Yes, you can buy human breast milk in the United States, but how and where you get it matters enormously for safety. The two main channels are nonprofit milk banks, which screen donors and pasteurize the milk, and informal online marketplaces, where individuals sell directly to buyers with no oversight. The FDA does not ban the sale of human milk outright, but it strongly recommends against buying milk from individuals or through the Internet.
What the FDA Says
The FDA’s position is clear: if you’re going to use donor human milk, get it from a source that screens donors and follows safe handling procedures. The agency warns that milk acquired from individuals or online sellers is unlikely to have been tested for infectious diseases or collected and stored safely. Risks to the baby include exposure to HIV, hepatitis B and C, bacterial contamination, illegal drugs, and certain prescription medications.
That said, the FDA has not established federal regulations specifically governing human milk banks. Nonprofit milk banks follow voluntary guidelines, and some states have their own standards. The regulatory landscape is patchwork, which is part of why unregulated sales continue to thrive online.
Nonprofit Milk Banks
The most established route is through milk banks accredited by the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), a network of nonprofit organizations across the US and Canada. These banks register as food facilities with the FDA and follow rigorous protocols before any milk reaches a baby.
Donors are blood-tested for HIV, HTLV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and syphilis. They’re screened for tobacco use, alcohol consumption, recreational drug use (including cannabis and CBD), and medications that could pass into milk. All donated milk is heat-treated through a process called Holder pasteurization, held at 144.5°F for 30 minutes, which eliminates viral and bacterial contaminants. After pasteurization, the milk is tested again for bacteria before being dispensed.
The catch is access. Most milk bank supply goes to hospitals for premature and critically ill newborns, particularly those weighing under about 3.3 pounds at birth. You typically need a prescription or a healthcare provider’s order to obtain milk from a HMBANA bank, and availability for healthy, full-term babies is limited.
What Milk Bank Milk Costs
Donor milk from nonprofit banks runs roughly $3 to $5 per ounce. For a baby drinking 20 ounces a day, that’s $60 to $100 daily, adding up fast over weeks or months. Some insurance plans and state Medicaid programs cover the cost, but only under specific medical circumstances.
Coverage criteria vary widely by state. In Illinois, Medicaid covers donor milk for infants under about 3.3 pounds, those at high risk for a serious intestinal condition called necrotizing enterocolitis, or babies with conditions like congenital heart disease or sepsis. California covers it when the mother can’t breastfeed and the infant can’t tolerate formula. States like Ohio and Connecticut use a broader “medical necessity” standard. If your baby doesn’t meet these criteria, you’ll likely pay out of pocket.
For-Profit Companies
A smaller number of for-profit companies also process and sell human milk products, primarily to hospitals. These companies are backed by private investment (one major player has raised $78 million in venture capital) and tend to charge more than nonprofit banks. Unlike nonprofits, for-profit companies typically pay their milk suppliers financially, which creates a different incentive structure. They don’t offer lactation support to donors or recipients as a core service, and their products are generally aimed at the most medically fragile infants rather than individual families buying milk for home use.
Buying Milk Online or Informally
The informal market is where most individual buyers end up. Websites, social media groups, and classified-style platforms connect sellers directly with buyers, often at $0.50 to $2 per ounce. The lower price is appealing, but the safety gap is significant.
A study published in Pediatrics tested 101 samples of human milk purchased anonymously from online sellers. Sixty-three percent contained Staphylococcus bacteria above safe thresholds. Thirty-six percent contained Streptococcus. Three percent tested positive for Salmonella. None of these sellers had been screened the way milk bank donors are, and the milk hadn’t been pasteurized.
There’s also the problem of adulteration. A separate study purchased 102 samples advertised as human milk online and tested them for cow’s milk contamination. Ten samples contained bovine DNA at levels consistent with at least 10% added cow’s milk, meaning someone had deliberately diluted the product. For a baby with a cow’s milk protein allergy, this could cause a serious reaction. For any buyer, it means you can’t verify what you’re actually getting.
What Pasteurization Does to the Milk
A common concern is whether pasteurized donor milk loses its nutritional value. The short answer: the calories and core nutrients survive largely intact, but some immune components take a hit.
Research on milk processed in bank settings found no meaningful loss in protein, fat, energy content, B vitamins, or most minerals. Calcium dropped by about 13%, and copper by about 8%, both relatively minor. Some fat-soluble vitamins actually increased after pasteurization, likely because heat releases them from the milk’s fat globules, making them easier to measure and potentially absorb.
The bigger losses are in antimicrobial proteins. Lactoferrin, which helps fight bacterial infections in the gut, dropped by more than 80%. Immunoglobulin A, a key antibody that protects mucous membranes, decreased by about 35% in concentration, though interestingly its functional activity against harmful bacteria actually increased by a similar margin. The tradeoff is real: pasteurized donor milk is nutritionally comparable to raw breast milk for growth, but it delivers fewer of the immune factors that make breast milk uniquely protective.
Who Buys Human Breast Milk
The buyer base is broader than you might expect. The primary medical use is for premature infants in neonatal intensive care units, where donor milk reduces the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis, a potentially fatal intestinal disease. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends donor milk as a bridge when a mother’s own supply is insufficient for these high-risk babies.
Outside hospitals, parents of full-term babies seek donor milk when they can’t breastfeed due to medical conditions, medication use, adoption, or surrogacy. Some adults also purchase breast milk for personal use, including bodybuilders and people with chronic illnesses, though there’s no strong scientific evidence supporting those uses.
How to Minimize Risk
If you’re considering donor milk, the safest option is a HMBANA-accredited milk bank. You can search for member banks on the HMBANA website by location. Most will require a healthcare provider’s order, though some dispense milk to families without one depending on supply.
If cost or access pushes you toward informal sharing, understand what you’re accepting. You have no way to verify a seller’s health status, medication use, or handling practices. Freezing milk does not kill most bacteria or viruses. The bacterial contamination rates in online purchases are high enough that the AAP, FDA, and HMBANA all explicitly recommend against it. HMBANA’s own standards state that even approved donors are told their milk is not safe to share or sell informally, because safety depends on the entire chain of screening, collection, pasteurization, and testing working together.