State officials have now released the names of the dairy farmers who supplied unpasteurized milk to the Durand High School football team this fall, causing dozens of students and faculty to become violently ill from Campylobacter bacteria. Responding to an open records request from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture stated that Roland and Diana Reed from Arkansaw supplied the milk to students at a potluck event on September 18.
Nearly 40 people were sickened after drinking the raw milk, of which 26 were confirmed to have been contaminated by Campylobacter jejuni, a harmful bacteria that was traced back to the farm’s manure.
After their names became public, Diana Reed told the newspaper that she had supplied raw milk to the team in the past and it was never an issue.
Meanwhile, the state also released the name of the farm that supplied raw milk to students at North Cape Elementary School in Racine County in 2011, causing 16 people to become sick. Officials said a relative of Schaal Dairy Farm took the unpasteurized milk to the school without the farmer’s permission. No action was taken against the dairy in the case.
Source: Wisconsin Ag Connection
