Farmer thinks ingredient in feed sickening, killing cows

HARMONY, N.C. — Cows that produce milk you could be buying at the grocery store are sick and dying on one North Carolina dairy farm. The farmer thinks it's because of an ingredient in the cow's feed and the state is now investigating.  

In Harmony, North Carolina the sight of dead and dying cows is unsettling for farmer Kenneth Ladd.

IMAGES: Farmer thinks ingredient in feed sickening, killing cows

"This has totally destroyed us out here. Our loss is way into the millions of dollars," Ladd said.

Ladd says four years ago, his cows started dying. He says he should have at least 500 cows but right now he has 175.  

"It's not a simple issue, there's not a silver bullet," Joe Reardon, the assistant commissioner of consumer protection at the State Department of Agriculture said.  Reardon says the state has been searching for a cause for years.

In 2012, experts who visited Ladd Dairy saw "cows had neurologic signs," while others had "severe foot problems" and "bleeding from the nose."

Eyewitness News asked Ladd how the milk coming from his sick cows could be safe for us to drink.

"I don't worry so much about the milk because your government says it's safe," Ladd said.

The milk from Ladd Dairy has won awards.

Channel 9 asked if Reardon was surprised the milk coming from sick cows is of such high quality.   

"That's a little more scientific," Reardon said.  Reardon said whatever illness the cows have, state testing shows the milk is still safe.

Ladd believes sulfur in the form of sulfuric acid in the feed is the cause and he wants the government to require feed producers to list every ingredient.  Right now, feed producers can use collective terms, like "processed grain by-products."

Channel 9 asked Reardon, "When you see the phrase "processed grain by-products" what does that mean?"

"Well, there's a lot of different products that could be in there," Reardon said. "If you had to list cottonseed and all the different ones that you may use independently then really the list of ingredients would be the entire front page of something."

In July, the state purchased a $70,000 piece of equipment to better test for ingredients like sulfuric acid in feed.  It is now testing the feed and water sources on Ladd Dairy.

The state says there is only one other nearby farm raising similar concerns. There are about 160 dairy farms in North Carolina.
Channel 9 will let you know what the state finds in its testing.

WSOC