One of the most exciting things that has happened with this blog over the past year is a large increase in the international readership. This is exciting to me as they bring a unique perspective to the discussion, contribute suggestions and ask questions that those of us living in the United States have perhaps never considered before.
One question that I’ve been getting recently, particularly from readers in India and Eastern Europe, is how to consume raw dairy safely when the cleanliness of the source is questionable.
People in these countries typically boil their raw milk first before drinking. Â However, the information they were reading on this blog and elsewhere about the health benefits of raw milk had prompted them to reconsider this practice. Â They wanted to start consuming fresh dairy in order to enjoy the significantly improved nutritional profile of milk that has been completely unheated.
What to do in this situation? Â I put this question to Tim Wightman, President of the Farm to Consumer Foundation and grassbased farmer extraordinaire to see what he had to say.
Three Methods for Ensuring Raw Milk Quality
If you are unsure of your raw milk source or are using it for the first time and are not yet 100% comfortable with your decision, try one or all of these methods to set your mind at ease:
- Buy only small amounts of raw milk at a time and use up within one to three days. Bacteria that cause food borne illness with the exception of Campylobactor require more than a few days to develop in the quantities necessary to cause human illness.
- Make homemade (unheated) kefir with the raw milk before consuming. Â If the milk is of questionable quality, the kefir won’t set right and the end result will be whey and milk solids or a very runny kefir that won’t be desirable for consumption.
- Probably the best way to drink raw milk and have peace of mind even if you are not completely sure of the cleanliness of your source is to freeze the milk for two weeks first before thawing and then drinking. Â Food or drink frozen for that period of time is considered safe to consume. Â As a bonus, raw milk that is frozen and thawed that ends up quite close to its original form with only just a few very small milk solids floating around is a good indication of quality milk.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Hi!
Thank you so much for this!! I’m so curious about the freezing option. We are in Central Africa and can buy raw milk from local farmers, but sanitation is a big problem. One day I even had my milk smell like kerosene! He had reused (and washed) a kerosene container to bring our milk! Our issue here is brucellosis. My husband had it 4 years ago and was weakened severely by the 6 mos. of treatments. It can be asymptomatic with only fatigue a month or two later. One colleague wasn’t diagnosed for almost 2 years and now has it chronically. And can eventually lead to chronic fatigue syndrome or arthritis for life. So, can I just clarify that he’s saying freezing would destroy bacteria like brucellosis? Or just keep it in low numbers?
Milk in an old kerosene container? Ugh! You have much more than food borne illness to be concerned with it seems!
This is Tim Wightman’s answer to you question about brucellosis:
“If one freezes any food item for a period of two weeks it has the GRAS standard.. Generally Regarded As Safe.
Given Brucellosis is a bacteria it should fall under the same understanding if heat can kill it, cold can as well just like salmonella, pathogenic Ecoli’s ect.
BUT.. if brucellosis is an issue there are other things to be concerned about and the quality of the milk may be in question. Holding it at 145 degrees for 15 minutes may provide a better alternative.
Not all raw milk is the same, and our environment and degradation of soils and animal health means we must assess each producer and the forces that are brought upon that animal and production environment.”
I don’t understand how we can say that raw milk is virtually unchanged and yet everything that could be bad about it dies. What about the beneficial bacteria? They must die as well, no?
I drive once a month to buy our milk. I buy 6 gallons at a time and we freeze 5 of them. We do not notice any difference. This makes it very easy for us to keep raw milk in our house.
We will be trying it soon as we are going to start the GAPS diet in about 3 weeks! Looking forward to it very much!
Stephanie,
Raw milk is not “legal” on GAPS but you can kefir it once you’ve passed the intro stage if your body is ready for dairy. Good luck!
Tracey
You lose a bit of the nutrients by freezing but not much at all. Nothing is denatured when you freeze raw milk like happens with pasteurization. It is a very viable option for those who are just dipping their toe in the raw milk waters.
I freeze raw milk just because I buy a bigger quantity at once than we can consume before it sours. I do get whey from soured milk, but I don’t need several gallons worth at a time. So I keep enough milk out of the freezer for our needs, and the rest gets frozen and rotated by age. When I defrost it, there are no problems. I leave it on the counter while any parts of it are still frozen (ice chunks) and then put it in the fridge. I shake it every once in a while when I think of it while it is defrosting. But we also drink it without freezing every week too. We have never had a problem with any illnesses, either way. The severe illness from food I did get earlier this year was from a party that served cold cuts, and half the party attendees got sick, but my family was the only raw milk drinkers there, so no connection with milk.
I don’t drink raw milk for my own personal reasons and I don’t judge others who do, however, I think this information is going to lead to problems and outbreaks. If people in other countries don’t have access to raw milk from sanitary farms, then they shouldn’t drink it raw. I think this article and advice is quite misleading to be completely honest. I once thought about finding raw milk to try it out and to see if my family would like it, but I’m not willing to risk the health of my family just to drink raw milk. I’m aware that many people drink milk that is unprocessed, but I’ve come to the conclusion that the cons outweigh the pros. I’ve seen stories of little kids getting sick and having health problems from getting E. Coli and a woman who contracted Camphylobacter and is now paralyzed from severe imflammation. It’s not worth it for me to give my child raw milk. It’s different for people who have access to clean farms where they know the farmer and trust that person to sell them wholesome, clean, safe milk, but in this case, I think your international readers would be better off not drinking questionable. I’ve also seen stories that have convinced me that raw milk isn’t for me and my family. Not saying that everyone who drinks raw milk is going to get sick because that would be a lie, but I think that it’s reckless for you to post this advice knowing that these people don’t have access to clean farms.
I know that you are an advocate for raw milk, and that’s your right, but what are you going to say if one of your international readers get sick from reading your blog and taking your advice? Yes, to most people, raw milk is a blessing, and has given them the opportunity to enjoy the health benefits of milk without all of the additives and hormones, but for people who can’t get clean milk, this article serves them no good.
And your scientific reasoning for this opinion is ???? The recommendation to freeze and then thaw is based on USDA guidelines for consuming raw foods safely. Even raw milk that has been frozen is allowed to cross state lines where liquid raw milk is not. Your opinion has no scientific underpinning and is based on fearmongering only.
Since when does anyone trust USDA guidelines though? 😉
I have been hesitant to try raw milk, so thanks for the freezing suggestion. I’ll have to try that.
We have been enjoying raw milk and cream for just over a year now. Just this last week, some of my family and I have gotten terribly sick. We have had symptoms of campy. It is now 6 days of tummy trouble. I found out yesterday that 3 other families that get milk with us have had the same problems. We are afraid to get more milk. Being this sick for this long is not worth it. We missed Christmas and New Year’s celebrations – and small children just don’t know how to deal with intestinal pain. I’ve LOVED the raw milk (store bought milk causes problems in my children). I don’t want to go back to Rice Milk and Almond Milk – but my husband is very upset with these circumstances. What would be your suggestion? Would pasteurizing our milk still be better than buying homogenized milk from the store? Would pasteurizing kill the campy bacteria? This makes me so sad (but I DO NOT want to be sick like this again!)
Ask around … you will probably be relieved to learn that there are most likely families suffering the same bug that don’t drink raw milk. Call the local hospital ER and ask if people have been admitted with a bad tummy bug of late. This is what I do when there is something going around our community and it always ends up being a non raw milk issue!
Sarah, I disagree with your response to Ronnie’s question. I could understand your comment if she and her family were the only ones who got sick, but 3 other family members got sick and they just so happen to get their milk from the same farm that Ronnie gets hers. People do get sick from drinking raw milk, and although I feel that the numbers may be exaggerated, there are still people who have gotten sick. Even if a farm is sanitary, there is still a risk for people getting sick and I’ve read about people getting sick from raw milk even from clean farms, so please stop down-playing this person’s concerns. I’m not for drinking hormone-laced, prison milk, but it’s reckless to advocate raw milk without informing your readers of both the pros and cons of drinking raw milk.
Neeli, this type of thing happens in my community almost every winter. Last year a bunch of families got sick too (including my own) and the raw milk was suspected as all the families got milk from the same farm. Guess what? It was a bad bug going around town. I am downplaying nothing … I’ve gone through this myself and know exactly what is going on here. She needs to call the local hospitals and see how many people are getting admitted to the ER with a bad intestinal bug and realize that it is 99% for sure a community related thing and no relation to raw milk.
Oh, and it was campylobacter too! This bug is extremely common in the restaurant business and is easily spread when eating out by an employee that doesn’t wash his/her hands for example.
Ronnie, I sometimes buy milk from a local organic store that sells cream-top milk in glass bottles. If you don’t want to buy raw milk again, then I think you might like this milk. It’s from grass-fed cows in most cases and it’s non-homogenized. I like how the cream floats to the top and it tastes so much better than conventional milk. I’m sorry that you and your family got sick, but there are pros and cons with everything and you have to do what’s best for your family and do your own research before you decide to do anything. What works for one family doesn’t necessarily work for another and it’s okay if you don’t drink raw milk because there’s no law forcing you to. I read and research before I feed my family anything, and I take advice on the internet with a grain of salt. Good luck to you and I hope you and your family feel better soon.
So sorry you & your family are sick Ronnie. Campy is a very very common bug & is highly contagious. In most cases it is caused by slightly undercooked chicken or poultry. It doesn’t take many of the little things to make you sick & then, as I already mentioned, it is very contagious. Shaking hands with someone who has the bug will most definately pass it on to you. There is a small chance it came from the raw milk (the cow would have to have the infection herself) but it is also very very possible that one of the families brought it with them when you picked up your milk. The recommendations are to freeze and thaw your milk, as Sarah mentioned in the blog post, as this reduces the campy bacteria. Hope this helps.
Thanks for all the responses below. My intention was to find out more info – I do a lot of research and that research led me to feed my family raw milk. We have absolutely loved it for over a year (and had some in the past, as well).
There are a number of “bugs” going around this time of year – but I have to say that my husband and I have never been this sick for this long before (except for pneumonia when we were young). Our concern is how long and debilitating this has been. Fortunately, he’s been off work – but he has also been dealing with kidney stones and a stint for a month previous – I have been concerned for him and a secondary infection. Today is now day 6 of intestinal problems and we’re finally beginning to feel marginally better.
All this to say – we do not believe that this is just a “bug”. We are not totally convinced that it is from the milk, either. I would be a terrible parent/wife, if I ignored the fact that it really could be the milk, too. I haven’t heard from the dairy, yet, to see what they have to say. We just do not want to EVER go thru this again if it can be helped. I have learned a lot of great information from this blog and it was the first place I thought I could find answers to our concerns. Thanks for giving me options.
Sarah, One problem with freezing the milk is that listeria LOVES lower temps. I am sure the info provided the above info to you was based on what Ted Beals has “found” based on tests conducted in CA with Organic Pastures milk in at least 2 different lab tests and 2 different labs. While most of this is good, some of the tests have been skewed to fit the side that wants it to fit. I think the rawmilkwhitepages.com or something like that goes into the tests and the results, you can also look up the various tests concerning ecoli, campy, list, etc and see the results.
However, all that being said and read, re-read, etc., milk from healthy animals is probably going to be OK. If the farmer is going to not be clean, they are the ones going to cause outbreak and sickness making it much harder for all of us to get milk or provide milk to our customers.
If the individual can not go to the farm and have a look around, try to get someone who does know at least a little bit about sanitation to go and look and provide info for others. Some of the WAPF chapter leaders have been doing that, there are other individuals here in the US who also do that.
Just because the animal is on a nice looking pasture does not mean you are going to get good milk. The animal can be healthy, the milk coming out of it can be just fine. BUT if the milk is not held in sanitary conditions, it is just an outbreak waiting to happen or one sickness if not even an outbreak. Then the other side will jump all over that and we will be back to square one in fighting.
Also, if you are new to kefir, it will set up differently depending on the temps it is in.
And finally, goat milk will separate when thawed from its frozen state. This is normal but there are many floaty bits in it. That is normal, cow milk does not separate like that.
Tracy
Listeria is extremely rare in raw milk from what I understand. EXTREMELY rare.
The goat milk I get that is thawed after being frozen does not separate and goes back to its original form almost exactly.
The freeze/thaw recommendation is based on USDA guidelines for safely consuming raw foods. The same goes for raw meats, not just raw milk.
A goat farmer I spoke with recently said that a good way to avoid separation of frozen milk as it thaws is to place the milk jug/bottle in a bowl of cool water while thawing. It worked for me.
A food-friend and I picked up several gallons of raw milk yesterday for the very first time. Since I am new to it, just drinking hot cocoa. I live in Germany, so finding a source nearby took a while, but I finally did. It’s 15-20 minutes away and costs 1.50 euro for 2L. The farmer, who spoke far more English than I do German, was so nice. We had to wait while the cows were fed and milking began because the tank was empty – but while waiting for the tank to get filled, we toured the barn. It didn’t smell dirty at all, the cows were very calm and happy, fed organic hay, free to come and go as they please. They were totally mellow during the milking (which we got to observe), ambling into their stall, standing quietly, ambling out to the food when done. It was so neat! Definitely glad to have found it and the post is very timely. Next weekend, getting enough to make cultured butter…
Hi Kasi,
that is great! I know how hard it is to find real milk in Germany. I am still searching for it! may be you can give me a tip how you found the farmer?
(dear Sarah,sorry for the little off-top, it is just so hard to find raw milk in germany for me, I try to use every opportunity:)
Natallia,
I am in Heidelberg and was just able to buy raw milk from a vending machine at a farm today. I got the location info from the Germany chapter leader of the Weston A. Price Foundation. Here is the chapter leaders email: [email protected]. I don’t know where you are, but the farm where I got mine is here: http://www.markushof-naturkost.de
Good luck!
Julie
Sarah, this is very good to know. I always find your blog so informative.
Thanks.