Delaware dairy farms will soon be able to get licenses to sell unpasteurized, raw milk. The state’s regulations for the program are set to be released March 1, Agriculture Secretary Don Clifton told lawmakers in a Tuesday budget hearing. Following a public hearing on the regulation, the permitting process might begin as early as May.
While most people drink pasteurized milk, government surveys have estimated that about 3 percent of Americans have tried raw milk at least once in the past 12 months. Unpasteurized raw milk usually costs between $16 and $20 a gallon. Delaware lawmakers approved retail raw milk sales last year after the Agriculture Department and Delaware Farm Bureau — where Clifton was the executive director — dropped their long-standing opposition.
Then-Gov. John Carney signed the bill lawmakers passed in 2024. The new law allows people to purchase regulated raw milk locally, rather than buying it from an unauthorized source or traveling to Pennsylvania, the only neighboring state where raw milk can be sold for human consumption.
Under the new regulations, to sell or distribute raw milk, a Delaware farm must get a permit, have a plan to manage food safety risks, and follow testing requirements involving bacteria like E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria. Avian influenza will also be among the contaminants farms must test for, said Chris Brosch, the deputy agriculture secretary.
That pathogen became a concern last year after avian influenza was discovered in da.