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Read. Follow. Verify.North Carolina Authorizes Retail Sale of Raw Milk and Raw Milk Products Under Department Licensing
Last action · April 1, 2025: Re-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House (House action)Sponsors: Matthew Winslow and 13 others
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What This Bill Would Do
North Carolina allows eligible farmers to sell and raw milk products directly to consumers for personal use on the farm or at farm stands within 100 miles, starting January 1, 2026. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will issue one-year renewable licenses to farms that pass inspections, animal health checks, water tests, and product safety standards. Labeled health warnings and separate display requirements are mandatory for all retail raw milk products.
Dairy farmers gain a legal pathway to retail unpasteurized milk directly to consumers, and residents gain retail access to products subject to specific testing, disease-free animal certifications, and mandatory warning labels.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
eligible farmer
Eligible farmers may obtain a one-year retail raw milk license subject to annual inspections, animal health tests, water testing, and product safety standards.
consumers
Consumers gain retail access to purchase raw milk and raw milk products for personal use on farms or at eligible farm stands with mandatory warning labels.
Key Facts
- The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services may issue a one-year renewable raw milk license to eligible farmers who meet state inspection and safety standards.
- Raw milk and raw milk products may be sold directly to consumers for personal use on the farm of origin or at a farm stand owned by the farmer located within 100 miles.
- Eligible farmers must provide annual confirmation that all dairy-producing animals are free from tuberculosis and brucellosis.
- Eligible farmers must submit an annual veterinary examination report showing animals are in apparent good health and free from communicable diseases.
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- Farm water supplies and recirculated cooling water must be tested and confirmed bacteriologically safe every six months, unless connected to a public water system.
- Raw milk must be cooled to 40°F or less within two hours after milking, with subsequent blend temperatures not exceeding 50°F.
- Raw milk bacteria counts may not exceed 5,000 per milliliter, and coliform counts may not exceed 10 per milliliter when tested every two months.
- Somatic cell counts in raw milk may not exceed 750,000 per milliliter, tested at least once every two months.
- Bulk tank samples must show no presence of pathogenic bacteria, including Salmonellae, Listeria monocytogenes, Campylobacter, and E. Coli 0157:H7, tested every six months.
- Raw milk products must be displayed separately from pasteurized dairy products and prominently labeled with the warning: 'Raw milk: not pasteurized and may contain organisms injurious to your health.'
- The act becomes effective on January 1, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can licensed farmers sell raw milk under this bill?
What testing requirements apply to raw milk under the new license?
How must raw milk be labeled for retail sale?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
5 actions- Apr 1, 2025HouseRe-ref Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 1, 2025HouseWithdrawn From Com
- Apr 1, 2025HouseRef to the Com on Agriculture and Environment, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 1, 2025HousePassed 1st Reading
- Mar 31, 2025HouseIntroducedFiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Show 9 more sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Retail Expansion of Raw Milk Access
The bill shifts state policy from restricting raw milk sales exclusively to permitted processing facilities or animal feed to permitting direct retail sales to consumers under strict Department oversight.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.ncleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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