Why Raw Milk Standards Matter

Back in 2011 before the Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) was formed, there were no universal standards for safe raw milk production. Consumer demand for raw milk was expanding, as people learned about the health benefits of raw milk as well as the negative effects of pasteurization. There was a growing body of evidence that children who drink raw milk have decreased rates of asthma, allergies, eczema, ear infections, fever, and respiratory infections. Whereas pasteurized milk is a top food allergen and difficult to digest, raw milk is actually a health-supporting food with rich therapeutic potential that is easily digested by most consumers. Yet, standards for raw milk varied widely from state to state and country to country. 

The occasional foodborne illness outbreaks that could be tied to raw milk continued to tarnish raw milk’s reputation.  And worse yet, some of these outbreaks actually led to life-threatening illnesses. As raw milk’s popularity grew, it was being consumed by a wider segment of the population including immune-compromised people. Whereas average healthy people are likely to have relatively mild symptoms from exposure to foodborne pathogens, immune-compromised people are more likely to have severe symptoms.

Perfectly Safe Food?

It is important to note that there is no such thing as a perfectly safe food. A CDC analysis of foodborne illnesses from 2009-2015 showed that the top food categories commonly linked to illnesses were chicken, pork, and seeded vegetables. Multi-state foodborne illness outbreaks have been linked to foods ranging from unpasteurized apple juice to ground beef to soy nut butter to lettuce.

Pasteurized milk is not perfectly safe, either, and is implicated in foodborne illnesses and outbreaks every year.  Although a wide range of foods including meats and vegetables are known to have the potential for causing foodborne illnesses, only raw milk is targeted by government regulators as a food to be completely avoided. Countries such as Canada and Australia currently have complete bans on raw milk.

Raw Milk Institute Method for Safe Raw Milk

The Raw Milk Institute was founded in 2011 to advance the cause of safe raw milk.  The numerous health benefits of raw milk make it an essential food, which is too important to be allowed to be systematically suppressed by regulators and government agencies. RAWMI sought to better understand the important factors in ensuring that raw milk was safe to consume.

In 2011-12, RAWMI brought together a diverse international group with the purpose of establishing standards for safe raw milk. This group included medical doctors and epidemiologists, nutritional consultants, veterinarians, food safety scientists, raw milk farmers, and raw milk consumers. This collaborative group developed the Raw Milk Institute Common Standards, which were initially released in 2012. 

The RAWMI Common Standards describe a three-pronged approach for the production of safe raw milk which consists of:

• Farmer training and mentoring

• Risk Analysis and Management Plan (RAMP) for the unique conditions on each individual farm

• Stringent yet achievable bacterial test standards for coliforms and Standard Plate Count (SPC)

The Common Standards Work!

Since their release in 2012, the RAWMI Common Standards have become a foundational part of low-risk raw milk production across North America. When farmers are well-trained, use careful production practices as laid out in their individual RAMP, and perform ongoing bacterial testing of their milk, they can produce raw milk that is ultra-low-risk.

Researchers from Canada and Europe have studied the safety of raw milk intended for direct human consumption, and have specifically considered milk from farms who implement the RAWMI Common Standards. They have found that carefully produced raw milk is a low-risk food which is fundamentally different from pre-pasteurized milk. The implementation of the RAWMI Common Standards has led to a significant reduction in raw milk-related illnesses and outbreaks.

The table below contrasts pathogen test data from pre-pasteurized milk vs. raw milk intended for direct human consumption.  As illustrated in the table, pathogen testing of pre-pasteurized milk samples has detected pathogens in up to 33% of samples.  In contrast, there were zero pathogens detected in thousands of milk samples from raw milk intended for direct human consumption. It is clear from this test data that pre-pasteurized milk is categorically different from raw milk intended for direct human consumption.

Data courtesy British Columbia Herdshare Association

Common Standards 2026 Update

Knowledge about safe raw milk is continually advancing. With the review of the RAWMI LISTED farmers, the RAWMI Common Standards have recently been updated to include the latest information about best practices in raw milk production. The 2026 Common Standards are available here:

Raw Milk, Asthma, and Lung Health

There are multiple peer-reviewed, scientific studies which correlate raw milk with improved lung health, both in childhood and adulthood.

Children Who Drink Raw Milk Have Less Asthma

Several large epidemiological studies of European children have found correlations between raw milk consumption and decreased rates of asthma.

PARSIFAL Study

The PARSIFAL study was designed to look at allergy risk factors in children. This large study of over 14,800 European children (from Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland) investigated asthma and allergic diseases in relation to children’s exposure to different environments (farms, rural, suburban) and farm-fresh foods (such as raw dairy products, eggs, and vegetables). The PARSIFAL data relating to asthma and raw milk were published in December 2006 in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Allergy [1].

The PARSIFAL study concluded that there is a "significant inverse association between farm [raw] milk consumption and childhood asthma." The study found that, regardless of which environment the children lived in, those children who drank raw milk had significantly lower rates of asthma than children who did not drink raw milk.

GABRIELA Study

The GABRIELA study was designed to investigate the genetic and environmental causes of asthma.  This study included over 8,000 European children (from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland), and was published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in August 2011 [2]. In this study, raw milk consumption was compared to consumption of boiled/pasteurized milk, and the level of exposure to raw milk in utero through school age was also accounted for. The study also looked into the children’s exposure to farm environments as a possible variable related to rates of asthma.

The GABRIELA study found that raw milk consumption is associated with significantly lower rates of asthma, and that this beneficial effect is independent of other farm exposures. It was found that early exposure to raw milk (at <1 year of age) and daily consumption of raw milk increased the beneficial effect in children who drank a mixture of raw milk and pasteurized milk. The consumption of only pasteurized milk “was not associated with any health outcome.”

PASTURE Study

The PASTURE study followed children from birth to age 6 years in order to gain a better understanding of the effects of raw milk consumption on asthma. This study of over 900 European children (from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, and France) was published in January 2016 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology [3].

The PASTURE study concluded that, "Continuous farm [raw] milk consumption in childhood protects against asthma at school age." This study found that raw milk’s “beneficial effect on asthma increases over time. Recent consumption of farm milk seems to be more relevant than consumption in the first years of life, which extends the concept of early prevention to sustained prevention until school age and beyond.” 

It’s Not the “Farm Effect,” It’s the Raw Milk!

Some of the research correlating decreased asthma with raw milk consumption has been criticized as actually demonstrating that living on a farm is associated with decreased rates of asthma. However, several of the studies specifically analyzed the effects of living environments, and found that the beneficial effects of raw milk on asthma were indeed present even in children who did not live on farms.

Furthermore, a meta-analysis of eight health studies related to raw milk was published in the November 2019 issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology [4]. A meta-analysis is a quantitative statistical analysis which combines the results of multiple scientific studies, thereby allowing the researchers to derive overall conclusions about that body of research. The recent meta-analysis, written by a team of researchers from the Netherlands and Germany, concluded that when taken as a whole, the body of data from the previous studies shows that raw milk consumption in childhood has a protective effect on asthma “independent of other farm exposures and that children not living on a farm can theoretically profit from this effect.” 

Adults Who Drank Raw Milk in Childhood Have Better Lung Function

Agricultural Lung Health Study

There is evidence that raw milk’s beneficial impacts on lung health are not isolated to childhood. Evidence that raw milk has a beneficial effect on adult lung health is seen in the Agricultural Lung Health Study, which is part of the larger Agricultural Health Study that was designed to investigate how agricultural, lifestyle and genetic factors affect the health of farmers.  The Agricultural Lung Health Study data relating to lung health and raw milk were published in March 2018 in the journal Thorax [5].

This study investigated lung function in over 3,000 USA older adults, with a mean age of 63 years.   It was found that "raw milk consumption, particularly early in life, is associated with better pulmonary [lung] function in adulthood." This study found that childhood raw milk consumption was correlated with “higher forced expiratory volume” and higher “forced vital capacity”, leading the researchers to conclude that “the beneficial effect of raw milk is predominantly on lung growth.”

Low-Risk Raw Milk as a Therapeutic Tool

It is clear from all of this research that raw milk consumption is correlated with improved lung health.  Children who drink raw milk have lower rates of asthma, and childhood raw milk consumption leads to improved lung health that lasts into older adulthood. There is a growing body of evidence that raw milk is a low-risk food when it is produced carefully and intentionally [6, 7]. Thus, low-risk raw milk can be a powerful therapeutic tool for improving lung health.

References

[1] Inverse association of farm milk consumption with asthma and allergy in rural and suburban populations across Europe. Clinical and Experimental Allergy. 2007; 37(5):661-70. Waser M, Michels KB, Bieli C, Flöistrup H, Pershagen G, von Mutius E, Ege M, Riedler J, Schram-Bijkerk D, Brunekreef B, van Hage M, Lauener R, Braun-Fahrländer C; PARSIFAL study team. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17456213

[2] The protective effect of farm milk consumption on childhood asthma and atopy: The GABRIELA study. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2011; 128 (4): 766-73. Loss G, Apprich S, Waser M, Kneifel W, Genuneit J, Büchele G, Weber J, Sozanska B, Danielewicz H, Horak E, Joost van Neerven RJ, Heederik D, Lorenzen PC, von Mutius E, Braun-Fahrländer C; GABRIELA study group. https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(11)01234-6/fulltext

[3] ω-3 fatty acids contribute to the asthma-protective effect of unprocessed cow's milk. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2016; 137 (6): 1699-1706. Brick T, Schober Y, Böcking C, Pekkanen J, Genuneit J, Loss G, Dalphin JC, Riedler J, Lauener R, Nockher WA, Renz H, Vaarala O, Braun-Fahrländer C, von Mutius E, Ege MJ, Pfefferle PI; PASTURE study group. https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(15)01731-5/fulltext

[4] The Beneficial Effect of Farm Milk Consumption on Asthma, Allergies, and Infections: From Meta-Analysis of Evidence to Clinical Trial. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practcice, 2019. 8 (3): 878-889. Brick T, Hettinga K, Kirchner B, Pfaffl MW, Ege MJ. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31770653

[5] Raw milk consumption and other early-life farm exposures and adult pulmonary function in the Agricultural Lung Health Study. Thorax, 2018; 73:279-282. Wyss AB, House JS, Hoppin JA, et al. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5758444/

[6] Recent Trends in Unpasteurized Fluid Milk Outbreaks, Legalization, and Consumption in the United States. PLOS Currents. 2018; 10. Whitehead J, Lake B. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6140832/#ref27

[7] Raw milk producers with high levels of hygiene and safety. Epidemiology and Infection, 2020; 148, e14, 1-7. Berge AC, Baars T. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32000877

Welcoming Farms in Alaska and Georgia to RAWMI Community

The Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) sends a warm welcome to two more farmers who have completed our Listing program. These are the first RAWMI Listed dairies in Alaska and Georgia!

RAWMI offers free mentoring to all dairy farmers. Whether they are milking one cow, a handful of goats, or a large herd, the principles of safe raw milk production form a foundational toolset that benefits all dairy farmers and their customers. 

Some of the farmers we mentor choose to keep it casual, and are satisfied to just ask us a few questions before continuing their raw milk journeys. There is another set of farmers, though, that is not content to just dip their toes in the water; they want to dive right in and take their entire milk process to the next level. 

For these farmers, we offer our (free) RAWMI Listing program, wherein we assist farmers in developing their own unique on-farm Risk Analysis and Management Plan, documenting their processes with written Standard Sanitary Operating Procedures, and identifying the Critical Control Points that are essential to their production of safe raw milk. RAWMI Listed farmers test their milk at least monthly for ongoing assurance that their processes are working well to produce low-risk raw milk. RAWMI Listing is the gold standard for raw milk producers.

Two raw milk farms have recently completed the RAWMI Listing process, and we extend them a warm welcome into our growing community!

• #70 - Rady Family Farmstead - Fairbanks, Alaska, USA

• #71 - Timberwood Farms - Lula, Georgia, USA

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Rady Family Farmstead - Fairbanks, Alaska, USA

Rady Family Farmstead is a small family farm in Fairbanks, Alaska. Halie and her family are focused on bringing clean and nutritious raw milk to their community. Their small herd of dairy cows are A2A2 and loved dearly. Along with milk, they offer raw cream, yogurt and fresh eggs. 

The Rady Family strives to help families stay out of the grocery store and stay connected with nature. If that’s your goal, please connect with them! 

You can check out Rady Family Farmstead’s Risk Management Plan and test results here: https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/listed-farmers/#rady

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Timberwood Farms - Lula, Georgia, USA

Per Georgia's laws, Timberwood Farms sells their raw milk as pet food, but nonetheless they have chosen to put in the effort to meet RAWMI's standards.

Timberwood Farms is a small family owned boutique dairy, situated in North East Georgia. Timberwood Farms holds a license for pet consumption A2/A2 milk, cream, buttermilk, butter, yogurt, ice-cream, and cheese. 

They have a handful of A2/A2 Jerseys and Guernsey-Jersey cross cows. Farmer Rachael Pittman has an autoimmune disorder, so milk quality is her highest priority. The Pittman family has 3 children, and they hold a passion for producing the cleanest highest quality raw milk they possibly can.

You can check out Timberwood Farm’s Risk Management Plan and test results here: https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/listed-farmers/#timberwood

Rapid Chilling of Raw Milk Lowers Pathogen Risks and Improves Shelf-Life

For raw milk production, risk management and customer satisfaction go hand-in-hand.  Many of the strategies that result in low-risk raw milk also work well to keep customers happy with delicious, long-lasting milk. Rapid chilling is one such strategy that lowers the risk of pathogens while also improving the flavor and shelf-life of raw milk.

Although pathogens in well-produced raw milk are rare, they are still an important consideration and we encourage all raw milk farmers to take pathogens seriously.  The four main pathogens of concern that can be found in raw milk are E coli 0157:H7, Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp., and Listeria monocytogenes. Illnesses from these pathogens can be serious or even fatal. 

In the rare case when pathogens are present in well-produced raw milk, illness will still not occur unless the pathogen load (or amount of pathogen present) is high enough to produce illness. If it is present in a small enough quantity, even the most virulent pathogen will not produce illness.  Generally, the presence of a single virulent bacterium is not sufficient to cause illness, and different pathogens have varying thresholds at which they must be present to induce human illness. 

However, bacteria multiply rapidly at warm temperatures and can double their count in as little as 20 minutes. At cold temperatures, bacteria growth slows down dramatically.  This means that farmers can greatly reduce the number of bacteria present in raw milk by quickly chilling the milk right after milking time. 

Aim for Chilling to 35-40 °F in Less Than an Hour

Our general recommendation is for farmers to chill their raw milk to 35-40 °F within an hour of milking.  This helps in ensuring that any bacteria present in the raw milk do not have much time in which to multiply.

Refrigerators do not generally work well enough to rapidly chilling raw milk.  Depending on the size of the milk jar or jug, it may take a few hours for warm milk to cool down to under 40 degrees in the refrigerator. Freezers also do not generally work well for chilling milk because the milk may freeze and break the glass jars. 

In order to achieve cold milk in a short time, other methods are needed. We work closely with dozens of farmers, and have seen that rapid milk chilling is achievable no matter the size of the farm.  Here are some of the different ways in which farmers can rapidly chill their raw milk to 35-40°F in an hour or less.  

Ice-and-Water Bath for Rapid Milk Chilling on Micro-Dairies

For small-scale farms, an ice-and-water bath can work well for milk chilling. A chest cooler can be used to hold the ice-and-water bath.  When using this method, there are a few important things to pay attention to:

• The milk jars should be submerged in the cold ice-and-water, but make sure that the water level does not reach lid of the milk container. Otherwise, there may be problems with water comingling with the milk in the jars.

• The size of the milk jar will make a big difference in how long it will take the milk to chill down.  We recommend that farmers use milk jars that are no larger than ½ gallon, or else the chilling time will be too lengthy.

• Some farmers who do not have ice maker machines have preferred to use either stainless steel ice cubes (which can be sanitized in the dishwasher) or frozen water bottles which can be reused over and over again.

• Make sure there is enough cold ice water to rapidly chill the milk.  If there are too many milk jugs in relation to the amount of ice water, then the chilling will not be quick enough.

• Some farmers like to add in a small submersible water pump (such as an aquarium or pond pump) to circulate the water in their ice water bath for quicker chilling. 

• Whatever method you use, you can check to see whether the milk is chilling rapidly enough by measuring the temperature in the middle of your milk jars after an hour.   
  

Bulk Milk Tanks

Bulk tanks are another option for milk chilling. Small bulk tanks can hold up to 15 gallons of milk, and many other sizes are available for farmers who are producing larger quantities of milk.  Bulk tanks with integrated cooling systems can quickly chill the milk to the desired temperature. When using a bulk tank, farmers need to be aware of the following:

• Bulk tanks need to be sized appropriately, or else there can be problems with the milk freezing if there is too little quantity of milk relative to the size of the tank.

• Milk stacking occurs when milk from multiple milkings is poured into the bulk tank. This can result in increased bacteria counts as the milk in the tank is re-warmed each time fresh milk is added.  Furthermore, milk stacking increases the risk of contamination from one batch of milk to another, thereby increasing the potential damage done by the presence of any undesirable bacteria/pathogens. We recommend that farmers minimize milk stacking by bottling their milk after every 1-3 milkings.

• Bulk tanks must be thoroughly cleaned after every time the milk is bottled.  The valve on the bulk tank, in particular, needs to be completely disassembled and scrubbed clean to ensure that it does not harbor bacteria. 

Sophisticated Chilling for Larger Farms

Larger farms may choose to use sophisticated chilling equipment, such as plate chillers.  These chillers will cool the milk down rapidly in just a few minutes before it even enters the bulk tank.  Farmers using plate chillers need to be aware of the following:

• Complex equipment can create more opportunities for bacteria biofilms to grow in nooks and crannies. Therefore, thorough cleaning is essential for plate chillers in between milkings.

• A clean-in-place (CIP) system will be required for thoroughly cleaning the plate chiller.  We recommend that farmers work with a dairy supply consultant to optimize the CIP for their individual pipeline systems. This should include a tepid rinse, followed by a hot wash with alkaline detergent, followed by a warm acid rinse. 

• The temperature of the water used for the hot alkaline wash will decrease as the water flows through the system, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the cleaning solution. It is recommended to ensure that the temperature of the wash water is at least 120 degrees at the outlet of the system.

• Over time, bacteria biofilms can become resistant to specific cleaners, especially in pipeline systems.  Therefore, it is recommended to periodically “shock” pipeline systems by using different alkaline and acid cleaners about once a month.

Rapid Milk Chilling is Achievable

Rapid milk chilling is an important strategy for risk reduction with raw milk.  As we have described, rapid chilling is achievable no matter the size of the farm. Besides reducing the risk of high bacteria counts in the milk, rapid chilling can also result in a longer shelf-life for the milk and help in preventing off flavors. Rapid chilling is a Win-Win for both farmers and customers.

This article was published in the April 2023 issue of Graze Magazine.

WEBINAR VIDEO: Let's Talk About Raw Milk

Over 100 people attended our recent Let’s Talk About Raw Milk webinar. We had attendees from coast-to-coast across the United States, including Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. We also had international attendees from Bedfordshire England, Sussex England, and Mexico.

This was a great opportunity for our Board of Directors at the Raw Milk Institute to share our passion for raw milk and connect with raw milk consumers and farmers. In the wake of our presentation, we’ve been contacted by many who missed the webinar as well as attendees who want to share it with others. We are pleased to share with you this recording of the webinar!

About the Webinar

Below is our 50-minute webinar (followed by 25 minutes of Q&A), which covers:

• 00:00 - Introduction

• 05:59 - Top 5 Reasons to Drink Raw Milk

• 09:10 - History of Raw Milk

• 13:42 - Health Benefits of Raw Milk

• 22:01 - Two Types of Raw Milk

• 25:46 - Safety and Risks of Raw Milk

• 31:40 - RAWMI Method for Low-Risk Raw Milk

• 40:03 - How to Find a Good Raw Milk Farmer

• 44:07 - How to Take Care of Your Raw Milk

• 48:27 - Help Your Farmer Achieve Excellence

• 49:00 - Interactive Q and A

Presented by:

• Mark McAfee - Raw Milk Institute President and CEO of Raw Farm

• Sarah Smith - Raw Milk Institute Vice President and Natural Healthcare Practitioner

• Dr Joseph Heckman - Raw Milk Institute Board Member and Professor of Soil Science

• Kelsey Barefoot - Raw Milk Institute Board Member and Owner of The Barefoot Cow

• Esther Arkfeld - Raw Milk Institute Board Member and Owner of Dairy on Orange

Build Immune System Strength With Whole Foods: Drink Raw Milk!

America invested $3 billion dollars and spent 13 years between 1990 and 2003 to figure out what makes us genetically human. The research project focused on discovery of the genes and genetic code that makes us what we are.  This work was funded by Congress and led by the Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health. The findings were not quite as expected.  

Our parents gave us each about 20,000 genes that give us our basic structure and shape. That was the easy part.  That is our “hardware”. However, the “software” that runs our human machine gets a little tricky. It becomes very complicated and even inconvenient.

Rob Knight, founder of the Center for Microbiome Innovation and Professor of Pediatrics at the University of California San Diego, describes that,

“You’re more microbe than you are human.”

On a cellular level, we are only 43% human, with the balance of our cells being bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Genetically, our 20,000 human genes are vastly outnumbered by 2,000,000 to 20,000,000 microbial genes, which are mainly coming from bacteria. And most of these bacteria make their home in our gut.

At the cellular level, genetic information is shared between human cells and microbial cells. Genetic information is freely traded, exchanged and swapped around as an essential part of life and cellular function. The essential bacterial genetic information acts as “software” for the human cells, regulating the immune system, digestion, and manufacture of vital vitamins. This is how our human micro-biome functions.  

I like to say “we are Bacteriosapiens”.  What does this mean in real terms? How do we apply advanced science and use this information to better our lives? The bottom line is this:

We have great control over our optimal health.

We are not narrowly driven by the genes our parents passed to us. Those genes are important, but they are only a sliver of the genetics that truly drive our human machine. How we live our lives has tremendous impact on our microbiome and therefore our health. Were we breast fed, were we born by C-Section, did we receive heavy antibiotics early on? That’s just for starters. What we were fed as children and how do we continue to eat today? Don’t get into a guilt trip. That’s all old history. You can start fixing it today.

According to Dr. Anahid Jewett PhD at UCLA:

The healthy gut biome needs two things to reduce inflammation and keep you healthy:

• A load of biodiverse bacteria

• The whole foods that feed them

It comes down to nurturing our beneficial bacteria!  How do we get good bacteria to hang out, colonize our bodies, and become our very best genetic friends? How do we get and keep our genetic software so our human cells can make good decisions and keep us healthy?  Beneficial bacteria don’t hang around very long if we don’t offer them breakfast, lunch and dinner.

What nourishes our beneficial bacteria?  Whole foods do. What is a whole food? A whole food is a food that is unprocessed and complete. Nothing taken away and nothing added. Whole foods grow right out of good healthy soils which are teaming with earthworms, fungi, and bacteria. Whole foods come right out of the cow or straight from a well-nourished animal.

Americans don’t eat many whole foods. Instead we eat the Standard American Diet (SAD). In doing so, we starve and deprive our beneficial bacteria! In fact, we Americans love our antibiotics, pharmaceutical drugs, preservatives, sugar rich foods, long shelf life foods and GMOs. Highly processed foods and chemicals are destructive to our gut biome and the bacterial diversity required for genomic health. So what does that leave us? Its leaves us with “hardware and no software to drive it”. We become genetically inept at the cellular level.  We develop a whole range of diseases, including allergies, leaky gut, autoimmune disorders, depression, autism, and more. It’s really SAD.   

Nourishing and healing our gut microbiome requires moving away from processed foods and pharmaceuticals, and instead moving towards whole foods.

Raw milk, raw cheese, raw butter, raw cream and raw kefir are whole gut biome superfoods. They seed the gut with diverse beneficial bacteria, while providing the enzymes, proteins, minerals, and good fats that bacteria love to eat. They are whole foods with biologically active elements and protein systems that protect the gut, and build and maintain our immune system. They are the first foods of life!  Add fresh or fermented vegetables, grass-fed beef, chicken, eggs, and other direct-from-the-farm foods to make your bacteriosapien thrive!

Follow-on studies to the Human Genome Project continue today, including the Human Microbiome Project and the American Gut Project. It has become quite the clash of titans. The current medical and food processing establishments find this information to be extremely inconvenient. If bacteria are critical to life, then what are we doing with all the antibiotics? Sugars grow candida yeast and disrupt normal healthy bacterial colonization. Preservatives kill off bacteria in foods to extend shelf life and cause damage to the gut bacterial colonies. So does the widely-used glyphosate Round-up!

In the Coronavirus Pandemic, we witnessed lack of resilience in our gut biomes and immune systems.

While some people were not affected by Coronavirus others became deathly ill or worse.  We don’t know exactly why there was such a difference in these outcomes and pathways. We have been given a big hint, though: in general, COVID19 illness seriously affected those with compromised immune systems and poor health status.

New threats will continue to emerge. Viruses and bacteria continually evolve and adapt. Our immune system and gut biome must dynamically do the same. We must be adaptive and resilient to be able to address the ever present and evolving threats that will come to visit us. Will your immune system and genomics be up to the new threat?  Vaccines are always late, come after the fact, and don’t have the most effective track record. A healthy adaptive resilient immune system is with you and working all the time.

There is a long list of studies that confirm the health benefits of raw milk. These benefits include significantly fewer colds (which are viral illnesses), less asthma, fewer ear infections, reduction of eczema, less allergies, and stronger general health. These findings confirm that:

Those who eat a whole food diet and consume raw dairy products have more adaptive and resilient immune systems.

Get to know your bacterial self. You are not alone. Give your new best friends breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They won’t ever let you down if you feed them well.

Drink your raw milk and eat your whole foods! Cherish your new bacterial friends. They are the healthy you!

Welcoming Farms in Washington, Idaho, and New York to RAWMI Community

The Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) sends a warm welcome to three more farmers who have completed our Listing program!

RAWMI offers free mentoring to all dairy farmers. Whether they are milking one cow, a handful of goats, or a large herd, the principles of safe raw milk production form a foundational toolset that benefits all dairy farmers and their customers. 

Some of the farmers we mentor choose to keep it casual, and are satisfied to just ask us a few questions before continuing their raw milk journeys. There is another set of farmers, though, that is not content to just dip their toes in the water; they want to dive right in and take their entire milk process to the next level. 

For these farmers, we offer our (free) RAWMI Listing program, wherein we assist farmers in developing their own unique on-farm Risk Analysis and Management Plan, documenting their processes with written Standard Sanitary Operating Procedures, and identifying the Critical Control Points that are essential to their production of safe raw milk. RAWMI Listed farmers test their milk at least monthly for ongoing assurance that their processes are working well to produce low-risk raw milk. RAWMI Listing is the gold standard for raw milk producers.

Three raw milk farms have recently completed the RAWMI Listing process, and we extend them a warm welcome into our growing community!

• #67 - G&G Dairy - Churchville, New York, USA

• #68 - Renegade Ridge Creamery - Prescott, Washington, USA

• #69 - Blue Wildrye Dairy - Princeton, Idaho, USA

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G&G Dairy - Churchville, New York, USA

Grace Zuber is the owner and operator of G&G Dairy. She grew up on a conventional dairy, family-owned farm. Once her dad had retired, she knew her passion and love for dairy cows wasn’t going to stop. The idea of producing raw milk comes from Grace’s love of one cow she was already milking separately from the main heard of a few thousand. When her dad retired, she started with just a handful of cows, but a year and a half later she now has 18 altogether of various ages. With a lot of help a new raw milk facility was built. After getting the approval from NYS, Grace was given the certification to start selling raw milk in November of 2024. Her cows are all grass-fed girls and she grows her own hay for winter.

Grace has a small storefront for her customers to come pick up milk. Along with raw milk, she offers eggs, homemade soaps, and fresh raw honey (when in season).

You can check out G&G Dairy’s Risk Management Plan and test results here: https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/listed-farmers/#gg

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Renegade Ridge Creamery - Prescott, Washington, USA

Renegade Ridge Creamery, located on the Pedersen Family Ranch, was established in 2025 with one simple mission: bringing fresh, healthy raw milk to families throughout Southeast Washington.

They started by milking a single Jersey cow to provide wholesome food for their own family. As the ranch grew, so did their passions. They began raising Pyredoodle puppies and, ultimately, turned Gretchen's lifelong love of cattle and dairying into a family-owned microdairy.

Today, Renegade Ridge Creamery is proud to be Washington State's first RAWMI Listed dairy, reflecting their commitment to producing raw milk with exceptional safety, quality, and transparency. Their herd consists primarily of Jersey cows, along with a few carefully selected Jersey crosses.

All five of the Pedersen children help care for the animals and participate in the daily work of the ranch and creamery. They believe that knowing your farmer matters, and enjoy educating their members about raw milk, responsible farming practices, and the importance of supporting local agriculture.

You can check out Renegade Ridge Creamery’s Risk Management Plan and test results here: https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/listed-farmers/#renegade

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Blue Wildrye Dairy - Princeton, Idaho, USA

Blue Wildrye Dairy grew out of an unexpected love affair with raw milk. Because Suzanne’s father was a public health physician—and naturally cautious about raw milk—she never tasted it while growing up. When she finally did, years later, it was love at first sip.

When Suzanne and her husband began building Blue Wildrye Farm, their pasture-based regenerative farm in the rolling hills of northern Idaho, she knew this extraordinary food fit naturally within their mission: caring for the land, raising animals with respect, and producing deeply nourishing food for their community. Suzanne set out to learn how they could produce raw milk that was not only exceptionally rich and delicious, but also as clean and low-risk as possible.

RAWMI provided the knowledge, mentorship, and rigorous framework they needed to build their microdairy from the ground up. Today, their small herd of A2A2 Jersey cows grazes rotationally managed pastures. They combine careful animal husbandry, meticulous sanitation, rapid chilling, and weekly milk testing to ensure that every jar reflects their commitment to both quality and safety.

After seeing the lengths Suzanne goes to in order to produce clean milk, even her public-health-doctor dad is now willing to drink raw milk—as long as it comes from her dairy.

You can check out Blue Wildrye Dairy’s Risk Management Plan and test results here: https://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/listed-farmers/#bluew

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! August 11th - Let's Talk About Raw Milk - FREE Webinar

On Tuesday August 11th at 12pm Pacific / 1pm Mountain / 2pm Central / 3pm Eastern, the Raw Milk Institute will present a free 1-hour Let’s Talk About Raw Milk webinar. This presentation will be livestreamed, so that everyone can conveniently attend from their own locations.

About the Webinar

This RAWMI presentation will focus on:

• Top 5 reasons to drink raw milk

• History and benefits of raw milk

• Safety and risks of raw milk

• How to find a good raw milk farmer

• How to take care of your raw milk

How to Register

This webinar is FREE and registration is now open! You can register to attend at this link:

Space is limited, so make sure to register now if you want to attend. We look forward to seeing you on Zoom!

SAVE THE DATE! August 11th - Let's Talk About Raw Milk - FREE Webinar

On Tuesday August 11th at 12pm Pacific / 1pm Mountain / 2pm Central / 3pm Eastern, the Raw Milk Institute will present a free 1-hour Let’s Talk About Raw Milk webinar. This presentation will be livestreamed, so that everyone can conveniently attend from their own locations.

About the Webinar

This RAWMI presentation will focus on:

• Top 5 reasons to drink raw milk

• History and benefits of raw milk

• Safety and risks of raw milk

• How to find a good raw milk farmer

• How to take care of your raw milk

How to Register

We will soon be accepting registrations for this event! In July, we will announce when you can register via our website, email list, and social media accounts.

We're Making Low-Risk Raw Milk a Reality!

We’ve recently analyzed our database of over 11,000+ sets of coliform and standard plate count data and the results are in: RAWMI Listed farmers are surpassing the bacteria standards for pasteurized milk!

Our Raw Milk Test Database

Every month, we receive raw milk test data from dozens of Raw Milk Institute (RAWMI) Listed farmers. In order to become Listed, these farmers have completed our free intensive mentoring program, developed individualized Risk Analysis Management Plans for their farms, and committed to ongoing bacterial testing of their milk. To date, over 65+ farms have completed our Listing program.

Listed farmers are required to test their milk at least once per month for coliforms and Standard Plate Count (SPC). Many Listed farmers choose to test their milk more often, such as once per week or even daily. As a result, we collect hundreds of raw milk test data points every month from our Listed farmers and have compiled a huge test database over the last 14 years. We have now amassed over 11,000 test data points each for coliforms and SPC tests in raw milk.

About Coliform and Standard Plate Count Tests

The SPC is a measure of the total number of aerobic bacteria in the milk. High SPC numbers can indicate dirty milking equipment, poor milk chilling, udder inflammation, and/or poor udder preparation.

Coliform count measures the amount of coliform bacteria present in the milk. Coliform counts measure the overall hygiene and cleanliness of the milk. High coliform counts generally indicate the presence of manure or other environmental contaminants on the udders or milking equipment. They can also indicate the presence of udder inflammation. High coliform counts are likely to correspond to the presence of harmful pathogens in the milk.

Although these two tests do not directly detect the presence of pathogens, they serve as general indicators that the milk is being produced hygienically and in such a way that pathogens are less likely to be present. No food can ever be perfectly safe, but nonetheless these tests can help to dramatically decrease the risk of having pathogens present.

Standards for Pasteurized vs Raw Milk

Below is a summary of the coliform and SPC standards for raw, pre-pasteurized, and pasteurized milks, in units of colony-forming units per milliliter (cfu/mL).

Standard Plate Count

• Federal Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO) - Allows up to 100,000 cfu/mL in pre-pasteurized milk.

• Federal PMO - Allows up to 20,000 cfu/mL in pasteurized milk.

• Raw Milk Institute Common Standards - Allows up to 5,000 cfu/mL in raw milk for direct human consumption.

Coliforms

• Federal PMO - Allows unlimited number of coliforms in pre-pasteurized milk.

• State of California - Allows up to 750 cfu/mL coliforms in pre-pasteurized milk.

• Federal PMO - Allows up to 10 cfu/mL in pasteurized milk.

• Raw Milk Institute Common Standards - Allows up to 10 cfu/mL in raw milk for direct human consumption.

RAWMI Listed Farmers Are Surpassing Pasteurized Milk Standards

Intentionally-produced raw milk is measurably quite different from pre-pasteurized raw milk and even meets stricter standards than pasteurized milk. Our large dataset of thousands of test results shows that raw milk farmers who have been properly trained can routinely meet the stringent standards set forth in the RAWMI Common Standards.

In analyzing all of the test data from RAWMI Listed farmers over the last 14 years, we found the following for raw milk that was to be used for direct human consumption.

Coliforms

• 11,826 total tests

• Average of all tests = 2.1 cfu/mL

Standard Plate Count

• 11,470 total tests

• Average of all tests = 960 cfu/mL

In over 11,000+ tests, RAWMI Listed Farmers averaged <1,000 cfu/mL for SPC and 2 cfu/mL for coliforms.

Making Low-Risk Raw Milk a Reality Across the USA, Canada, and Beyond!

There are now RAWMI Listed Farmers in 21 states of the USA, 2 Canadian Provinces, and Lebanon. You can check out their Risk Analysis Management Plans and monthly test data here.