People on Reddit Have Reinvented Pasteurization in Hilarious Thread About Heating Raw Milk

Fans of raw milk enjoy it for its so-called benefits. Many people incorrectly believe that even those who suffer from lactose intolerance can still drink it, while others think that they can benefit from some of the probiotic bacteria that is found in unpasteurized milk. And while all milk drinkers have different reasons for wanting to consume unpasteurized dairy — there are also those who believe that raw milk can treat or cure asthma and allergies — most health experts advise against it.

But, that doesn't mean that there aren't plenty of people who can't get enough of the stuff, and who will opt for raw milk over the pasteurized stuff in stores.

However, there are those who don't understand the pasteurization process, and aren't exactly clear about the differences between raw and store-bought milk. Take for example, this Reddit user who practically discovered pasteurization when he asked about the merits of heating his raw milk to make it safer... prompting hilarious responses.

A Redditor learned about the process of pasteurization the hard way, when they asked a question on the raw milk subreddit known as r/rawprimal, asking if they should heat their raw milk before drinking it to "kill toxins."

The responses varied from helpful to mocking, with Reddit users jumping into the comments to share their thoughts.

"Um what, what's the point of getting raw milk if your gonna heat it up and basically pasteurize it," one person wrote, saying "good" raw milk wouldn't have any.

Meanwhile, another person said that raw milk from healthy cows doesn't need to be heated. "If the cows [you're] getting [your] milk from are getting sunlight and eating any green stuff other than slop feed, then [your] milk won't carry any disease, because disease is bred through tiring and stripping a cow from its natural lifestyle and comfort. Hope it helps."

Another person said that they boil their raw milk in a pan, prompting someone else to state the obvious and write, "If the milk is boiling, it's just homemade pasteurized milk."

While there were quite a few mean posts and a bit of name-calling, the general consensus was that if you heat raw milk, it's no longer raw, hopefully answering the OP's question. That being said, there's a little more to the pasteurization process than simply "heating" raw milk.

According to the International Dairy Foods Association, milk can only be pasteurized when it meets certain requirements. For example, the Ultra Pasteurization process requires milk to be heated to 280 degrees Fahrenheit for two seconds before immediately being super cooled again.

Meanwhile, Vat Pasteurization requires milk to be heated to 145 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes.

Experts say that this process will help kill the bacteria that cause foodborne illnesses, making it safer to consume.