What is raw cheese, and how is it different from pasteurized cheese?

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February 15, 2023

Cheesemaking was mainly done at home before the Industrial Era in the United States. If you had a family farm with dairy animals, and you were the wife, you would make cheese to prolong the life of milk before it spoiled. The cheese was predominantly made with raw milk during this time, which, naturally, made raw cheese. But in this time period, there was no pasteurized or raw cheese; cheese was just cheese.

The difference between raw and pasteurized cheese is how the milk is handled and heated. When making raw cheese, the milk is never heated above the temperature of the milk at the time of milking, which is around 102°F.

Raw milk cheeses are said to offer a more complex flavor profile that you simply cannot get from pasteurized cheeses. Once the milk is pasteurized, the “harmful” bacteria killed during the heating process also kill off the bacteria that develop flavors and aromas that can’t be replicated.

Some say that raw cheese is a unique food because it takes on so much flavor from the region it was produced in. The cheese takes on the flavor of the location, the animal the milk comes from, the microorganisms in the milk, and the equipment and technique used to create the cheese. This is known as terroir. It’s all truly fascinating!

The nutritional benefits are greater, too, since it is made from raw milk. Cheese, especially raw cheese, is considered a complete protein. It has all of the essential amino acids we need. It is also a good source of:

Vitamins A, B, D, E, and K
Calcium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and copper
Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids; Conjugated Linoleic Acid (helps reduce body fat and improve the immune system), and butyrate (helps maintain the gut lining)
Rich in gut-healthy probiotics and enzymes

There are also multiple scientific studies that show the benefits of raw milk and how it has helped people suffering from asthma and allergies. A study done in February 2019 discusses how growing up on a farm and being exposed to the rural outdoors greatly reduces the development of allergies and asthma! The next best thing, according to the study, is raw milk because of its protective properties.

A study was done on children from the Alpine regions who drank raw milk during their first year of life and discovered they were less likely to develop asthma and allergies. It’s believed that raw milk's proteins, fat, fatty acids, and bacterial components help improve immune system function. The study also found that drinking pasteurized milk alone did not offer any health benefits like raw milk.

So if raw cheese is made from raw milk… yup, you guessed it. Pasteurized cheese is made from pasteurized milk!

Pasteurization was invented in 1862. The process involves heating and then cooling down milk to kill bacteria. The milk undergoes a heating process for pasteurized cheeses to reach partial sterilization to become pasteurized.

But why is pasteurized cheese the preferred choice? For one thing, besides it being legal in America, the consistency in taste. If I buy grass fed, pasteurized cheddar cheese, it’s always going to taste the same!

Pasteurization stops the variation of flavor caused by terroir. A majority of people and cheesemakers prefer consistency. If you’re a little more on the spontaneous side, you may prefer raw cheese because each batch will most likely taste different.

Whether you prefer pasteurized or raw cheeses, the choice is yours! There may be greater health benefits from one, but it all depends on what you are comfortable with. All raw cheeses made in the United States are legally required to be aged at least 60 days with a minimum heating temperature of 35°F. The cheeses of Simply Grassfed are the next best thing to booking a flight to the Alpine regions of Europe and enjoying raw cheeses.

All of our A2/A2 artisanal cheeses are:

Certified Organic
Handmade in Small Batches
Made with Milk from Pasture Raised, 100% Grass-Fed Cows
No Hormones, Antibiotics, or GMOs
Contains 100% A2 Beta-Casein Protein
Made from Organic Raw Milk
We only use Organic Animal Rennet in our cheese making.

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Sources:

The Greenwashing of Our Foods – Part 2

Last year, I wrote an article titled The Greenwashing of the Organic Food Movement.Click here if you missed it, wish to read it again, or to listen to my podcast with Holistic Hilda. I share many valuable resources that you may want to access.For many years, humans and animals have lived quite robustly without disease, strong and happy on unadulterated animal products and plants in their most natural state. A hundred years ago, there was no such thing as organic because most farms and food were organic.Nowadays, finding food or growing food without chemicals is nearly impossible. We are at war with governments, corporations, media propaganda, and peer pressure. Cancer, auto-immune disease, weak bones, mental disorder, autism, dental cavities, SIDS, Downs-Syndrome, eczema, allergies, depression, diabetes, heart disease, ADHD are epidemic. Every year the AMA announces some new, unnamed unique disease. We have a hard time walking a block, yet alone reproducing.The health of our society and most importantly our children is failing. Disease is epidemic and humans and animals have become dependent on artificial life support from drugs, surgeries, and machines.Click here to listen to my latest podcast with the Appropriate Omnivore. Listen to the Podcast Here I spotlight the allowable exemptions in the USDA organic standards that include chemicals, de-beaking, and irradiation as well as standard practices in the organic produce, grain, meat processing, fishing, and honey bee industry.Did you know that if your organic grains and potatoes won’t sprout, they were likely irradiated?Towards the end, I discuss the current USDA mandated vaccination policy of our American wildlife, the laws in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho that require the vaccination of ALL cattle heifers, and the current air-drop vaccination programs across the U.S. How are shellfish treated? Click Here to watch how our shellfish are “Depurated” ie. sterilized both chemically and with radiation to protect us from harmful microbes. They are bathed in chlorinated, anti-microbial water for 2-3 days and irradiated to kill the bacteria before they ship to your grocery store to ensure we get sanitary, bacteria-free food. What they don’t disclose is that the microbes are there to decompose the toxic chemicals from industry in our waterways. And, their depuration process does NOT remove any heavy metals, petroleum, or chemicals from the shellfish. Thus, it is more likely that if someone was to get sick from seafood, it is from eating the chemical pollutants, not from the fish or the microbes. Scallops without any additives are called "dry-packed", while scallops that are treated with sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) are called "wet-packed". STPP causes the scallops to absorb moisture prior to the freezing process, thereby increasing their weight. So, buy shellfish directly from the fisher or dry- packed, and don't eat from the Gulf of Mexico, near big cities, or toxic waste dumps like the James River in VA or New Jersey or Boston. Best to procure from PEI, Maine, NC, and a few select places in the Pacific Northwest.Currently, oysters are NOT depurated. So, go with oysters over clams, scallops, or mollusks.Clean food and healthy children or going extinct, however, I’m an “apocaloptimist”. It doesn’t look good, but in the long run, good will prevail.It takes vision, perseverance, courage, and hard work to find and grow food that is actually food.Are you down for the challenge? A healthy future for our children, aligned with the wisdom of nature, depends on us. If you want clean food, Burke’s Garden Farm and Alpine Heritage Creamery are both “Beyond Organic”. All our animals are outdoors getting fresh grass, haylage, grubs, sunshine, fresh air, and fresh water from the creeks and springs in a high-elevation circular valley surrounded by mountains, protected from city or industrial pollution. Simply Grassfed animals DO NOT eat GMO feeds or receive Growth Hormones. All our dairy cows are tested A2/A2 Beta-CaseinAll our cheeses are made with NON-GMO-Pfizer rennets. Click Here to read moreAll our cheeses are raw, never exceeding 102 degrees.Our butcher cleans our meat with either apple cider vinegar or water.We ship our products in biodegradable or recyclable cardboard insulated boxes in the Winter and ship with dry-ice when we can to minimize the plastic gel packs filling up the landfill. Click Here for an updated Healthy Products Resource List. In Optimal Health,Phoenix

What is raw cheese, and how is it different from pasteurized cheese?

All of our A2/A2 artisanal cheeses are:

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