a $123,000 bail. Along with James, two other employees were arrested as well; Sharon Palmer and Eugenie Bloch. Following the arrests, the officers continued to raid the store tossing out what some estimated to be 500 pounds of dairy.
"This week, Rawesome, a legal food club in Venice, California, was illegally shut down by a Multi-agency armed unit and over thousands of dollars worth of fresh food and produce destroyed. The SWAT style, helmet wearing, gun carrying enforcement agents came rushing in as if they were seizing heroin or dealing with gangsters." -Huffington Post
I'm pretty sure that we could find more useful ways to spend our government's money than raiding and destroying raw milk. Shouldn't it be our choice what we want to feed out families? Why should the government feel that it needs to control the foods that we eat. If I choose to purchase antibiotic-free, hormone-free, real foods, shouldn't that be my choice?
For more information on the raw food raid check out some of the following websites:
To participate in the Real Milk movement, check out this website.
Pura Vida!
Alica Ryan, NTP
Looks like some of those police officers need to learn a thing or two about raw, organic, healthy foods and start incorporating them into their own diets. Just saying.
ReplyDeleteWhile I completely agree with the idea of having the choice of buying RAW or pasteurized milk, the folks at Rawesome and Healthy Valley Farms are some of the "wholesome food" companies to STAY AWAY from. They are actually buying cheap wholesale food and passing them along as 'organic' or 'raw' foods.
ReplyDeleteThe owner of Rawesome, Sharon Palmer has a long rap sheet, among that consists of a felony conviction of elderly fraud, grand theft, and loan fraud. Paleo diet activist Aajonus Vonderplanitz paid a private investigator to look into Healthy Family Farms proprietor Sharon Palmer. You can read a private investigators report here: http://unhealthyfamilyfarm.com/images/Wd0000006.pdf