Is a $9K fine for selling raw milk appropriate?

Dairy farmer Michael Schmidt, shown drinking raw milk outside a Newmarket court Friday, has been fined $9,150 for distributing and selling raw milk. (Jasmin Seputis/CBC)

An Ontario dairy farmer guilty may be experiencing the bitter taste of defeat after being fined $9,150 for selling and distributing raw milk.

In September, an appeal court found Michael Schmidt of Durham guilty on charges related to the production and sale of unpasteurized milk.

It's illegal to distribute raw milk in Canada -- unless it's to the farmer's immediate family.

Schmidt remained defiant on Friday, toasting his sentence with a glass of raw milk. He said he plans to appeal within 30 days and will not pay the fine.

"I'd rather go to prison than pay the fine and that's a matter of principle," he said. "If I pay the fine, then this is almost like an admittance of guilt."

He has said previously that the fight is not about milk, but about respect for the individual's right to make choices without government interference.

It's legal to drink unpasteurized milk, but selling it is against the law because of the risk of E. coli, salmonella and listeria.

After the September ruling, we asked the CBC Community whether they thought raw milk should be legalized in Canada. 92 per cent of the over 2,000 respondents voted "yes."

You can still vote on that poll here.

Do you think the $9,000 fine for selling raw milk is appropriate? Is it an overly harsh judgment, or is it not harsh enough? Let us know in the comments section below.


(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)