Raw milk restrictions easing across nation amid bird flu fears

According to the CDC, consuming raw milk can increase the risk of foodborne illness like salmonella and listeria.

(NewsNation) — To pasteurize or not to pasteurize — it's a question for state legislatures across the nation amid rising bird flu concerns.

Currently, more than half of the United States allows the sale of unpasteurized dairy milk for human consumption, but the path to peddling unpasteurized dairy has been winding.

What is raw milk? Who drinks it?

Raw, or unpasteurized, milk is just that — milk straight from a cow, with no bacteria-killing processes taken before it's sold or consumed.

First known as a health food for the liberal and hippie-minded, the ideological makeup of raw milk lovers has shifted in recent years, according to Politico.

Often conservative proponents of raw milk claim added health benefits from consuming the milk before pasteurization, despite the Centers for Disease Control's unchanging warnings against the product.

Commentators for conservative media, like The Blaze, QAnon, Infowars and Gab, have all urged the alleged health benefits of raw milk, Axios reports.

In Iowa, public sentiment on the consumption of raw milk — and subsequently laws surrounding the dairy — have flipped since the state became a Republican powerhouse.

"While good practices on farms can reduce contamination, they cannot guarantee safety from harmful germs. Pasteurized milk offers the same nutritional benefits without the risks of raw milk consumption," the CDC said.

Raw milk heath risks

According to the CDC, consuming raw milk can increase the risk of foodborne illnesses like salmonella and listeria, especially for America's vulnerable populations. It can also lead to sometimes fatal diseases like typhoid fever, tuberculosis and diphtheria.

Small children, the elderly, pregnant people and those with compromised immune systems are at a higher risk when consuming raw milk.

Raw milk concerns have been compounded with worries over H5N1 Bird Flu, which has spread to dozens of cow herds across the United States.

Currently, 10 states and 85 herds in the United States are seeing bird flu outbreaks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

"Therefore, there could be an increase in sporadic human infections resulting from bird and animal exposures, even if the risk of these viruses spreading from birds to people has not increased," the CDC's avian flu tracking website reads.

The current exposure risk for humans is considered low.

States legalizing raw milk

The unpasteurized push has proven to be more than a passing fad.

Even as safety concerns and bird flu woes loom overhead, more states are allowing the sale of raw milk.

Since 2020,  Montana, North Dakota, Alaska, Georgia and Wyoming have all passed or altered laws allowing the sale of raw milk.

In Delaware, the bipartisan law allowing raw milk consumption was recently passed.

“Constituents and advocates across Delaware have been consuming raw milk for decades, having to cross state lines to purchase the product legally,” said Sen. Eric Buckson, R-South Dover, who authored the bill. “This bill would speak to the growing demand and create new economic opportunities within our agriculture community.”

Most recently, West Virginia made the switch on June 7.

“If I want to purchase raw milk from my neighbor, I should be able to purchase and consume that milk,” Del. Mike Hornby told the House Health Committee. “Everybody who drinks raw milk knows it’s raw milk, and they choose to drink raw milk.”