Organic Valley Bans Farmers From Selling Raw Milk on the Side

Organic Valley has just joined a growing number of dairy processors and co-ops that refuse to buy milk from any dairy that also sells raw milk to consumers. With last week's narrow 4-3 vote, Organic Valley's board of directors ended a bitter year-long dispute among its members, deciding an earlier 20-to-20 vote tie by its Dairy Executive Committee. Citing farmer complaints about competition and legal concerns that even their own lawyers say are nothing to worry about, the board has struck a serious blow to farmer independence.

Organic Valley is a cooperative of more than 1,600 small family farms spread across the country. It began in 1988 with the mission of supporting local communities, environmental stewardship, and economic justice for small farmers and has done a lot over the years to achieve that end. It's quality and welfare standards are high, and at around $1.50 per gallon, Organic Valley pays its members much, much more for their milk than your average dairy processor.

The trouble is, that is still far less than the $5 to $10 per gallon that raw milk can fetch directly from consumers. At least 10 percent of Organic Valley's dairy farms currently sell raw milk for supplemental income. But those farmers likely don't have the consumer base to sell all their milk this way, leaving them with the difficult decision of whether to struggle to grow their number of customers or sell exclusively to Organic Valley, which would mean both a hit to their profits and hundreds of disappointed buyers. Unfortunately, this particular raw milk ban is not an isolated incident, but a growing trend.

For years I was a happy consumer of Organic Valley products due to their superior taste and rigorous animal welfare standards, and I am always happy to support a business owned by its workers. Now I am not so sure. It is disappointing to see farmers complaining about other farmers this way. The whole decision sounds like something we would expect from one of the mega-dairy processors who are used to pushing around the farmers who depend on them.

One of the legs of agricultural sustainability is economic sustainability. Indeed, promoting it is one of Organic Valley's stated goals. But it's hard to see how farmers can have that economic sustainability without the independence to make their own business decisions. Pasteurization equipment is very expensive, and selling raw is the only way direct marketing is feasible for many small dairies, at least getting started. Selling directly to consumers is one of the best ways a farmer can stay profitable, and bans like this effectively outlaw it. It is understandable that a farmer would be willing to give up some measure of independence for the promise of stability that a contract with a processor offers, but legislating what a farmer does independent of that contract is crossing a line.

We have seen far too many times what happens when farmers' independence is taken away. They become mere indentured servants to the likes of Tyson and Monsanto, hired labor that is used up and thrown away, assuming all of the risk and none of the profit. I'm not saying Organic Valley or all the other co-ops and processors that have placed similar restrictions are just as bad as the Big Ag behemoths, but by limiting farmer independence, they are taking a dangerous step in the wrong direction.

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