Raw dairy refers to milk and milk products from cows, sheep, or goats that have not been pasteurized, meaning they haven’t been heated to kill bacteria. While most milk sold in grocery stores is heated to at least 72°C (about 161°F) for 15 seconds or more, raw dairy skips this step entirely. The result is a product that proponents say retains more of milk’s natural components, but one that also carries well-documented food safety risks.
How Raw Milk Differs From Pasteurized
The core difference is heat treatment. Pasteurization heats milk to a specific temperature for a set duration, enough to destroy harmful bacteria while keeping the milk’s basic nutritional profile largely intact. Raw milk goes straight from the animal to the bottle with only cooling and sometimes filtering in between.
This means raw milk retains everything naturally present in fresh milk: beneficial bacteria, naturally occurring enzymes, and certain proteins in their unaltered state. It also means any harmful bacteria present in the milk, whether from the animal, the milking equipment, or the environment, remain alive. That tradeoff is at the center of every debate about raw dairy.
What’s Actually in Raw Milk
Raw milk contains the same macronutrients as pasteurized milk: protein, fat, calcium, and a full range of B vitamins. Pasteurization does not change concentrations of riboflavin (B2), vitamin A, or vitamin E. It causes minor losses, under 10%, of vitamin C, folate, B12, B6, and thiamine. Since a cup of milk only provides about 5 mg of vitamin C to begin with (a fraction of what you’d get from an orange), those losses are nutritionally insignificant.
Where raw milk genuinely differs is in its living components. Fresh raw milk contains populations of lactic acid bacteria, including Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species, the same families found in probiotic supplements and fermented foods. One study measuring bacterial loads in raw cow’s milk found Lactobacillus at concentrations of 45 million colony-forming units per milliliter and Bifidobacterium at about 23 million. These organisms are destroyed during pasteurization.
Raw milk also contains bioactive proteins that play antimicrobial roles. Lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase, lysozyme, and immunoglobulins are all present. Pasteurization at standard temperatures (72°C for 15 seconds) preserves most of these surprisingly well. Immunoglobulins maintain their structure at that temperature, and lactoperoxidase and lysozyme retain 70% or more of their activity. Ultra-high temperature processing or boiling is what causes significant damage to these proteins.
The Allergy and Asthma Connection
Several large European studies have found that children who grow up drinking raw farm milk have lower rates of asthma and allergies compared to children who drink pasteurized milk. The PARSIFAL study, which surveyed rural and suburban populations across Europe, found that children who had consumed farm milk at any point in their lives had a 26% lower risk of asthma and a 44% lower risk of hay fever compared to those who hadn’t.
These findings are consistent and have been replicated in multiple studies. What remains unclear is the mechanism. Researchers haven’t determined whether the protection comes from specific components in the raw milk itself, from the broader farm environment those children are exposed to, or from some combination of both. This distinction matters because it’s possible that growing up around animals, barns, and diverse microbes provides the protective effect rather than the milk specifically.
The Lactose Tolerance Question
One of the most common claims about raw milk is that people who are lactose intolerant can drink it without symptoms. The idea is that raw milk contains bacteria or enzymes that help break down lactose, making it easier to digest. A controlled crossover trial tested this directly, giving 16 adults with confirmed lactose malabsorption raw milk, pasteurized milk, and soy milk in randomized order over several weeks.
The results were clear: raw milk did not reduce lactose intolerance symptoms compared to pasteurized milk. Participants reported the same severity of bloating, cramping, and gas with both types of dairy. Breath hydrogen levels, an objective measure of how much undigested lactose reaches the gut, were actually higher with raw milk on the first day of testing. By day eight, there was no difference between the two. Both dairy milks produced more symptoms than soy milk. The study’s authors concluded their findings “do not support widespread anecdotal claims that raw milk reduces the symptoms of lactose intolerance.”
Safety Risks
Raw dairy can harbor a range of dangerous pathogens. The bacteria most commonly linked to raw milk outbreaks include Campylobacter, Salmonella, E. coli (particularly the strains that cause severe illness), and Listeria. A systematic review of dairy-related outbreaks in the US and Canada found that among 20 outbreaks tied to unpasteurized products, Campylobacter and Salmonella each accounted for 30% of cases, E. coli for 25%, and Listeria for 10%. Those 20 outbreaks caused 530 reported illnesses, with 18% of cases involving children.
The risk is disproportionate to consumption rates. Only about 3% of Americans report drinking raw milk, yet raw dairy accounts for a significant share of dairy-related illness outbreaks. Children, pregnant women, older adults, and anyone with a weakened immune system face the greatest danger, as infections like Listeria and certain E. coli strains can cause life-threatening complications in these groups.
Quality testing exists but has limits. Grade “A” raw milk in the US must stay below 100,000 bacteria per milliliter on standard plate counts and 750,000 somatic cells per milliliter. Some farms that sell raw milk directly to consumers test more frequently and aim for much lower counts. But even milk from clean, well-managed herds can carry pathogens intermittently, since bacteria like Campylobacter can be shed by healthy-looking animals.
Where You Can Buy It
Federal law prohibits selling unpasteurized milk across state lines for human consumption. Within states, the rules vary widely. Some states allow raw milk sales in retail stores. Others permit sales only at the farm where the milk was produced. A growing number of states allow herd-share or cow-share arrangements, where consumers buy a share of an animal and receive a portion of its milk, sidestepping direct sales laws. Some states prohibit all sales of raw milk to consumers.
Raw milk cheese occupies a slightly different legal space. Federal regulations allow the sale of cheese made from unpasteurized milk as long as it has been aged for at least 60 days. The aging process reduces moisture and increases acidity, creating conditions that are hostile to many pathogens. Many traditional European-style cheeses, including certain varieties of Gruyère, Comté, and Parmigiano-Reggiano, are made from raw milk and are widely available in US stores.
Raw Dairy Beyond Milk
Raw dairy encompasses more than just fluid milk. Raw butter, raw cream, raw kefir, and raw cheese are all products made without pasteurizing the milk first. Fermented raw dairy products like kefir and aged cheese carry somewhat different risk profiles than fresh raw milk, because the fermentation process lowers pH and introduces competitive bacteria that can inhibit pathogen growth. This doesn’t eliminate risk entirely, but it does change the equation compared to drinking a glass of fresh raw milk.
Raw cream and raw butter are popular among home cooks who prefer their flavor and texture. The higher fat content of these products means lower water activity, which also creates a less hospitable environment for bacterial growth compared to fluid milk, though contamination is still possible.