Nearly all milk consumed these days is pasteurised. This quick
industrial heat treatment kills any nasty bugs that might be lurking in
the milk.
However many people, particularly no-nonsense rural types, prefer
to
drink untreated milk "straight from the cow". Without pasteurisation,
milk tastes better and retains more vitamins and nutrients. There
is
also evidence that the anti-infection comparison is much less clear
than commonly thought.1
These ideas seem to enrage many health bureaucrats who consider
untreated milk to be highly poisonous. It is banned in Scotland,
Australia, Canada and some American states. In England and Wales, it may
only
be sold in farm shops and local milk round deliveries, where is
also
known as "Green Top"2 There was another attempt to ban it
here in 1997, but that seems to have run out of steam.
Unpasteurised milk is also important for the production of quality cheeses. Apart from the effect on chemical composition, heat treatment will kill living organisms that create subtle flavours.
1 - The Case for Untreated Milk, DR. B. M. PICKARD,
Department of Animal Physiology and Nutrition, University of Leeds,
Published by The Soil Association.
2 - A green-topped plastic carton from a shop will contain pasteurised
semi-skimmed milk. A glass bottle with a green aluminium foil top
will
contain the real thing.