The FDA linked these seven cases of E. coli illness because the bacteria were all closely genetically related, which means the infections likely share a common source. Public health officials have interviewed three of the people affected, and all reported eating Raw Farm raw cheddar cheese.
According to the FDA announcement, the agency recommended that Raw Farm voluntarily recall its raw cheddar cheese products, but the company declined to do so.
Raw Farm Raw Cheddar is sold at many Sprouts Farmers Market locations across the country, as well as at natural and health food stores in a number of states, according to information on the company’s website.
The CDC has long warned against drinking raw milk, because without pasteurization, milk can be contaminated with dangerous germs, including E. coli bacteria. Raw milk cheese is somewhat different. The aging process that many cheeses undergo can destroy many bacteria, so the FDA requires that any cheese made from raw milk be aged at least 60 days. On its website, Raw Farm says all its raw milk cheeses are aged 60 days or more.
Still, according to James E. Rogers, PhD, director of product and food safety research and testing at Consumer Reports, while the aging process may reduce risks associated with raw milk cheese, it doesn’t eliminate them completely. “In this case, assuming that the manufacturer aged for 60 days, E. coli bacteria may have still emerged and possibly made people sick,” he says.
The FDA stopped short of advising consumers not to eat these products, noting to CR that its investigation is ongoing and that it is “providing information to consumers and retailers so they are aware of this outbreak before deciding to eat Raw Farm brand raw cheddar cheeses or serve it to children.”
But CR’s experts say consumers shouldn’t eat these products. Rogers advises anyone who has recently purchased Raw Farm cheddar cheese to throw it out and not purchase it again until more information becomes available or the outbreak has ended. “Consumers could also clean and sanitize any surfaces that this product came into contact with,” he says.
E. coli causes symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach cramps. While most people recover in about a week, the illness can also become more severe, causing fever and dehydration when they can’t keep anything down. Children under 5, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems are more susceptible to severe infections.
The strain of E. coli, O157:H7, involved in this outbreak is a particularly dangerous one, known as a Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. These kinds of strains can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome, which causes blood clots to form throughout the body, damaging the kidneys and other organs, and can lead to kidney failure and death.
This is not the first time Raw Farm products have been linked to an E. coli outbreak. In February of 2024, the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention investigated an outbreak of E. coli associated with the company’s raw milk cheddar cheese. The company initially issued a voluntary recall of the affected products on Feb. 16 but withdrew the recall 10 days later. The company claimed at the time that testing did not find E. coli in its products.
Raw Farms did not directly respond to CR’s request for comment on the current situation, but in a statement to consumers, the company said: "We do not release any products unless we know that they are pathogen-free. The FDA and CDC have taken premature, unwarranted, and unfounded action against Raw Farm."
Rogers says that if a company refuses to recall an adulterated product, the FDA can issue a mandatory recall, but, he says, it’s rare for the agency to do so.
One missing piece of information is the testing of Raw Farm’s cheddar cheese to determine whether E. coli is present on the products, though such testing is underway, according to the FDA.
“I still would not wait for those lab results to guide me on whether or not to throw the product away,” Rogers says. “For now, it’s safest for consumers to opt out of eating any Raw Farm cheddar cheese.”
