The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said a brand of raw cheddar sold in multiple states is linked to an E. coli outbreak, although the company has declined to recall the product.
Two RAW FARM-branded products are linked to the outbreak, including all sizes of the company’s Raw Cheddar and all sizes of the original shredded Raw Cheddar, the FDA said in a news release on Sunday.
The agency said it has recommended RAW FARM, a California-based company, to “voluntarily remove their raw cheese products from the market, and the firm has declined.”
The Epoch Times contacted the company, which had not publicly responded to the FDA’s notice, for comment on Monday.
Food or drug recalls can be mandated by the FDA, according to the agency’s website. However, it says recalls are generally done voluntarily by companies rather than by the FDA.
“This is an ongoing outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli … linked to RAW FARM-brand cheddar cheese based on epidemiological data,” the FDA said in its alert. It said the bacteria can cause serious kidney problems that may require hospitalization or could lead to death.
So far, seven confirmed E. coli infections have been reported in California, Florida, and Texas, with known illness onset dates ranging from Sept. 1, 2025, to Feb. 13, 2026. Most of the cases, or five, were reported in California.
Four of the seven cases are aged 3 or younger, and two patients have been hospitalized, according to the FDA. No deaths have been reported in connection with the cases.
Three ill people were interviewed by local or state health authorities about possible food exposures in connection to the outbreak and all of them said they ate RAW FARM cheddar, the release said.
Meanwhile, the federal health agency added that “epidemiologic evidence indicates that RAW FARM-brand raw cheddar cheese products made by RAW FARM, LLC are the likely source of this outbreak.”
An investigation into the matter is ongoing, the FDA said, as officials also work to determine whether any other cases of E. coli could be linked to the products.
Restaurants, consumers, retailers, and customers who bought any RAW FARM-brand Raw Cheddar cheese are advised to clean and sanitize surfaces or containers that it may have touched. People who consumed the products and may have developed any E. coli-like symptoms are advised to contact a health care provider, the FDA added.
Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health experts say that symptoms of E. coli, or Escherichia coli, can develop three to five days later. These include severe stomach cramps, bloody diarrhea, vomiting, a low-grade fever, and a loss of appetite.
More severe symptoms include a fever of 102 degrees F or higher, diarrhea for more than three days that is not improving, bloody diarrhea, vomiting so much that liquids cannot be kept down, and signs of dehydration such as not urinating often, a dry mouth and throat, and feeling dizzy when standing, officials say.
Shiga toxin-producing E. coli infections can cause hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS, that can lead to kidney failure, permanent health problems, and even death, the CDC says on its website.
