Florida health officials are warning residents about the risks of raw milk after more than 20 people were sickened by products linked to a single farm.
The consumption of unpasteurized milk is on the rise in the Sunshine State in recent years, according to the Orlando Sentinel. And so are new worries.
Raw milk is only legal to sell for consumption by animals in Florida, due in part to the state health department‘s concerns about bacterias including E. coli, listeria and salmonella.
Twenty-one people in the northeastern and central parts of the state — including six young children — recently became ill due to raw milk from one unnamed farm, officials reportedly said Monday. That included seven victims who required hospitalization and two who suffered complications described as severe.
The “sanitation practices” in that particular farm concerned health officials, according to a statement obtained by the Sentinel.
The Centers for Disease Control warns that symptoms of foodborne illness from raw milk can include diarrhea, stomach pain and vomiting.
“While good practices on farms can reduce contamination, they cannot guarantee safety from harmful germs,” the CDC states.
There are advocates for raw milk, including Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who recommended it to her supporters in October.
“Raw Milk does a body good,” she posted Sunday on X. “Make America Healthy Again!”
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy — known for his controversial views on vaccines and other matters of science —before he joined President Trump’s cabinet in January indicated an interest in challenging federal regulators’ “aggressive suppression” of raw milk, according to the Associated Press.
The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets allows farms with the proper permit to sell raw milk to consumers.
Those sellers must be enrolled in a production services program, have a report showing the animals producing their milk have been tested for pathogens and have a satisfactory farm water test on file.
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