A lawmaker from Northern Samar wants to make it illegal for milk importers and dealers to refer to pasteurized and Ultra High Temperature milk as fresh milk, saying that misleads the public.
“It is misleading because milk being sold in groceries, which is mostly imported, has been pasteurized. Milk being sold in the market underwent ultra high temperature treatment (UHT), which allows it to last for several days,” Northern Samar Representative Harlin Abayon said.
Under a proposed Milk Nutrition and Labeling bill, Abayon wants to prohibit importers and traders of processed milk from claiming their products are fresh milk. Violations will be penalized with fines of from P10,000 to P200,000.
“With the proper labeling of milk products, this will not only protect consumers of milk but also the local producers of fresh milk as well,” Abayon said.
The Philippine National Standard for Fresh Milk says milk should have “undergone heat processing (and is) intended for consumption as liquid milk.” That means milk sold in the Philippines should have undergone heat treatment, much like milk already being sold in the country.
It also requires proper labelling, specifically, “the heat treatment process shall also be indicated in the label, e.g. ‘Whole Milk pasteurized/UHT from fresh cow’s milk’, ‘Fresh Milk, UHT’, ‘Fresh Milk, Pasteurized'”.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns against the consumption of milk that has not udnergone pasteurization to kill bacteria. It says consuming “raw milk” may cause vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pains.
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Photo: CGoodwin
