Stephen Cadogan: EFSA’s raw milk warning
The EFSA has led the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) to reiterates its long-standing recommendation to consumers not to drink raw milk, and that all milk consumed or sold for direct human consumption in Ireland should be pasteurised.
The FSAI said those who still wish to drink raw milk should, at a minimum, boil it before drinking to kill potentially harmful bacteria.
EFSA said raw milk can carry harmful bacteria, and good hygiene at farm level is essential to reduce the risk, and refrigeration is also important to prevent or slow bacteria growth.
Raw milk bacteria can be particularly serious for vulnerable groups such as young children, pregnant women, the elderly and the immuno-compromised.
Professor Alan Reilly, CEO, FSAI, said pasteurisation is the most reliable and the most acceptable method to make milk safe to drink.
“In recent months, we have studied reports from different parts of the world which show that children are at real risk when drinking raw milk.
"In Australia, the death of a child and the hospitalisation of four others were associated with drinking raw milk in December last year.
"In the UK, six cases of E. coli, including five cases in children were linked to farms selling raw milk from cows late last year.”
