Allegheny couple files lawsuit against Pasture Maid Dairy in New Castle, Pa.

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PITTSBURGH, Pa.— A lawsuit has been filed on behalf of a couple who reportedly fell ill after ingesting raw milk from a Lawrence County, Pa. dairy.

James and Maureen Orchard, of Mars, Pa., reportedly suffered from symptoms in March by Campylobacter.

The bacteria was found in raw milk produced by Pasture Maid Creamery LLC of New Castle, Pennsylvania after testing by the Pa. Department of Agriculture and the Pa. Department of Health.

Lawsuit filed

The Pasture Maid Creamery lawsuit was filed April 28 in the Court of Common Pleas in Allegheny County. It alleges that 67-year-old James Orchard became paralyzed from a Campylobacter infection he suffered from unpasteurized Pasture Maid milk.

According to the complaint, Mr. Orchard and his wife purchased the milk March 16 from McGinnis Sisters Special Foods store in Mars, Pennsylvania. The retailer is named in the suit along with the creamery and its owner, Adam Dean.

While Mrs. Orchard suffered symptoms, her husband began to experience a loss of sensation and movement. As his infection developed into Guillain-Barre syndrome, he became totally paralyzed except for minimal movement of his head and the ability to blink his eyes. He was placed on ventilation equipment and is still unable to breathe on his own in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

The Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Agriculture advised consumers to discard Pasture Maid brand raw milk and recommended that Pasture Maid Creamery stop selling the product March 25.

Permit suspended

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture suspended Pasture Maid’s permit to sell raw milk for human consumption April 5 and the permit remains suspended indefinitely.

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9 COMMENTS

  1. What is wrong with these people…you drank raw milk…RAW milk…there is a reason for pasteurization. This country is filled with morons. Darwin was right

  2. I, myself have been raised on raw milk my entire life. But, if you have a weak immune system you shouldn’t consume raw foods. Vegetables included!

    • Are whole family drank raw cow’s milk back in the 60’s. As the farmer milked the cow we purchased still warm from the cow. not pasteurization.

      We didn’t get sick we thought drinking raw milk was good for you it was healthy for us.

  3. I grew up on raw milk and was fine. 15 years later I had Gillian Barre Syndrome from a non-related allergy problem. Mr. Orchard should be fine, but it will be a good amount of recovery time. Good Luck!

  4. I think our nation should continue to provide pasteurized milk for consumption. I also feel the consumer should be able to purchase raw milk from a dairy if they so desire. I feel the consumer can make their own decision based on facts and personal choice/preference. I do not feel that people who purchase and consume raw milk have the right to sue. Raw milk may contain bacteria that may cause illness. Raw milk may contain enzymes that are beneficial to the human body. These enzymes are destroyed with the heating process of pasteurization. The consumer can decide for themselves whether they want pasteurized or raw milk and accept the consequences for their choice. If their choice happens to result in negative consequences for them, they should not be able to sue since they reviewed risks vs. benefits before drinking that glass of milk.

  5. This is all just a plot to increase profits of the big corporate industrial dairy producers. Another evil of capitalism. A perfect example of the disintegration of local economies. This has nothing to do with health. There is no such thing as a virus. Search “Louis” “Pastuer” “Fraud” and read about how you are being lied to by the Medical Mafia. Germs are not acquired exogenously (from the outside). The Allegheny and Pa State health department don’t care about your health the only exist to ensure profits for the medical and food carteLS which are the main causes of disease aside from industrial polluters.

    Mr. and Mrs Orchard need to do a little differential diagnosis and they will find that the cause of his illness is poor nutrition, properly prescribed medications (they have no clinical relevance whatsoever!), radiation, chemotherapy, pesticides,chemical fertilizers, toxic food additives, heavy metals, fluoride in their water and the list goes on….. Raw milk is one of the best ways to prevent the harmful effects of above causes of disease.

  6. Raw cow’s milk is heathy because it has digestive enzymes. When we were younger we went to the farm to purchase cow’s milk that was warm straight from the cow no problems.

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