Raw milk laws in New Jersey are among the strictest in the country: two statutes, N.J.S.A. 24:10-57.17 and 24:10-57.18, prohibit selling, distributing, manufacturing, shipping, or importing unpasteurized milk or cream for human consumption anywhere in the state.1New Jersey Department of Health. Starting Up a Dairy in New Jersey2Justia. New Jersey Revised Statutes Section 24-10-57.18 The ban reaches every commercial channel — retail stores, farmers’ markets, and direct farm-to-consumer sales — and the state’s retail food code reinforces it by requiring all milk sold in food establishments to be pasteurized.3New Jersey Department of Health. N.J.A.C. 8:24 – Sanitation in Retail Food Establishments, Food and Beverage Vending Machines and Cottage Food Operations A few narrow paths exist around that rule, and a bill now pending in Trenton could rewrite the framework entirely.
The Aged Cheese Exception
The one carve-out written into the statute is for cheese. N.J.S.A. 24:10-57.18 exempts cheese aged at least 60 days at a temperature no lower than 35 degrees Fahrenheit.2Justia. New Jersey Revised Statutes Section 24-10-57.18 That tracks a longstanding federal rule under 21 CFR Part 133 built on the same aging threshold. In practice, it means aged raw-milk cheeses — certain cheddars, Gruyère, Parmigiano-Reggiano — are legal to buy at New Jersey stores even though liquid raw milk is not.
Drinking Milk from Your Own Cow or Goat
The statutes target selling, offering for sale, and distributing raw milk to consumers. If you own a cow or goat on your own property and drink the milk yourself, that falls outside the conduct the law prohibits. The ban is aimed at commercial transactions, not personal use from your own animal. Share or hand off that milk to anyone else, though, and you cross into the territory the statute covers.
Are Herd Shares Legal in New Jersey?
No. Herd share arrangements — where you buy a partial ownership interest in a dairy animal, pay the farmer a boarding fee, and collect your portion of the milk as an owner rather than a buyer — work in several other states but not here. New Jersey has no statute authorizing them, and the Department of Health treats these contracts as disguised sales.1New Jersey Department of Health. Starting Up a Dairy in New Jersey Because the statutes broadly prohibit distributing unpasteurized milk to consumers, regulators view paying a farmer to board and milk an animal in exchange for raw milk as a sale, however the paperwork is structured. Farmers who run herd share programs face the same enforcement risk as those selling raw milk outright.
Bringing Raw Milk In from Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, next door, runs a permitted raw milk system. Farmers there can obtain annual permits from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and sell raw milk on-farm and sometimes off-site. That proximity makes crossing the border a real option for New Jersey residents.
Federal law seems to stand in the way. Under 21 CFR 1240.61, no person may deliver into interstate commerce any milk intended for human consumption unless it has been pasteurized.4eCFR. 21 CFR 1240.61 – Mandatory Pasteurization for All Milk and Milk Products in Final Package Form Intended for Direct Human Consumption On its face, that would cover carrying a jug of raw milk from a Pennsylvania farm back home.
The FDA, however, has stated publicly that it “has never taken, nor does it intend to take, enforcement action against an individual who purchased and transported raw milk across state lines solely for his or her own personal consumption.”5U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Food Safety and Raw Milk The regulation is aimed at commercial distribution, not someone buying a gallon for their own kitchen. New Jersey authorities could, in principle, take a different view, but federal enforcement risk for personal-use transport is essentially zero based on the FDA’s own statement.
Raw Milk Sold as Pet Food
Raw milk labeled and sold for animal consumption sits in a separate legal category. New Jersey permits sales of raw pet milk by producers registered with the state Department of Agriculture, provided the product is clearly labeled as not intended for human consumption and complies with commercial feed laws, including N.J.S.A. 4:4-20.5 and its related regulations. AAFCO requires a specific warning on the label: “WARNING: NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION—THIS PRODUCT HAS NOT BEEN PASTEURIZED AND MAY CONTAIN HARMFUL BACTERIA.”6AAFCO. Reading Labels This is not a legal workaround for human use. Regulators watch the pet milk market precisely because of the risk that it becomes a backdoor, and mislabeling or diverting pet-grade milk to human consumption can trigger seizures and enforcement action.
Penalties for Selling Raw Milk
If you’re a producer considering selling, the consequences come from several directions. The Department of Health can issue cease-and-desist orders to halt distribution immediately and has authority to confiscate and destroy raw milk found during inspections.1New Jersey Department of Health. Starting Up a Dairy in New Jersey Repeated violations can lead to court-ordered injunctions or revocation of agricultural licenses. Civil liability exposure is substantial too: courts generally apply strict liability to food producers in foodborne illness cases, and many insurers either refuse to cover raw milk operations or charge premiums that put coverage out of reach for small dairies.
The Bill That Could Change This
Assembly Bill A1086 would rewrite New Jersey’s approach. The bill amends N.J.S.A. 24:10-57.17 to let permitted producers sell raw milk directly to consumers, but only at the farm where the milk is produced.7New Jersey Legislature. Bill A1086 It directs the Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Health, to establish a raw milk permit program.
A1086 would also explicitly legalize herd share agreements, providing that no raw milk permit is required when a consumer and a farmer enter into a shared ownership contract for a cow.7New Jersey Legislature. Bill A1086 As of its most recent status, the bill had been introduced and was pending technical review by legislative counsel. Similar bills have been introduced in New Jersey before without advancing, so passage is far from certain. If this matters to you, follow the bill’s progress through the legislature directly.