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My impression was that before modern pasteurization and refrigeration, most cultures that drank milk considered it a good idea to heat milk before drinking it and so usually did heat milk before drinking it.

But the question Have Chinese (and surrounding) cultures traditionally heated their milk? suggests that my above impression is mistaken and that traditionally, Europeans drank milk without heating it.

user103496
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  • Unlike water milk poses less risk of contamination with dangerous diseases, like cholera. So it wouldn't be a bas choice in place of wine/beer or other alcoholic beverages. Also, heating milk is done more for its preservation than for sanitary reasons. – Roger V. Oct 12 '23 at 06:13
  • @RogerVadim: That is not the impression I get from these pages: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/rawmilk/raw-milk-questions-and-answers.html

    https://www.fda.gov/food/buy-store-serve-safe-food/raw-milk-misconceptions-and-danger-raw-milk-consumption

    https://www.nationalgeographic.com/premium/article/raw-milk-safety-health-risks

    https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/rawmilk/rawmilk-outbreaks.html

     – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 06:32
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    These are modern pages, which hardly reflect the views and attitudes before pasteurization was invented (1860s)... which incidentally not far from the emergence of the germ theory. – Roger V. Oct 12 '23 at 06:44
  • @RogerVadim: You claim that "milk poses less risk of contamination with dangerous diseases" (than water). What is the basis of this claim? – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 06:47
  • @RogerVadim: You also seem to be alluding to the common myth that people drank alcoholic beverages instead of water because water was not clean: https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/11307 – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 06:52
  • The basis for my claim is that milk for drinking came directly from an animal - the only infections that might be there are those that are present in the animal. There are diseases that a harmless to cows, but not humans, but generally the risk is low - compared to drinking water that flows everywhere, including dumps, excrements, corpses, etc. Of course, water can also be boiled - those who grew up in the USSR are still in the habit of doing it, much to the amusement of Europeans (tap water in Europe is generally drinkable, as it undergoes appropriate treatment.) – Roger V. Oct 12 '23 at 07:50
  • @RogerVadim: Milk can get contaminated in these ways: Germs from an animal’s poop can get in milk Germs from an animal’s skin can get in milk Germs in the environment (including the barn and milking equipment) can get in milk The dairy animal’s udder can be infected (mastitis) The dairy animal can have a disease (for example, bovine tuberculosis) Insects, rodents, and other small animals can get in milk Conditions in the milk processing plant can be unsanitary Cross-contamination from dairy workers can happen—for example, through contact with dirty clothing or boots – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 07:51
  • Source: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/rawmilk/raw-milk-questions-and-answers.html – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 07:52
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    Well, again you cite modern sources - milk does contain some harmful bacteria... but how does it compare with the water from the Hudson river or Seine? – Roger V. Oct 12 '23 at 07:58
  • You keep claiming I am citing "modern sources". Are you suggesting that the above risks from raw milk were not present in pre-modern life? how does it compare with the water from the Hudson river or Seine? That is not the relevant comparison. The relevant comparison is to water that pre-modern villagers had access to (wells, rivers, lakes, etc.) – user103496 Oct 12 '23 at 08:02
  • I am not "claiming" - you can check up when the pages that you cite were created, and when the pasteurization was invented (and your question is about pre-pasteurization practices -isn't it?) What matters is relative risk - a European in XIX-th century might have had a choice between drinking raw water or raw milk, whereas today one chooses between drinking raw milk or, e.g., bottled water. Although the risks of drinking milk might be pretty much the same, the choice is different. – Roger V. Oct 12 '23 at 08:12

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Given the prevalence of bovine tuberculosis and the statistical link between bottle feeding and infant mortality in the 19th/early 20th century, I believe the answer is "not always".

Btw. non-pasteurized is common in supermarkets where I live (in Europe). Obviously it is only safe because of refrigeration and because hygiene is enforced all the way between the udder and the bottle.

But this implies that if the cow is healthy, fresh milk is also reasonably safe to drink. A 19th-century farmer would probably know to some degree of certainty whether his cows are healthy or not. But consumers, e.g. in cities and towns - not so much.

Jan
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    what European country do you live in? – TylerDurden Oct 12 '23 at 14:57
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    @Seekinganswers Germany, but according to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raw_milk there is at least one other European country where the situation is similar. – Jan Oct 12 '23 at 21:29
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    @Jan I doubt if that's raw milk. Germany and The Netherlands process the milk the same way. Milk is collected, transported to a factory, processed, bottled, shipped to the customer. It's the processing part I don't know. :-) But rest assured, it isn't raw milk. – Jos Oct 13 '23 at 07:03
  • @Jos: according to https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vorzugsmilch the only "processing" is packaging and refrigeration: "Vorzugsmilch ist eine in Deutschland etablierte Verkehrsbezeichnung für unbehandelte Rohmilch. (...) Vorzugsmilch wird nicht homogenisiert, ultrahocherhitzt oder pasteurisiert und unterscheidet sich geschmacklich von behandelter Milch." – Jan Oct 13 '23 at 08:02
  • I highly doubt that you get unprocessed milk in any German store as it is not allowed to sell it. According to my farmer friends they can only sell raw milk on their ground and they are required to set up signs that warn people not to drink the milk raw but to heat it before consumption. – jmk Oct 13 '23 at 14:15