Indiana Raw Milk Laws & Regulations

Indiana explicitly authorizes herdshare agreements under Indiana Code §15-18-1.5 (enacted 2009). Under the framework, a consumer enters a written contract with a farm, purchasing a fractional ownership interest in one or more dairy animals, paying a boarding fee for the animal's care, and receiving raw milk and other raw dairy products as a benefit of ownership. The Indiana State Board of Animal Health administers dairy licensing for commercial operations, and herdshare arrangements operating under IC §15-18-1.5 are structured to fall outside the commercial raw milk sales prohibition. Written contracts are required, and farms must comply with basic animal health requirements.

Indiana has a well-established herdshare market serving a significant consumer base, particularly in the Indianapolis metropolitan area, Fort Wayne corridor, and the state's substantial Amish communities in the northern tier (Elkhart, LaGrange, and Kosciusko counties). Indiana's herdshare law has been in effect for more than fifteen years and is considered among the more explicit and stable herdshare authorizations in the Midwest. The state does not permit retail store sales or farmers market sales of raw milk outside the herdshare framework.