Days before Thanksgiving, Mark McAfee, owner of Raw Farm, a company that produces 80,000 gallons of unpasteurized milk every week, was fielding calls about the voluntary recall of his farm’s raw milk after a batch tested positive for genetic material that contains the bird-flu virus. Despite the setback, demand for raw milk has been surging, with weekly sales up as much as 65 percent compared to similar periods last year.
Raw milk has gained popularity among conservatives, including former vice-presidential candidate Nicole Shanahan, who said her running mate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., drinks her husband’s milk when he is home in Malibu. Kennedy has said he would put an end to the “aggressive suppression” of raw milk, including a repeal of the Food and Drug Administration’s ban on interstate sales.
Proponents of raw milk cite its creamier flavor and alleged health benefits, such as boosting the immune system or preventing asthma. However, actual public-health officials disagree, warning that raw milk increases one’s chances of foodborne illness. The FDA states that raw milk has no additional nutritional benefits compared to pasteurized milk, and the CDC advises parents not to give their children raw milk.
The bird-flu virus has also emerged as a concern, with infectious-disease expert Dr. Richard Webby stating that there is an unclear but increased risk of bird-flu exposure if you drink raw milk. McAfee notes that the pandemic has caused a “paradigm fracture” among many Americans, causing them to distrust public-health advice.
As Republicans move towards raw milk, a number of conservative-leaning young media figures have begun to reject foods with vegetable oils and other processed fare, opting for ingredients their grandparents might recognize. Kennedy has even sold “Make Frying Oil Tallow Again” shirts, despite not being a fan of Trump’s McDonald’s order.
McAfee has claimed that Kennedy’s transition team has asked him to work as an advisor on raw-milk standards, but more pressing issues are on his plate right now. The California Department of Food and Agriculture has announced that all Raw Farm operations will be “under quarantine” after tests found genetic fragments of bird flu in a second batch of raw milk.
