In recent weeks, Hannah Neeleman, known on social media as the founder of Ballerina Farm and often called the "queen of tradwives," has been criticized on TikTok for selling unpasteurized milk produced on her Utah farm.
Hannah, who has over 10.5 million followers on this platform, is one of many influencers who have contributed to the popularization of raw milk consumption.
For those unfamiliar with the term, raw milk is milk that has not been subjected to a heating process to eliminate dangerous bacteria and extend its shelf life.
However, according to local media in Utah, the Department of Agriculture and Food found two cases where the level of coliform bacteria – the family of bacteria that includes Escherichia coli – was above permitted limits in unpasteurized milk sold by its farm.
As a result, Hannah and her husband Daniel stopped selling unpasteurized products from their Ballerina Farm Store in August 2025. Two weeks earlier, they declared in a TikTok video – which reached over 2.5 million views – that they had never sold unsafe products.
However, they retracted an earlier statement claiming that unpasteurized milk was “100% safe,” admitting: “Nobody can produce something that is 100% safe all the time. That’s impossible.”
Growing interest in pasteurized milk
However, Ballerina Farm is not the only reason for the surge in interest in the product. According to Farmers' Weekly, interest in unpasteurized milk in the UK began to grow in the mid-2010s. Sales rose from around 610 litres in 2014 to around 3 million litres in 2018.
@ballerinafarmstore There have been many questions about raw milk and our dairy. Hear from our founders, Hannah and Daniel Neeleman, as they answer your top questions. Head to the link in our bio to watch the full video.
♬ original sound – Ballerina Farm Store
This is despite the fact that the sale of unpasteurized milk in supermarkets and shops in the United Kingdom has been banned since 1985 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while in Scotland it is completely illegal.
However, that hasn't stopped influencers from promoting what they consider to be the "benefits" of raw milk. On TikTok alone, there are over 40 posts on the topic.
Some influencers are comparing raw milk to breast milk and claiming that it aids digestion, boosts immunity, and has anti-inflammatory effects. And it seems that many people are listening to these claims.
According to internet search data, Google searches for "raw milk" have been increasing steadily since 2022, with a significant increase in 2025. At the same time, searches for "raw milk near me" in Britain have increased by around 40%.
Health risks of pasteurized milk
Food safety experts emphasize that the pasteurization process is one of the most important measures for food safety.
During pasteurization, milk is typically heated to around 72°C for at least 15 seconds and then quickly cooled. This process destroys dangerous bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Listeria and Campylobacter.
These bacteria can be found naturally in raw milk and can cause serious illness, especially in young children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with weak immune systems.
Infection with E. coli can cause diarrhea, severe abdominal pain, vomiting, and in rare cases, severe kidney failure. Infections with Salmonella or Listeria can also cause fever, nausea, headache, and other serious symptoms. The bacteria Campylobacter is also one of the most common causes of bacterial diarrhea.
According to doctors, in certain cases, consuming unpasteurized milk can lead to food poisoning, meningitis, spontaneous abortion in pregnant women, and in extreme situations even death.
@avaaxe 🐄🐄Just a city girllll hahahah this was such a fun experience tho I've been waiting to try raw milk #utah #ballerinafarm #rawmilk #a2 #proteinpowder #the protein #parkcity #tastetest @Ballerina Farm @Ballerina Farm Store ♬ Sogni ancora – Piero Piccioni
Experts point out that pasteurization became the standard precisely because people lost their lives from contaminated milk in the past. Promoting unpasteurized milk as a healthier choice runs counter to more than a century of scientific evidence in public health.
Are there nutritional benefits?
Nutritionally, the differences between unpasteurized and pasteurized milk are very small. Pasteurized milk retains key ingredients such as protein, calcium, and essential vitamins.
Although some supporters of raw milk claim that pasteurization destroys enzymes or nutrients, scientific studies show that the nutritional changes are minimal and do not justify the greater health risk.
For this reason, in the United Kingdom, unpasteurized milk is not allowed to be sold in supermarkets and can only be purchased directly from farmers, always with clear warnings about health risks. /GazetaExpress/
t7 live
