30 now sick, 2 hospitalized, from Billy Goat raw milk

Lab tests performed by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment have confirmed that raw milk from Longmont’s Billy Goat Dairy is responsible for an outbreak of bacterial illnesses in Boulder County.

Samples of the dairy’s unpasteurized milk tested positive for the strains of Campylobacter and E. coli that have now sickened 30 people, including two children who are hospitalized.

Chana Goussetis, spokeswoman for Boulder County Public Health, said

“Our main message, over and over, is that no matter what, there’s no way to ensure that unpasteurized milk is safe.”

A table of raw-milk related outbreaks is available at ?http://bites.ksu.edu/rawmilk
 

Billy Goat raw milk sick climbs to 24

Billy Goat Dairy – most unappealing name for a place to buy milk – has an additional eight cases of E. coli O157:H7 and campylobacter linked to its raw goats milk, bringing the number of confirmed sick people to 24.

Two children were hospitalized in connection with the outbreak. One has been released; the other remains under observation, but health officials reported his condition is improving.