Sunday Edition: King Raw | Food Safety News
After one of the most significant public health events in U.S. history, pasteurized milk became almost universally adopted. But there are holdouts, and raw milk and raw milk products are responsible for human illness and death 161 years after pasteurization became available.
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Quick bites from the food safety realm this week
- Federal inspectors confirmed E. coli contamination in cheddar cheese produced from raw (unpasteurized) milk produced by RAW FARM LLC in Fresno, California. The dairy is linked to an ongoing outbreak of E. coli that sickened nine people in three states. The dairy resisted initial calls to recall the cheese, but has now done so “under protest”.
- Meanwhile, in France, scientists have detailed the cause of an outbreak of E. coli in 2025 which cost the lives of three people. A total of 18 people have been confirmed infected, along with five other probable and possible cases. The cause was the consumption of raw cow’s milk cheese.
- A new report from the American Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) is published. criticizes federal agencies’ handling of contaminated food recalls. The PIRG report highlights several examples of lengthy delays in recall announcements by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). In some cases, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has chosen not to issue public announcements about potentially deadly recalled products. PIRG also called on companies to be more aggressive in notifying consumers of contaminated products.
- In the United Kingdom, a report from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) found little improvement in consumer food safety practices over a five-year period. The findings prompted the agency to call for a refocus on “targeted, evidence-based communications on basic food safety controls.”
- The Public Health Agency of Canada is still investigating a salmonella outbreak linked to pistachios one year after recording the first infection. A total of 189 people have reported being sick since March 2025, with cases concentrated in the provinces of Quebec and Ontario. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has banned the importation of pistachios from Iran while it investigates the outbreak.
THE TOPIC OF THE DAY: Raw King
The food safety stage known as pasteurization was widely used after Louis Pasteur patented the process in 1865 to first combat wine “diseases.” It was also soon applied to beer and milk.
Pasteur, the famous French chemist, is also known for his revolutionary discoveries in vaccination and microbial fermentation. He conducted research showing that the growth of microorganisms was responsible for the spoilage of beverages, such as beer, wine and milk.
He found that heating liquids such as milk to 60-100 degrees Celsius killed harmful bacteria and mold already present in these liquids. The discovery made in the years that followed likely saved millions of lives.
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