Adams v. City of Milwaukee

Background

A dairy farmer who ships milk into Milwaukee sued to stop a city rule that requires milk from cows kept outside the city to be labeled with the owner’s name and address and supported by an annual certificate showing the cows passed a tuberculin test. The farmer said his herd is healthy, argued the test is unreliable, and claimed the rule treats outside producers worse than city producers and unlawfully takes property without proper process.

Reasoning

The Court agreed with the Wisconsin Supreme Court that the city may treat outside and inside dairies differently because their situations differ. Cows kept inside the city can be inspected directly by health officers; cows outside cannot. The city’s solution—requiring a licensed veterinarian’s tuberculin test, identification numbers, and labeling—was held reasonable and related to protecting health. The Court also held that destroying milk that fails the rule is an available method to prevent unsafe food from reaching consumers, and that local officials’ judgments about health measures deserve deference. The question of a separate ordinance clause protecting officers from damages was not decided.

Real world impact

The decision lets Milwaukee require yearly veterinary certification and clear labeling for milk brought in from outside farms and authorizes health officers to seize and destroy milk that does not meet the rules. Farmers who want to sell in the city must follow the certification, identification, and labeling steps or risk losing their shipments, and owners retain limited remedies if officials act arbitrarily.