Raw Milk Producer Profits Despite FDA Findings of Pathogen-Contaminated Cheese
Federal regulators linked the largest US raw-milk dairy to multiple outbreaks of salmonella and E. coli, yet the Food and Drug Administration closed its investigation without penalty after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. advocated for the product.
Mark McAfee, founder of Raw Farm, the largest raw-milk dairy in the United States, continues to generate significant revenue despite federal regulators linking his products to multiple outbreaks of salmonella and E. coli that have sickened hundreds of people. McAfee’s business has benefited from a shift in federal enforcement under the Trump administration, specifically through the influence of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who advocates for raw milk. Despite FDA findings that the farm uses pathogen-contaminated milk to produce cheese and its refusal to promptly recall contaminated products, the government has dropped enforcement actions, allowing McAfee to maintain high sales and expand his market.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found that Raw Farm had a standard practice of producing cheese from milk suspected or known to contain pathogens. The farm refused to promptly recall contaminated products linked to recent outbreaks. Despite these findings, the FDA closed its investigation without taking enforcement action, and Raw Farm’s products remain on sale in major retail chains.
McAfee’s farm has been linked to more than a dozen recalls and outbreaks that have left hundreds of people ill. The Trump administration has dropped enforcement actions against Raw Farm, a shift attributed to the influence of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who advocates for raw milk consumption. The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to requests for comment regarding the decision to close the case.
Raw Farm’s products, including cheese made from milk that tested positive for pathogens even after the mandated 60-day aging period, are sold in major chains such as Sprouts Farmers Market and H-E-B. The farm issued a voluntary recall 18 days after an E. coli outbreak was announced, appending statements that the recall was performed under protest before retracting them five days later.
The political landscape surrounding raw milk has shifted significantly since Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president, using his campaign platform to decry the government’s aggressive suppression of the product. In his new role, he celebrated the release of a federal report with a toast of raw-milk shooters in the White House. This change in leadership coincided with the withdrawal of legal efforts against McAfee, who described the outcome as a big win for his business model.
