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Raw Milk and other questions


KathyTX

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Hi,

Does anyone know where I can get raw cow's milk and raw goat's milk?

Are there dairies in the area that I can buy directly from?

Any recommedations on dairies in the area..cleanliness, etc?

Where can I buy cheese making supplies, such as molds(for draining) and presses? I know that I can buy supplies NOB but would like to find local suppliers.

Is this the right forum to be asking about this?

Thanks!

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Be careful with raw milk and raw milk cheeses like queso fresco. Salmonella can happen anywhere, even in the States:

Twenty-five Salmonella illnesses now linked to homemade unpasteurized fresh cheese

http://www.health.state.mn.us/news/pressrel/2013/salmonella052013.html

Also, know your sources for raw milk! There's currently a brucellosis outbreak in an urban setting (a fairly rare occurrence) in the State of Guanajuato not far from San Miguel de Allende:

Alertan por brucelosis (in Spanish):

http://www.periodico.am/celaya/local/alertan-por-brucelosis-16271.html

FWIW,

-- Don

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Thanks Don. I will be careful and will pasturize it myself. It's always good to be vigilant about where we get our food. There is so much to enjoy and explore :-)

I found Cuajo(rennet) at the Pharmacia Guadalajara. My quest continues....

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Unless you are alergic to dairy products raw milk and cheeses are no health hazard. The French have been using it for centuries and are doing pretty well. Back in Canada in the french Province of Quebec cheeses from raw milk are the fashion and they do taste exquisite. Like most foods one should not abuse and consume moderately. Enjoy!

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Joco, I fear that this time you are mistaken. If the raw milk you consume comes from a cow with brucellosis, chances are pretty good you will get the disease. A friend in Ajijic contracted brucellosis from raw milk and was sick for months.

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It's Iikely she got worms from fecal matter that contaminated the milk. The bacterias and brucellosis also contaminate after it is out of the cow/animal. People get sick from store bought milk too. There are risks with all of it. We could probably go into eternity discussing this aspect of food.

I found a Cremeria in Chapala yesterday. I pasturized the Gal./4 Liters I bought and made some mozzarella. I am pleased with the results. I don't know if that Cremeria is the closest one to Ajijc. Has anyone seen others in the area?

I am still looking for a press and for cheese molds(plastic or steel). Some of that I may just have to get on my next trip NOB, I know.

I am wary of going to the field across from Walmart because I see those animals lying in the dirt all the time. There is no grass and they are in a pretty small space.

I appreciate all your thoughts and comments. I am learning my way around here and enjoying it!

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Go early any morning to the field on the north side just where Lettys resturant was..oppersite the Coca Cola plant in San Antonio...at weekends you can get a shot of tequlia with it

You see people milking cows and offering raw milk for sale (with the shot of tequila). My spouse was born here and he warned me that unless you are very used to it, you should be prepared to be violently ill the first few times.

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  • 5 weeks later...

It's Iikely she got worms from fecal matter that contaminated the milk. The bacterias and brucellosis also contaminate after it is out of the cow/animal. People get sick from store bought milk too. There are risks with all of it. We could probably go into eternity discussing this aspect of food.

I found a Cremeria in Chapala yesterday. I pasturized the Gal./4 Liters I bought and made some mozzarella. I am pleased with the results. I don't know if that Cremeria is the closest one to Ajijc. Has anyone seen others in the area?

I am still looking for a press and for cheese molds(plastic or steel). Some of that I may just have to get on my next trip NOB, I know.

I am wary of going to the field across from Walmart because I see those animals lying in the dirt all the time. There is no grass and they are in a pretty small space.

I appreciate all your thoughts and comments. I am learning my way around here and enjoying it!

Here is from the Mayo Clinic

"Definition

By Mayo Clinic staff

Brucellosis is an infectious disease that spreads from animals to people — most often via unpasteurized milk, cheese and other dairy products. More rarely, the bacteria that cause brucellosis can spread through the air or through direct contact with infected animals.

Brucellosis symptoms include fever, joint pain and fatigue. The infection can usually be treated successfully with antibiotics. Treatment takes several weeks, however, and relapses are common.

While brucellosis is uncommon in the United States, the disease affects hundreds of thousands of people and animals worldwide. Avoiding unpasteurized dairy products and taking precautions when working with animals or in a laboratory can help prevent brucellosis."

I know, I have it now and have been fighting this horrible stuff for over a year now. It is extremely hard to cure and believe it or not it is around Lakeside. The United States and Canada inoculate their livestock. Mexico doesn't require it.

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No one has mentioned yet that, unfortunately, tuberculosis is a large problem in Mexico. Drinking raw milk HERE is risky. With all the warnings about brucellosis, salmonella, E. coli contamination and tuberculosis I would think common sense would dictate avoiding it unless you mean to pasteurize it properly.

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Joco, I fear that this time you are mistaken. If the raw milk you consume comes from a cow with brucellosis, chances are pretty good you will get the disease. A friend in Ajijic contracted brucellosis from raw milk and was sick for months.

I know a farmer who drank milk from an infected cow, totally ruined him and his business left him on crutches, no cure it seems!

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Joco60 is misinformed about France.

We do eat a lot of raw milk products but the cattle and other animals are all vaccinated. and the standards of cleaniless are pretty strict. In the past many people got sick from raw milk.We call bruscellosis Malta fever .

You can get tubercolisis and bruscellosis as well as e-coli and salmonella from raw milk. When we were kids we always boiled the milk for 3 minutes . We had a little pyrex flat object that made noise when true boiling would start and we timed the boiling.

I got bruscellosis from eating cheese or yogurt in Ajijic as I do not drink milk.

I

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There are several cheese vendors at the Tuesday Farmer's Market. Two are roughly on ether side of the tamale ladies and the other is on the far wall selling mostly lettuce and assorted vegetables. The cheese vendor (Anna Marie and family) near the bottom of the Wednesday Ajijic tienges has a factory in Ocotlan. The Dutch gentleman at the Tuesday market is the only one who speaks English.

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I am a cheese maker also (fairly new), and new here. I bought some stuff with me, but alas don't think the boxed milk will work. I asked yesterday in Chapala for raw milk and was told that behind the square in the carniceria they sell raw milk, but only in the mornings. I asked how much and he seemed to think it was around 12 pesos a liter.

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Hi Shan,

I tried making mozzarella with the refrigerated milk and it did not work. I believe that it is ultra pasteurized and I know that boxed milk is. This denatures the milk protein & changes the structure. You can't make hard cheeses with it but can make yogurt, cream cheese and buttermilk. I've seen suggestions of using dried milk with some cream added, if good milk isn't available but have never tried this. The raw milk I get, I pasteurize myself.At Lacteos Mama Lupita, in Chapala, the raw milk is 8.50/L, It's listed as Leche Entera and I've been told that it's called Leche Broncha too.

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Thanks Canamex, More Liana, Maxx and Don. You all saved me from a lengthly posting on the connection of raw milk products to TB, Salmonella and Brucellosis, among others. Working as a consultant with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, CDC, with infectious diseases for almost twenty years I experienced first hand the impact that raw mlk products can have on ones health.I saw many migrant farmworkers in the midwest who orignated in Jalisco who were terribly ill from TB and Brucellosis. Brucellosis, was usually not diagnosed early since it is similar to other diseases and if not suspected is not on the usual list of tests and goes untreated. Young children and the elderly particularly have a hard time with these diseases. Home pasturization does not always remove the bacteria from the milk. I love the yougurt from the market but the seller could not tell me if her cows were tested for TB so I will continue to buy the packaged yougurt which really has no taste since I am on regular doses of antibiotics and yougurt controls some of their negative side effects.

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Marty, you can make your own yogurt. Heat milk to simmering. Let it cool to 96F. Add a few spoons of your favorite yogurt. Cover and let it sit in a warm area for 12 hrs. I set the bowl in a bowl with hot water, cover it with a towel and let it sit in the oven overnight. If you want Greek style, drain it in cheesecloth to the thickness you like.

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  • 5 years later...
On ‎2013‎-‎07‎-‎14 at 12:50 AM, maryannborman said:

...Home pasturization does not always remove the bacteria from the milk...

Would 20 minutes of keeping the milk at a simmer (with bubbles coming up, a slow boil) for 20 minutes do the job?

I'd read that 13 minutes at sea level will kill most water-borne parasites... Plus a minute for every 1,000 feet in elevation. So that's another 5 minutes, plus an extra couple minutes for a safety margin, so that's 20 minutes total).

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