Expectant mom claims bacteria from raw milk sold by Florida dairy led to miscarriage

Florida mom claims bacteria from raw milk led to her miscarriage

A Seminole County mother is suing a Volusia County dairy farm, saying bacteria from its raw milk caused her to miscarry and left her toddler seriously ill. Rachel Maddox, who was 20 weeks pregnant at the time, said she lost her unborn son after contracting a bacterial infection.

LONGWOOD, Fla. -  A Seminole County mother is suing a Volusia County dairy farm, saying bacteria from its raw milk caused her to miscarry and left her toddler seriously ill.

Several illnesses linked to Keely Farms raw milk: Officials

What Happened:

A Seminole County woman filed a lawsuit against Keely Farms Dairy. She claims raw milk from the farm in New Smyrna Beach sent her son to the hospital and caused her to lose her unborn baby.

Rachel Maddox says she was 20 weeks pregnant when her 2-year-old son drank raw milk from Keely Farms Dairy that she bought from a store in Longwood. 

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According to the lawsuit, Maddox’s toddler was the first to become sick, developing nausea, fever, diarrhea, abdominal pain, chills, and dehydration. He was hospitalized for 10 days. 

Rachel Maddox also became ill with similar symptoms, developed sepsis, and tragically lost her unborn child. She was hospitalized for 19 days. Both Maddox and her son tested positive for the strain of campylobacter linked to contaminated Keely Farms Dairy raw milk.

The backstory:

The state department of health says since January, 21 people have gotten sick from raw milk sold that was linked to Keely Farms Dairy. Seven people had to be hospitalized. By law, raw milk in Florida can only be sold as animal feed, but Maddox’s lawsuit argues the product was mislabeled and misleading.

What they're saying:

Rachel Maddox said she wants to prevent other families from experiencing the same loss. 

"I would have never allowed my son to drink it, and my second son, Ezekiel, he would still be alive today if I had known," said Maddox."Watching my son Lucas be rolled away into the ER was the second-worst moment of my life, and finding out that we had lost our baby, our second son, was the worst moment."

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Maddox is being represented by Ron Simon, the Managing Partner of Ron Simon and Associates. According to Simon, the raw milk was labeled "feed for calves, not for human consumption." But he says the label was unclear and alleges that the store clerk told her it was safe to purchase and drink.

"The label that Keely Farms chose to put on their raw milk was not a warning at all," said Simon. "It doesn't tell the user that A, the milk is unpasteurized, which means it hasn't gone through a heat process to make the milk safe, to kill all the bacteria. It also doesn't tell you why it's not for human consumption. Doesn't say anything about that. And that's why Rachel asked the clerk, 'Hey, can I drink this?' And the clerk said, 'Yes, we just put this on it so we can sell it."

FOX 35 reached out to Keely Farms for a statement on Thursday but had not heard back at the time this story was published. When we spoke with them last week, they told us the Department of Health said they had not committed any wrongdoing.

The store in Longwood said it is not releasing a statement at this time.