Raw milk versus pasteurized — The big debate

Raw versus pasteurized. This is the name of the debate that the FDA and other agencies find themselves in currently, questioning whether popular “raw milk cheese” is fit for human consumption or if its just a disaster waiting to happen. Perhaps you have heard of the woman traveling in Italy who, on her vacation, consumed some raw goat cheese and contracted Brucellosis, commonly called undulent fever. This woman was treated with antibiotics successfully.

Yes, raw milk has its potential heath hazards. But so does consuming anything these days. As I learned while studying for my nutritionist certification and in culinary school, anything we put in our mouths has the potential to kill us. You take a risk when you eat anything, and consuming something raw bumps up the potentially hazardous level.

The FDA tells us that consuming raw milk cheese is dangerous because it contains pathogens, which are eliminated in the pasteurization process (source). These pathogens include Mycobacteria Bovis, or non-pulmonary tuberculosis, typhoid and salmonella among others. Recently, in 2008, scientists have discovered that raw milk has more bacteria than they previously believed, such as Chryseobacterium oranimense, C. haifense and C. bovis. All of these are deemed much less harmful by the pasteurization process, so says the FDA.

However, what the FDA is not saying is that the amount of bacteria in raw milk is still so small that it is very rare it should be hazardous. The cases where you hear of people becoming ill from eating unpasteurized cheese, such as the woman in Italy, are small and few in between. Recent studies have determined that children who consume raw milk are less likely to have asthma, or their symptoms are greatly reduced (source). Mandatory pasteurization, like what the FDA is pushing for, cannot completely eliminate raw milk cheese from becoming infected with disease causing pathogens. Catherine Donnelly, a food microbiologist at the University of Vermont and an international expert on Listeria, says, “Having lots of beneficial bacteria present is a good way to combat pathogenic bacteria. Once you eliminate all those good organisms, there’s nothing for the pathogenic bacteria to compete with” (source). Donnelly believes that the greatest threat to cheese lies in post-process environmental contamination, and one recent European study found that some pasteurized cheese had almost twice as much Listeria than in their raw milk samples. Note that by law, all raw milk cheeses in the United States must be aged at least 60 days at 35 degrees Fahrenheit or above. However, this is an age-old rule, mandated in 1949. Recent studies have shown that certain pathogens can indeed survive beyond the 60-day mark (source).

So should you or shouldn’t you consume it? The question is up to you alone. I know I’d rather have a big hunk of raw cheese rather than a fast food hamburger, which has also shown to be quite potentially hazardous over the years. Gourmands adore the raw stuff because the flavor in the cheese is more concentrated and complex. Not surprisingly, it has been concluded that the pasteurization process does alter the taste and texture of the cheese (source).