Max Kane Risks Prison for Refusing to Tell Who Sells and Who Buys Raw Milk

Max Kane has been charged with nothing. There is no case being prosecuted against him or anyone else for anything, not even for selling or buying raw milk. Yet, he has been ordered by the state of Wisconsin to inform on his friends. They want him to name people who sell or buy raw milk. He has refused, and for that, he’s been under threat of prison.

Wisconsin’s Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) is in thrall to the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), is not pursuing Kane for any crime, though they have been trying to turn him into a criminal. He’s obviously guilty, of course—guilty of drinking raw milk and advocating it. Worse, though, he’s guilty of refusing to give the names of people he knows who also drink raw milk, not to mention the farmers who have the temerity to sell it to them.

In Wisconsin, it’s perfectly legal for farmers to sell directly to consumers in Wisconsin. More and more have been doing just that, and for good reason. People want raw milk. Like Max Kane, they’ve found that it’s health-promoting. The powers-that-be don’t like that. So, they’re going after small family dairies and activists like Max. If Max gives in, they’re apparently planning to go after ordinary people who are guilty of buying a contraband substance: milk in its natural, unpasteurized, state.

How Max Came to Raw Milk Activism

Max was a very sick man suffering from Crohn’s disease, a conditon of intestinal tract ulceration, which results in pain and lack of adequate nutrition because an ulcerated alimentary canal cannot adequately absorb nutrients. In his words, he was “wasting away”. Modern medicine could do nothing for him.

Like a miracle, Max found raw milk. By the simple act of drinking it, he has returned to health. As a result, Max Kane has become a raw milk activist. To this end, he bicycled across the nation in 50 days, eating and drinking only raw milk products, to bring attention to the value of raw milk. A movie is being made of that journey. You can see a trailer for it here.

How Max Is Threatened by the State of Wisconsin

Max was involved in a cow share program, in which customers deal directly with farms by purchasing “shares” in cows and paying for handling costs in exchange for raw milk. He was subpoenaed by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) to name people he knows who might be involved in distributing or receiving raw milk. He refused.

Max went to court without an attorney, saying that the subpoena is in violation of both the US and Wisconsin constitutions, including the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. In his case, the right to life is literal, since the lack of raw milk would destroy his health. He also believes that people have the right to obtain food from private sources. While that particular right isn’t enshrined in the constitution, it’s hard to imagine that the founders’ worst nightmares could have conceived of the current persecution against raw milk producers.