Food Safety Focus (231st Issue, Oct 2025) – Article 3

Raw Milk Cheese and Shiga Toxin-producing E. coli (STEC)

In September 2025, the Centre for Food Safety urged the public not to consume a batch of prepackaged raw milk cheese imported from France due to possible contamination with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) and instructed traders to stop selling and recall the products. 

E. coli are part of the common flora found in the intestines of animals and humans. Most of them are non-pathogenic, but certain strains can lead to gastrointestinal illness; STEC is of particular concern. STEC can cause bloody diarrhoea and life-threatening haemolytic-uraemic syndrome (HUS), which damages kidney blood vessels and can lead to kidney failure. 

Some cheese producers continue to make raw (unpasteurised) milk cheese because they believe it preserves traditional flavours that pasteurisation would alter. Consumers must be aware that cheese made from raw milk poses inherent risks of contamination with harmful bacteria (e.g. STEC, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella). Susceptible populations, including pregnant women, infants and young children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals, should avoid raw milk cheese and soft cheeses of unknown pasteurisation status, or ensure they are thoroughly cooked before consumption.