Cheesemaking Science

Raw vs. Pasteurized Milk for Cheesemaking

Short answer

Raw milk generally coagulates readily and brings its own microflora and flavour complexity. Pasteurized milk is more consistent and is what most commercial operations use, but its heat treatment can affect curd formation — most severely with ultra-pasteurized milk.

By Bixa Products, Editorial teamUpdated May 4, 20266 min read

	Raw milk	Standard pasteurized
Coagulation	Generally readily	Generally well; UP/UHT is problematic
Consistency	Varies with season and herd	More uniform
Flavour development	Native microflora contributes	Driven by selected cultures
Regulation	Restricted in many markets, especially for fresh cheese	Widely permitted

About the author

Bixa Products — Editorial team

Educational content written by the Bixa Products team, a family-owned cheesemaking ingredient company specializing in rennet and chymosin. Technical guidance is written conservatively: where a value depends on your milk, process or product, we say so instead of guessing for you.

Family-owned cheesemaking ingredient company
30+ years in the Latin American cheesemaking market
Specialists in rennet, chymosin and milk coagulation

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