A toddler has died and another four young children have fallen seriously ill after drinking unpasteurised cow’s milk being sold in health food shops as “bath milk”.
The three-year-old child, believed to be from Melbourne’s Mornington Peninsula, died after drinking contaminated “organic bath milk”. The case has been forwarded to the State Coroner.
Another four children, believed to be aged from one to four, suffered serious cases of gastroenteritis after consuming raw cow’s milk.
Three of the affected children contracted a rare but potentially fatal condition known as haemolytic uraemic syndrome, which causes abdominal pains and bloody diarrhoea, while serious cases can lead to renal failure and death.
All five children drank unpasteurised milk, which was marketed as a cosmetic product.
The sale of unpasteurised milk is banned in Victoria, given its high risk of contamination.
But some raw milk products are still being sold in health food stores labelled as “cosmetic” or “bath” milk. Authorities are unable to recall the products because of their labelling.
Victoria’s chief health officer, Dr Rosemary Lester, has issued a warning to consumers in the wake of the toddler’s death.
“Everyone is vulnerable to illness caused by the pathogens present in raw milk, but the risks are even greater for young children and for the elderly, those with underlying health problems, immunocompromised or pregnant,” Dr Lester said.
She said dairy farmers could not guarantee that unpasteurised milk was free from harmful bacteria despite precautions.
Dr Lester said on Thursday that she was concerned to learn that “cosmetic milk” was sold alongside drinks in health food stores and packaged in a similar fashion to pasteurised milk.
She has taken her concerns to Consumer Affairs Victoria and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
“It’s impossible to sterilise milk without pasteurisation,” she told Fairfax Radio 3AW.
It has been compulsory for farmers to pasteurise cow’s milk in Australia since the 1940s. Pasteurisation involves heating the milk for a very short period of time to kill any disease-causing bacteria it may contain, including E.coli.