An urgent warning has now been issued following an E. coli outbreak linked to raw cheese.
At least seven people, including young children, across three states in the US have fallen ill with E. coli food poisoning linked to cheddar cheese made from raw milk, federal health officials said on Monday (16 March).
California-based Raw Farm produced the cheese identified as the 'likely source' of the outbreak, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
However, it's important to note that the agency added that no Raw Farm products have tested positive for E. coli during the outbreak period.
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Cases were recorded between September 2025 and mid-February, five of which were reported in California, with one each in Florida and Texas.
More than half of those affected were children aged three or younger, and two people were hospitalised. There have been no reported deaths.
The FDA advised Raw Farm to voluntarily withdraw its raw cheese products from sale, but the company has refused.
Mark McAfee, owner of Raw Farm, said the reason behind his refusal is that investigators have not definitively linked them to any illnesses.
"They have found no pathogens in any of our products," McAfee said in an interview, per AP News, disputing the FDA’s findings that the cases were genetically linked.
He also claimed that the announcement of the outbreak was premature.
The Guardian reports that Kaleigh Stanziani, a spokesperson for Raw Farm, said in an email that the company '100% DISAGREE WITH THE FDA'S FALSE 'POSSIBLE LINK', AND EXTREME ALLEGATIONS'.
Despite reports from multiple outlets, Stanziani said that all Raw Farm products had 'been CONFIRMED to be negative for all harmful bacteria, including E. coli O157-H7'.
She also reportedly denied that California is taking any action.
The FDA said interviews with three people who became ill found that all had eaten Raw Farm brand raw milk cheddar cheese.
Testing of samples from patients showed the E. coli strains behind their infections were closely genetically related, investigators found.
Officials are now gathering details from the four remaining cases, with the investigation ongoing to identify the source of contamination and to assess whether other products are linked to the illnesses.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has outlined that most people infected with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) experience severe stomach cramps, diarrhoea (often bloody), and vomiting.
Symptoms usually start three to four days after swallowing the bacteria, with most people recovering without treatment after five to seven days.
Some people may develop serious kidney problems (hemolytic uremic syndrome, also called HUS) and would need to be hospitalised.
The CDC has outlined advice on what people should do following the outbreak announcement. It includes:
- If you have any of these affected cheeses in your home, consider not eating them.
- Call your healthcare provider right away if you have any severe E. coli symptoms.
- Consider washing surfaces and containers that may have touched these cheeses using hot soapy water or a dishwasher.
Tyla has reached out to Raw Farm for further comment.
Rhiannon Ingle