Many raw cheeses on the market are not truly raw. How to know if the brands you buy are on the up and up with no deceptive labeling.
In yet another case of labeling tricks and deception where store-bought food is concerned, some brands of raw cheese produced in the United States and sold at healthfood stores and specialty shops are anything but.
Organic Valley, the corporate behemoth that went to the Dark Side in 2010 when it banned its member farms from selling raw milk to the local community, is one of the worst offenders of this loophole in the USDA regulations. (1)
According to Federal Law 7 (CFR 58.438):
If the cheese is labeled as pasteurized, the milk shall be pasteurized by subjecting every particle of milk to a minimum temperature of 161 degrees Fahrenheit for not less than 15 [fifteen] seconds or by any other acceptable combination of temperature and time treatment approved by the Administrator. (2)
For FLUID PRODUCTS, “vat pasteurization” is defined as heating at 145 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes; heating at 161 degrees for at least 15 seconds is called “high temperature short time pasteurization” [Federal Law 7 CFR 58.101]. (3)
What does this mean in layman’s terms?
It means that any cheese where the milk is heated to a temperature under 161 degrees Fahrenheit for less than 15 seconds could be called “raw” and labeled as such!
In 2010, Organic Valley admitted to capitalizing on this loophole. They called their raw cheese “subpasteurized” on their website, while failing to identify just how close subpasteurized is to actual pasteurization temperature. Sadly (but not surprisingly), they have now erased this page. (4)
Subpasteurization or “thermization” still heats the milk to an obscenely high temperature (typically 135°F to 158°F for about 15-20 seconds), which destroys nutrition as well as ALL probiotics, and enzymes.
Calling such a product “raw” is not only deceptive, it is downright insulting to the sensibilities and intelligence of its customers.
When too many people found out about the labeling bait and switch, they simply removed the page.
It seems par for the course that corporate America can just wipe history whenever it likes.
I saw the page with the “subpasteurization” wording with my own eyes back in 2010 … I should have taken a screenshot, but I didn’t yet fully realize back then how underhanded these companies truly are! 😠
Pseudo Raw Cheese
According to Miller’s Bio Farm, the fine print on Organic Valley’s “raw” cheese now says the following:
“Heated to 158F for 15 seconds”. (5)
So, the greenwashing is still happening 15 years later after my original article on the subject revealed the scam.
No apologies, no changing of their errant ways … only subterfuge and covering of their tracks.
While Organic Valley is no doubt the worst offender of this regulatory loophole, any other corporately produced raw cheese sold in stores and manufactured in the United States is also likely heated to subpasteurization temperatures that denature the raw milk.
Low Heat Necessary in Cheesemaking
Now, don’t get me wrong. SOME heating of milk is necessary during the cheesemaking process.
But the threshold is low and does not harm probiotics, enzymes or nutrients.
Mesophilic cultures work at temps ranging from 62–102F. The most common temp for this type of culture is around 90F. They are used to make many types of cheese, including cheddar, gouda, chèvre, muenster, and camembert.
Thermophilic cultures work at temps ranging from 104–112F. They are used to make cheeses like mozzarella, parmesan, provolone, swiss, and romano. (6)
What Brands of Raw Cheese Are Legit?
I researched another popular raw cheese brand (Grazier) and discovered that they also thermalize the milk (to 135°F) before making the cheese.
Thus, Sierra Nevada’s Grazier line of raw cheeses is taking advantage of the Federal pasteurization loophole as well.
On a positive note, a small dairy in my community which sells raw goat cheese locally in stores was very upfront and forthright with their answers about how the cheese is produced.
This dairy does truly produce raw cheese as the milk is only warmed to 98°F, which is well within the limits for enzyme and nutrient preservation.
How to Know if “Raw” Cheese is Truly Unheated
The lesson to be learned is that the best way to be sure that the cheese you buy comes from truly raw milk is to ideally buy from a small dairy farm that specializes in cheesemaking and to talk to the farmer yourself.
To find a family dairy near you, check out the Real Milk website or contact your local chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation to obtain a list of locally produced goods.
If you don’t have a local dairy farm near you that makes cheese, contact the Weston A. Price Foundation and order the annually updated Shopping Guide.
This handy little brochure fits in your pocket or purse and lists many small farms across North America where you can mail-order truly raw cheese.
Many thanks to Pete Kennedy, Esq. and the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund for tracking down the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) references for this article.
(1) Organic Valley Capitulates on Raw Milk
(2) Code of Federal Regulations. Cheese from Pasteurized Milk
(3) Code of Federal Regulations. Meaning of Words (Fluid Milk)
(4) Page now missing where Organic Valley admits that it’s “raw cheeses” are “sub-pasteurized”
(5, 6) Is your raw cheese actually raw? Or has it been greenwashed?
We are so limited on raw dairy products here. There is only one place to buy raw milk here and no where to get raw butter, cheese, etc. How depressing. I'm not sure what kind of cheese to buy at the store now. Do you know what kind of national brands of cheese are from grass fed cows, if any?
We also stopped buying OV months ago. Any company that would prevent people (like my growing children!) from getting fresh raw milk does not deserve my support. Fresh, nutritious food should be available to everyone. We only have one source for raw milk in our area and I could not imagine what we would do if some company came in and took that away. I have seen such a big improvement in my families health since we starting consuming raw milk 7 months ago.
There is an Amish community called Brazos De Dio near Waco, TX that has EXCELLENT (real) raw cheeses and grass fed beef at reasonable prices. They will even teach you how to make homemade cheese in one of their classes.
you are so lucky. I have check amish food here in NY and it is still cook to dead. sad.
Sarah, if your mail order cheese was very crumbly it was probably frozen before you got it. Make sure you ask for cheese that has never been frozen and try another farm that doesn't freeze its cheese.
Beth, it is my understanding that you can actually heat milk to 118F and still preserve the nutrition and enzymes. Even one degree higher and enzyme death begins. Interestingly, this is the same temperature at which if you stuck your finger in the milk it would burn you!
That's a good idea! I mail-ordered some raw cheese a few years ago, and it was awfully expensive and very crumbly. But I should look into it again to see what there is available now! Thanks!
I had no idea that the 'unpasteurized' label was a pass for cooking milk. Quite sobering. Puts a lot of us back to square one.
Sarah, you wrote that milk warmed to 98F is well within the limits for enzyme and nutrient preservation. Could you remind us of the enzyme-safe temperature range? I've heard Sally Fallon say food enzymes are destroyed at 118F wet heat and 150F dry heat — could you clarify wet vs dry heat? (Does it mean liquid food vs solid food?)
The temp range would be helpful to have in mind when shopping for raw cheese and talking with farmers and local cheese makers.
Thanks for another illuminating post!
– Beth
What we look for in cheese depends on what we are going to use it for. If I'm going to cook it in a dish I look for cheeses from grassfed (no grain or soy) cows. I have had much luck finding them in a few local health food stores, one even calls me before making their order to see if I will be in to purchase. If I'm going to heat it up anyway there is no reason to pay a premium for raw or try to untangle the labeling loopholes. Now if I'm going to eat it raw or use it to garnish/top a dish then it gets trickier. I have found the WAPF shopping guide, as well as http://www.realmilk.com, very helpful. Still, the pickings can be slim. When my toddler and my upcoming baby get old enough that I can I plan to learn to make my own cheese. Until then I am blessed to have family in great dairy areas that have cheese shipped to me. Much like my menus are decided by what produce is in season, it is also decided by what cheese I can get my hot little hands on.
Unfortunately companies like OV have grown too big to serve the local, seasonal, as God and nature intended food crowd. I will say that organic versions of conventional products were a first step on my journey to more thoughtful food choices. But for my family, that step is long past.
I'm so bummed. Their raw cheese was the only OV product that I bought and my kids love it. :o(
Welcome to the Other Side, Gina, where consumers are SAVVY and not fooled by Big Food or Big Pharma propaganda and who know what REAL FOOD and REAL HEALTH is all about.
Gina, try to find low temp (vat) pasteurized, non homogenized whole milk at your health food store until you can locate a clean local source of whole organic milk from jersey or guernsey cows. If your healthfood store does not carry such a brand, request that they order Natural by Nature whole milk in glass bottles. Good luck on your new adventure!