Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream With Breast Milk?

"um.... yeah. thanks, time to go powerwash the inside of my skull"

i have to agree with that comment....i will be the fist to quit buying ben and jerries if this happens. and i dont think i would the last. share of B&J would drop over night

Thank you for contributing to the publicity stunt and assuring that more stupid things from PETA will follow.

This is not one of Peta's best publicity stunts (are there ever good publicity stunts?).

While I'm all for a complete and major overhaul of the dairy industry this (if to be taken seriously) is a really bad idea. You're absolutely right that lactivists are gonna have an issue with this. Not enough moms nurse their babies as it is, and too few who *actually* can't have to resort to formula because donor milk isn't available for them.

I'll go along with human breast milk in ice cream as long as a photo of the milk producer is included -- then it would be hot. Think how much a pint of Pam Anderson would go for.

Isn't breast milk too contaminated with to be used in commercial products?

First of all gross!

2nd how do you get millions of women to eat food that won't taint their breast milk. You can't eat onions or it make the milk taste funny. It's in every baby book you can find.

How about we stick to organic cows milk first.

mmmm!!!!yummy!yummy!!!

mmmm!!!yummy!yummy!!!

Yes,
because depriving babies of mother's milk is a great plan! I have lost a lot of respect for Treehugger perpetuating PETA's most recent publicity stunt.

God I loathe PETA and their constant objectification of women. Makes me almost want to give up my vegetarianism.

Hmmm, Banana Boobie, Funbag Flurrie, of course there's always Rocki Roads (use the wiki).

Just for fun folks don't get your sensibilities in a twist.

This is one of those times I'm glad I'm lactose intolerant. Soy Cuties, yum!

If I wanted to drink breast milk, I'd get pregnant, give birth, and drink the excess milk in my own breasts after my child/children nurse(s). For those who consume dairy products from traditional livestock, it would be so much better to lobby for much healthier, much more wholesome milk than to (perhaps?) enslave (?) women for a profit-seeking human milk enterprise.

Hmmm...we get milk from cows that live on dairy farms...what would be the equivalent? Can I borrow that powerwasher!?!

Well, PETA has some nice anti meat campaigns.
BUT THIS IS BULLSHIT, that said, here's why.

Milk is the perfect example for a symbiosis between man and animal, or even two ordinary organisms if you will, in this case the cow. When the milk is from an organic and happy cow I'm honored to drink it, and I suppose the cow's fine with it too, because it gets some warm place in winer and some nice snack here and there. Just look at the ants with their lice farms, the lice suck the juice out of the trees and poop some fine sweet stuff, the ants harvest the poo but protect the lice. Symbiosis.

And I think even the most fanatic PETA member will agree.
Cheese is better than meat. And drinking the milk is better than eating the cow.

We could learn from the Milk & Meat dilemma.
Some things are simply of more worth if you keep them on the long run (milk) and don't want everything at once. (meat)

i breast fed all three of my children for just over a year each (13-15 months). They have all benefited from this, but the idea of adults consuming human breast milk is just gross. . . we can milk cows because their babies will not be deprived of the milk, the mothers will produce as much as is needed. What human woman would want to be milked? Producing massive amounts of breast milk can cause problems - especially if the child doesn't nurse often enough. . .

. . . sorry, i just don't feel that i can fully express how disturbing this would be. PETA is so dumb. . .

I've seen what most humans eat and I think that an organically fed cow eats way better, therefore, I'll stick with the cows milk!!!!!!

This is definitely gross, but brings to light the fact that humans are the only species to continue to consume milk after they're weaned from their mothers...it's not natural to drink milk as an adult of a species, so to reiterate the comment above...why are people grossed out by this and not by drinking the breast milk of another species? Why are we grossed out at the idea of cannibalism, but not at eating the flesh of another animal?

I think the ick factor may be genetically programmed in us to prevent the inevitable sickness that comes from eating one's own species...but still....milk is milk....it's kinda gross no matter where it comes from.

Makes Soylent Green seem not so far fetched, doesn't it?

Strange?!?

Drinking another animals milk does not seem ODD?

Treatment of Animals all over the world is deplorable. PETA is a radical, hardcore advocate for the benefit, well bring, and humane treatment and care of Animals.

Educate yourselves.

I've dissed ALIEN MILK for a long time. It just ain't logical to suckle cross-species. Once a kid is grown, it's time to wean OFF the stuff. It's not designed for adult consumption. But hey, If produce can be certified organic why not female humans? Always wondered what I've been missing since dear sweet Mom was lactose shy and dry (I got only a couple days worth of the real stuff).

Steve Perkins, The Cooking Buff at The Muscle Kitchen

And you thought PETA was loony before this. This just proves that Peta has lost their minds. What do you expect from the loony left. The ideas the left have are either unpractical or far out their. Yeah so this is see how i see it, colleges would lose money because teenagers would be getting pregnant at a faster rate just so they can sell their breast milk for cash, they would probably give there kids up for adoption since they didn't want them in the first place they just wanted the fast cash. Many of these kids would go unadopted more abused kids... seems what i'm saying is whack well that's how i view PETA>> get the point..

God, Liz's coments are SO IGNORANT:
"we can milk cows because their babies will not be deprived of the milk, the mothers will produce as much as is needed. What human woman would want to be milked?"

Liz, study up on factory farming, and I mean even "organic" milk and how it is produced - because you are terribly uninformed.

The mother cows are force-fertilized and then have their babies taken away within 48 hours and stuck in veal crates they can't move in. There is enough documentation of this that you can easily see for yourself.

Did anyone ever care if a COW wanted to be milked for humans? Calfs drink on average 16 gallons a day (if they were allowed to live and be with their mothers naturally; but hardly any of them are.) A milked cow is forced to give up to 70 gallons a day.... there is actually an allowable amount of PUS and bacteria allowed by the FDA to be in the milk you drink, due to their udders being so stressed and ailing. They are not meant by nature to produce "as much as needed", not by human standards. Their calfs don't get any of it.

Before you say how "dumb" peta is, Liz, I suggest you EDUCATE YOURSELF about what you are actually eating. The image of happy cows on grass pastures - - this does not exist for the majority of cows whose milk you are drinking, and the dairy in your fattening desserts... there is not enough pasture on the planet to provide grass-fed milk to all the humans who demand milk. And to see the calfs being taken from their mothers and then soon loaded onto a truck for slaughter is heartbreaking - a certain percentage of the mother cows go "crazy" when their calves are taken from them and have to be slaughtered too. And at any rate, they are slaughtered the minute they can't make milk for us humans. That is a fine way to thank something that has sustained you and lived in discomfort and misery so much of its life.

My suggestion: go vegan and stop eating ben and jerry's too. also go to www.hulu.com and watch the "30 days" episode about the die-hard hunter who goes to live with a vegan family for a month. He gets to see how the cows are treated, and even he can come around to seeing it is just not right.

PETA has jumped the shark.

Perhaps someone should market expensive face lotion made from grease squeezed from teenagers' pores.

ok.. i think peta has finally gone bunkers if they had not before.. i think human breast milk would be ok if all the female memebers in peta agreed to be milked.. and daily and more than once a day so they can keep a commerical production going..

they're COMPLETELY out of touch with daily lives of orginary ppl. i agreed with one of the poster that nowardays alot of babies don't get enough breast milk as it is. which is the most nutritious and safe for babies..

i can't help but think a man came up with this idea.. or a woman who's never had kids nor comes in contact with one in their daily lives.

the pitiful insulated world of the members of PETA..

i donno even as publicity stunt this sounds very offensive.

this just reaffirmed my opinion that alot in peta are really just haters of fellow human beings disguised in their love of animals..

you can't love all creatures if you hate people so much..

seriously...

well.. if they want to put something like this out there. expect people will give them a dose of reality and common sense..

grace

I think the general reaction to the comment is hilarious. The comment is similar to Sheryl Crowe's comment on "Use one square of tissue". It's meant to create response and controversy. Not that PETA actually expects anybody to actually commercialize human breast milk. More they want the Ewwww factor to be brought to cow's milk. We don't think twice about any of the multitude of dairy products out there, regardless of whether it comes from cows or goats or sheep. This whole news storm did exactly what PETA wanted it to do, make people stop for a second and think about it. Whether you laughed at the immediate absurdity of it, or wrote a ranting letter to PETA, you reacted to it. PETA never expected Ben & Jerry's to say OK to the proposition, in fact if they did (which would have been even more hilarious) PETA would probably have to print a retraction of the statement, due to all the obvious issues in farming human breast milk.
Anyways, I had a good laugh, and also very much enjoy the righteous indignation of everybody who thinks it's a real request.

Is "Educate Yourself" a PETA slogan or something?

Anyways, Reb, when you said that cows are forced to produce 70 gallons a day, I'll just assume you meant to be honest and type "ten cows." The key are right next to each other, after all.

I for one am looking forward to milk farm where earnest hardworking immigrants can earn good money during their 14-hour milking shifts while recieving a quality nurtitional diet (provided for only a nominal fee). vive la leche!

I was rather surprised to see that noone has mentioned so far that selling human milk is illegal.

lol, whooosh! I love how this is going WAY over almost everyone's heads. PETA uses questionable tactics at times, but apparently all the people calling PETA stupid here have never heard of using the absurd to make a point.

You should feel exactly the same feelings you’re getting by imagining drinking some random woman’s breast milk as you would when you’re drinking the excretions from a huge mammal’s udders. Just because something is a “tradition” doesn’t mean we shouldn’t step back and see how truly disturbing it really is.

The gigantic dairy industry leaders are the only ones who have ever claimed the saturated fat-hormone-puss-laden stuff to be healthy. The mere thought of drinking cow's milk should disgust you even MORE than the thought of drinking human breast milk.

I read this on the PETA website but didn't give it much thought. I was under the impression they were just being facetious.

Next time I eat a bacon cheeseburger I'll think of you Reb and laugh.

@mox: and you don't think this is facetious? See you on Tuesday.

That's a wonderful idea, PETA... so how are we going to get an equivalent amount of breast milk from women to match what cows produce? Oh, I've got it! We can artificially inseminate women to cause them to produce milk, and then abort the pregnancy and use the unborn fetus for use in stem cell research! Sign me up to live on the breast milk farm. It's a win-win situation!

Whoever came up with this idea needs to be locked up. Humans were put on the earth in dominance of all other animals. I don't condone the harsh and cruel treatment of animals by any means (and yes, I have seen that episode of "30 days" about the hunter living with the vegan family) but how is it unnatural to use animals for their resourced in producing food? It's what we've been doing for thousands of years.

PETA, If you want to eradicate the cruelty of animals then keep protesting in front of the dairy farms and lobby legislation. Quit playing the "crazy" card that makes it seem as though you value animals lives before that of your fellow human beings.

That just sounds creepy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have breastfed both of my girls I would never eat any thing that was made out of my breast milk let alone someone I don't even know. It can't be very sanitary...are they going to be testing it?

I think this will be the breast milk ever!

Sound like a great idea. Hopefully they can clone the breast milk to keep up with high demands.

I know a lot of (male) adults that would by the products.

Why is drinking human milk so disgusting? Are we that disgusted by our own bodies (or those of human women)?

I'm surprised that so many people actually believes PETA actually is working towards putting human ice cream in stores. They are an AR organization. This is just a media stunt, and obviously a very successful one, to get people thinking about where their food comes from.

Anyways, it's not any more unnatural for humans to drink cows milk as it is for pigs to breastfeed from women. Check it out:
http://eco-health.blogspot.com/2008/09/got-breast-milk-interspecies-suckling.html

"Strange?!?

Drinking another animals milk does not seem ODD?"

I COMPLETELY agree with this. I just don't understand how/when we got to the point where the milk our women produce for baby humans, became worse than the milk COWS produce for BABY COWS. I understand/agree with the psychological process of weening, but moving on to another species milk is not weening.

I started drinking Soy Milk only 7 years ago, and what I got from it, was that I simply don't need as much of it. Every once in awhile it's great in a bowl of cereal, but I just couldn't get over the fact that we are a planet of people relying on the nurturing liquid of baby cows.

Moo.

Why human breast milk? Why not soy milk as a substitute in Ben & Jerry's? The idea of women being "milked" for ice cream is just deplorable. I acknowledge that dairy cows are not well taken care of, but since when is a cow's standard of living held above that of a human's?

PETA has wonderful intentions but I really think they need to stop being so extreme. The only comforting part about this is that I know it will never follow through...at least not in my lifetime.

i'm not sure how i even feel about this. i'm vegan, so obviously i don't get to experience ben and jerry's, but i think it would make a lot more sense for PETA to be going for soy in icecream, rather than another form of milk.

OMG, I cannot believe the serious response to this. Hats off to PETA; as you are all here and for some reason lost on me, discussing this in a serious fahion, their work is done. It is now officially part of the zeitgeist. Just to clarify for some of the developmentally tardy respondees, this AIN'T serious. It is of some note that we are the only creature on the planet that regularly uses another species milk for sustenance; whether or not that is unethical is debatable. It is also notable that average breast milk now contains concentrations of toxins from some of the 100,000 synthetic chemicals we encounter in the modern world. Here is a real travesty when a mother poisons her baby with the most natural food on earth. So I should worry about the cows?

C'mon people...

I've been looking for a part-time job to do from home.

This is what I got out of this campaign:

Breast milk is disgusting.

But get this: IT"S NOT! It's natural and healthy. Considering what's going on in China, more people should be embracing breast feeding their newborns and infants.

However, ads like this put lactivists three steps behind. Just because it comes from a woman's breast doesn't make it icky, weird or mysterious, it's natural and very nourishing.

I agree with Tracey's comment above. Looks like PETA is not only crazy, but VERY sexist as well.

Is it a tribute to Ben and Jerry's that some people believe they may actually be considering using breast milk in ice cream, as evidenced in comments above? After all, they are pioneers in commitment to finding ingredients that are ethical and flavorful. Or is it just proof there are some really stupid people around?

I personally think this is really wrong.
I'm a country girl and my family raised some milk cows.
Milking a cow does not hurt them.
Milk cows can milk all year round if they aren't pregnant, regardless of a baby.
When they have a baby there is too much milk. They need to be milked.
They are a huge milk producing animal.
Humans should not consume other’s breast milk.
It is just wrong and discussing.
Cows are all over the ice cream containers.
If the milk is not coming from cows are they going to put women's breast on the containers? I think not. I VOTE NO!!!

"how is it unnatural to use animals for their resourced in producing food? It's what we've been doing for thousands of years"-Julieanna Elias. True. Why not then? We've also been at war and killing and raping each other for that long but we're learning from that. Why kill something, take its life just because you like the taste? There are so many more things to eat other than meat.

PETA's breast milk idea is great at provoking reaction and thought from the masses, not that anyone gets that.

Jennifer you are like every other dairy farmer i have ever met. Most do not know what rennet is, some even think gelatin in synthetic. You only think it's normal because its what you have grown up with.

bye!

Is it ok for human males to donate semen? but it is totally wrong for a human female to donate breast milk as there choice. If they decide to do it let them it is there choice.

Think of the poor babies!!!!