Real Milk Updates, Summer 2025

by Pete Kennedy, Esq.

Federal: Should the Interstate Raw Milk Ban be Overturned?

With President Trumpʼs nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to be Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and his subsequent confirmation, raw milk has been in the news. RFK Jr. has stated that there should be increased access for Americans to raw milk. Since 1987, there has been a federal prohibition on shipping raw milk across state lines for human consumption and interstate commerce; the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the agency within HHS that has jurisdiction over raw milk, issued a regulation establishing the ban.

A question that has come up is: with RFK Jr. in power, is now the time for Congress to pass a law repealing the ban? The FDA established the ban in response to an order from a D.C. federal district court in the 1986 case of Heckler v. Public Citizen. The only raw dairy product currently legal in interstate commerce is cheese aged sixty days; FDA treatment of raw cheesemakers shows the risks involved with lifting the ban and giving FDA complete jurisdiction over any raw dairy product crossing state lines—whereas the FDA does not exercise jurisdiction over dairy products in intrastate commerce.

In 2019, University of Vermont Professor Catherine Donnelly wrote Ending the War on Artisan Cheese, a book detailing the FDAʼs harassment of raw cheese producers. One of the examples she provides is related to harassment of cheesemakers who attended an October 2013 workshop in Georgia titled “Food Safety and Hygiene in Artisan/ Farmstead Cheese-Making,” which was cosponsored by the Georgia Department of Agriculture, the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy and Whole Foods. The workshop was designed for small-scale cheesemakers and also included invitations to federal and state inspectors—the thought being that many of the inspectors were “not always knowledgeable about artisan cheesemaking.” However, just one day after the workshop, the FDA inspected every single artisan cheesemaker (as well as the two Whole Foods stores that attended the workshop), resulting in detention of some products. As Donnelly states, “The notion that attendance at, or sponsorship of, an education workshop could subject an artisan cheesemaker or cheesemonger to regulatory enforcement defeated the very purpose for which those workshops were intended.”

The American Cheese Society (ACS) is the leading organization in the U.S. supporting the promotion of artisan, farmstead and family cheeses. As Donnelly explains it, “Attendees at the American Cheese Society began to notice some interesting connections between the dates when the annual ACS meetings were occurring and the timing of FDA recall announcements and unannounced visits to their establishments. Cheesemakers would lament that they were unable to bring the quality assurance members of the organization to the ACS annual meetings because it became a matter of routine that unannounced inspections from the FDA occurred during the ACS meetings.

FDA officers would take cheese from producers for “microbiological compliance sampling” which then requires cheesemakers to “withhold the production lots being tested from distribution into commerce until results of the FDAʼs analysis were returned.” Affected companies noticed a pattern: many times results were released only after the products had reached the end of their sell-by dates. And in most cases, the tested products met compliance criteria. They were salable products that fully complied with regulations, but they could not be sold because of regulatory targeting and testing of these goods.

In 2009-2010, FDA changed the tolerance level of generic E. coli in raw milk cheese from ten thousand colony forming units per gram of cheese (cfu/g) to ten Most Probable Number (MPN) per gram in two or more subsamples or greater than one hundred MPN in one or more subsamples. The European Union has established a generic E. coli tolerance level only for pasteurized cheese. The new tolerance levels effectively prohibited artisans from being able to release significant amounts of product into commerce. Extensive sampling by FDA from 2004 to 2006 before the new requirements went into effect showed that about 70 percent of the cheese tested then would not have met the new standard. There is no scientific evidence that these standards lead to safe cheese. Thanks to political pressure, FDA finally halted using the 100/10 MPN standards in 2016.

There is little evidence that FDA has changed its position on raw dairy since the publication of Donnellyʼs book. RFK Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary are going to have a big challenge changing the FDA culture on raw dairy. Any law Congress passes to overturn the ban should limit FDA discretion in interpreting the law and FDAʼs rule-making power as much as possible.

There are currently forty-seven states that—by statute, regulation or policy—have either legalized milk sales for human consumption, raw milk sales for pet consumption or the distribution of raw milk through herdshare agreements. State legislatures and agencies have eroded the effect of the ban one state at a time.

That said, with greater consumer demand for raw milk than ever before, there are not enough producers or cows to meet that demand. There is a need for many states where sales or distribution are legal to pass more favorable laws bringing more producers on line. Overturning the interstate ban can help make this happen, depending on how tightly Congress controls FDA with the legislation and how much the anti-raw milk bias at the agency changes.

Two sources of additional farmers to meet the unprecedented demand for raw milk are Grade A dairies and homesteaders. Grade A dairies have been the drivers in recent legislation in Delaware and Georgia legalizing the sale of raw milk for human consumption; however, considering the decline in the number of conventional dairy farms in the U.S., not that many Grade A dairies have transitioned to selling raw milk for direct consumption. More farms will start selling raw milk commercially in the homestead community; many homesteaders with a family cow often have excess milk beyond their own familyʼs needs, leading them to sell raw milk to others in their community. The number of homesteaders in the dairy business increases if they can sell raw milk and other raw dairy products direct to the consumer without regulation. Small-scale dairies generally have a good track record for safety whether or not they are regulated; if there is a problem, raw milk is typically an easily traceable food.

Rather than lifting the ban immediately, there are a number of smaller steps that could be taken at the federal and state levels to improve the regulatory climate to the point where it would be more feasible to end the interstate prohibition with less risk of a backlash against raw milk by FDA. Among such steps could be:

1. Repeal Section 9 of PMO / Amend the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO); this is a document governing the production and distribution of raw milk for pasteurization. Every state has adopted either part or all of the PMO; Section 9 states that only pasteurized milk should be sold to the final consumer, restaurants, grocery stores, etc. The PMO is revised every two years; the revision starts at the biannual National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments (NCIMS, most recently in April 2025). FDA works on the revisions with other stakeholders; my understanding is that the FDA has final say on any revisions. If a state passes a law on raw milk sales for human consumption, that law controls over the stateʼs adoption of Section 9 in the PMO. Removing Section 9 from the PMO would help change the culture of anti-raw milk bias that exists at FDA and state agencies; it would increase the chances of expanding raw milk access in the forty states currently allowing raw milk sales or distribution through law or policy. Also, it would improve the prospects for legalizing the sales of raw milk for human consumption in the remaining ten states that otherwise ban it.

2. Amend FDA Food Code—The FDA Food Code governs food establishments, defined as any operation that “stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends food directly to the CONSUMER, or otherwise provides FOOD for human consumption” including restaurants and markets. Just about all states have adopted all or part of the Food Code. States can adopt regulations that are either more or less strict than the Food Code provisions. FDA works with USDA, among other stakeholders, in drafting revisions of the Food Code; itʼs usually revised every three or four years (the last update was 2022, fda.gov/food/hfp-constituent-updates/fda-releases-supplement-2022-foodcode). The current revision states that “Fluid and dry milk and milk products shall be obtained pasteurized and… comply with GRADE A STANDARDS as specified by LAW.” The next revision of the Code should remove these provisions. Only about a quarter of the states allow sales of raw milk in restaurants. Removing these provisions would reduce bias by regulators against raw milk and should increase raw milk access.

3. Redirect Dairy Checkoff Program funding—Have funding from the dairy checkoff program which the National Dairy Council receives (USDA-AMS has oversight) go toward promoting raw dairy—starting with raw cheese would be good since its sale is legal in all fifty states.

4. U.S. Dairy Innovation Centers—Have the four U.S. dairy innovation centers which receive funding from USDAAMS award grants to dairy businesses that produce raw dairy; remove the current prohibition. Awards have been used for technical assistance, health and safety training, marketing strategies, etc.

5. Testifying on State Raw Milk Bills—Have RFK Jr or FDA Dairy Chief testify in favor of state bills legalizing raw milk sales, distribution or expanding raw milk access. John Sheehan used to submit testimony opposing raw milk bills.

6. Standard of Identity—Issue standard of identity regulation for specific types of raw cheese with less than sixty-day aging requirements.

7. Reducing Federal Pressure Against Raw Milk Law and Policy—Find areas where a stateʼs raw milk laws or policy affect its funding or rating with the federal government (such as, possibly, NCIMS state rating for compliance with PMO) and change policy so there is no longer any effect.

8. Dairy Co-op Prohibitions—Make dairy co-op prohibitions on co-op members distributing raw milk for direct human consumption illegal.

9. FDA Interstate Raw Milk Ban—Adopt policy that FDA will only take enforcement action against those transporting raw dairy directly to consumers for human consumption if there is evidence that the product is either adulterated or misbranded. Cease from interpreting the Public Health Service Act to regard raw dairy as a “communicable disease” per se. Current policy leaves enforcement open against food buyers clubs and farmers; FDA does not enforce the ban against individual consumers crossing state lines to obtain raw dairy for their own consumption.

10. FDAʼs “For Consumers” Webpage—Publish information on the FDA website about raw milk safe handling. Excerpts can be taken from Peg Bealsʼ book, Caring for Fresh Milk, and FDA can publicize this booklet on its website homepage. A statement could read: “FDA recognizes the consumer demand that exists for raw milk; consumers who drink it should follow these guidelines.” See fda.gov/food/resources-you-food/raw-milk

RFK Jr. faces the challenge of changing the culture on raw milk in FDA and ending the fearmongering about the product, but there will never be a better time to do so than now, with him in charge of HHS. This factor combined with the current demand for raw milk and the insufficient supply point toward an attempt to relax or overturn the ban during the Trump administration.

2025 State Legislation

Three states passed raw milk bills this session; two expanded raw dairy access and the third gave more due process protections to dairy farmers in the event of a government investigation. The states with the new laws are:

ARKANSAS – Current law limits sales to on-farm with a cap on volume of five hundred gallons per month. Senate Bill 464 (SB 464) represents a major breakthrough for producers and consumers in the state. There is no longer a cap on sales, and producers can now sell any other raw dairy product as well; sales of raw dairy, in addition to on-farm, are now legal at a farmers market, at a “natural food store” or via delivery from the farm where the milk is produced. There are refrigeration, signage and labeling requirements; both signs and labels are required to contain the following statement: “This product sold for personal use and not for resale, is fresh whole milk that has not been pasteurized. Neither this farm nor the milk sold by this farm has been inspected by the state of Arkansas. The consumer assumes all liability for health issues that may result from the consumption of this product.”

NORTH DAKOTA – In its last session the legislature legalized the sale of raw milk direct to the consumer. Effective August 1, House Bill 1131 (HB 1131) expands on that to include the direct-to-consumer sale of any raw dairy product. The only requirement in the bill is that a farm selling raw milk or raw milk products shall label the products as “raw milk” or “made with raw milk.”

UTAH – In 2023 an investigation by the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) into a suspected foodborne illness outbreak resulted in a suspension that nearly put the largest raw milk producer in Utah out of business. The investigation was characterized by the producer being in the dark as to what his rights were in getting his permit reinstated, and what the legal authority of UDAF actually was. In response, the legislature passed House Bill 414 (HB 414), legislation that provides greater due process protections on matters such as testing, reissuing a suspended permit and the issuance of a cease-and-desist order. The legislation marks the fifth raw milk bill that the mother-daughter team of Symbria and Sara Patterson has been responsible for passing; the Pattersons are the founders of Red Acre Center, a nonprofit that has been the driving force behind the development of one of the most favorable regulatory climates for local food in the country.

NORTH CAROLINA – N.C. FARM BILL

It has been a long time since a state has tried to roll back the clock and ban or restrict raw milk access, but that is now happening in North Carolina, primarily due to one individual, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler. Through his allies in the legislature, Troxler was able to get a section in Senate Bill 639 (SB 639), also known as the North Carolina Farm Bill, that would have banned the distribution of raw milk through herdshare agreements; under current law, both herdshares and raw pet milk sales are legal.

In pushing for the ban, Troxler tried to scare the public about the dangers of bird flu by saying, “We’ve been playing Russian Roulette with one bullet in the chamber, with these other pathogens. But when you add [bird flu] into the mix, we put two more bullets into that chamber.”1 Bird flu is a respiratory, not gastrointestinal, illness (that is, the mode of transmission is the respiratory tract, not the digestive tract); there is no evidence that bird flu in raw milk or any other type of flu in raw milk has ever made anyone sick.

The outcry against the herdshare ban was so great that the Senate Agriculture, Energy, and Environment Committee took it out of the bill but, with pressure from Troxler, then substituted an amendment with a ban on pet milk sales. A number of micro dairies in the state rely on income from selling pet milk. The pushback against banning pet milk was great as well; as of the beginning of June, the full Senate had not voted on SB 639. The NC Farm Bill is one of the worst pieces of legislation in memory. SB 639 also contained sections establishing a liability shield for pesticide manufacturers and giving the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services law enforcement powers that extended far beyond its current jurisdiction.

There was also a provision for a study on “the advisability of allowing the dispensing of raw milk via herd arrangements, and the retail sale of raw milk and raw milk products”—a possible lever to reintroducing legislation restricting or banning raw milk next year if nothing passes in 2025.

Thanks to effective opposition from farmers, consumers and advocacy groups, there was growing hope that the NC Farm Bill would not pass out of the legislature this session.¹

1. The Regenaissance. (2025, May 15). North Carolinaʼs Raw Milk Rebellion: Consumer Demand Forces a Legislative U-Turn. https://theregenaissance.news/p/north-carolinas-raw-milk-rebellion.

This update was published in the Summer 2025 issue of Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and the Healing Arts, the quarterly journal of the Weston A. Price Foundation. Become a member today to begin receiving this valuable resource by mail.