Raw dairy farm recalls some cheese products as FDA investigates E. coli outbreak

WASHINGTON (AP) — A California dairy producer that health officials are investigating over a crisis ongoing E. coli outbreak is recalling some raw cheese products, despite initially rejecting them.

Raw Farm in Fresno, California, said Thursday it is voluntarily recalling more than half a dozen varieties of cheddar cheese made from raw milk. The expiration dates of the recalled batches range from May 2026 to September 2026.

In recent years, interest and sales in raw milk have been increasing, thanks to social media and the increasing support of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Make America Healthy Again movement. Since raw milk is not pasteurized, it kills germs such as E. coli and salmonella. Listeria and campylobacter.

The Food and Drug Administration last month began investigating cases of E. coli food poisoning among people who reportedly consumed the company’s products and had previously requested a recall.

In an update last week, the FDA said it inspected the company’s facilities but found no positive tests for E. coli bacteria among the company’s products.

Raw Farm reiterated that point in its announcement Thursday, adding that it carried out the recall “under protest” and with the aim of charting a “path forward.”

“This voluntary recall is limited to Raw Farm brand cheddar cheese and no other products are being voluntarily recalled,” the company said.

The FDA has the authority to order food companies to recall their products when there is a reasonable risk of serious injury or death, but the agency must first give the company the opportunity to voluntarily comply.

The FDA said last week that nine people, including children, had become sick from the expanding outbreak.

According to the FDA, seven out of eight people interviewed by health officials reported consuming Raw Farm brand products. In 2025, two people reported drinking Raw Farm milk, and in 2026, five people reported eating or being served Raw Farm raw cheddar cheese.

The genetic sequencing of E. coli strains from sick people shows that they are all closely related to each other, the FDA said. This suggests that people in the outbreak “share a common source of infection.”

The federal government does not allow its sale unpasteurized milk across state lines for human consumption. States have a wide variety of regulations regarding raw milk; some allow retail sales in stores, others only allow sales on farms. Some states allow so-called cow shares, where people pay for milk from designated animals, while others only allow consumption by farm owners, employees or “non-paying guests.”

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