INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — A bill has surfaced at the Indiana Statehouse that would make the practice of drinking raw milk from a cow by multiple owners of the cow legal.

Currently, it’s legal in Indiana for the owner of a cow to drink raw milk as long as that milk is consumed by that person or someone in the family. It’s illegal, though, for a cow’s owners to sell or give away raw milk to others.

To get around the law, people who like raw milk but don’t own a cow and could not consume all of the milk a cow produces have been purchasing shares of a cow in order to split the milk and make it legal for them to consume or, perhaps, give some of it away.

“We view that as skirting the intent of the law,” said Denise Derrer, a spokesperson for the Indiana Board of Animal Health (BOAH).

Such a practice has drawn concern from entities such as BOAH, which views consumption of raw milk outside the farm as a public safety hazard because of the organisms in raw milk that aren’t killed unless pasteurized. “Even in the cleanest of farm environments you’re still going to have issues with that,” said Derrer.

Indiana House Bill 1346 authored by Rep. Chris Judy (R-Columbia City) allows unpasteurized milk to be acquired by an individual who obtains the milk from animals solely or partially owned by the individual. The bill also allows the milk to be distributed to members of the individual’s family or non-paying guests – which means, perhaps, that people could go to a cow share owner’s home and receive raw milk that’s given away at no cost.

Derrer said obtaining raw milk to drink through cow sharing is a “gray area of the law” that legislators, public safety officials and others with an interest on the issue have tried to work out but, so far, have failed to compromise on. BOAH fears the bill could open the door to the sale of raw milk commercially, citing states where dozens of people at one time have become sick from consuming non-pasteurized milk purchased in stores.

She said raw milk can produce anything from an upset stomach to ingestion, up to kidney failure and even death, with the most susceptible being the elderly, young children, expectant mothers and people in failing health.

In Utah, for example, raw milk or cream purchased from a dairy was linked to 45 people coming down with the campylobacteriosis bacteria and the dairy’s license to sell raw milk commercially was suspended, according to the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.

The report found the milk was contaminated because a worker failed to adequately clean the udders of the cows. The udders can become tainted from coming into contact with things such as a pile of manure on the ground, said Derrer.

On average, 1 in 6 people who drink raw milk becomes ill with bacterial or parasite infections, according to researchers at the Minnesota Department of Health, based on the result of 10-year study that ended in 2010. However, supporters of raw milk point out it’s been consumed for centuries and long has been associated with health benefits such as preventing scurvy, the flu, tuberculosis and other ailments.

Several research studies also show superior growth and health for children drinking raw milk compared to pasteurized milk. Pasteurized milk consumption, on the other hand, has been linked with osteoporosis, tooth decay, arthritis, heart disease and cancer, according to raw milk supporters.

Harry Weaver, owner of Sunny Meadow Farm in Argos in the northern part of the state, said he sells an average of 100 gallons of raw milk for pets a week. Selling raw milk for pets is legal in Indiana.

His gallon containers are labeled for pets, but Weaver said it’s up to the customer to decide whether the raw milk is actually used for pets or for human consumption when they get home. He understands the risk of drinking raw milk but says the odds of getting sick are very low.

“I’ve drank raw milk all of my life. All of my cousins and sisters drink it,” said Weaver, who added the consumption of raw milk in his family goes back for several generations.

Judy declined a request to comment on his bill for this article.

Indiana Farm Bureau is taking what seems to be a safe position on the issue with a policy on raw milk that states “protection of the general public health must be the primary consideration of any legislation or regulation concerning the sale of raw (unpasteurized) milk.”

According to the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund website, at least 10 states allow raw milk to be sold. and at least 16 allow raw milk to be sold from farms.