Oregon Raw Milk Laws & Regulations

Oregon offers two distinct routes to raw milk, and knowing which one applies is the key to finding it. Raw goat and sheep milk can be sold through licensed distributors on relatively broad terms, while raw cow milk is available direct from small farms under a dedicated on-farm exemption. Both are legal and both are actively used across the state.

Goat and sheep milk: the widest access

ORS 621.117 permits a distributor, producer-distributor or dairy products plant licensee to sell fluid milk and dairy products for human consumption where the milk is goat or sheep milk from a disease-free herd, with herd brucellosis status the governing requirement. This is the most accessible raw dairy in Oregon: because licensed operators can distribute it, goat and sheep milk reaches consumers through channels that cow milk does not, and licensed producers can be found and contacted openly.

Cow milk: buy direct from the farm

ORS 621.012 provides a small-scale on-farm exemption that lifts most licensing and pasteurization requirements, allowing a producer to sell raw cow milk straight to the consumer. The exemption covers a producer keeping no more than three dairy cows that have calved at least once, nine sheep that have lactated at least once, or nine goats that have lactated at least once, and for sales the limit is no more than two producing dairy cows, nine producing sheep or nine producing goats on the premises.

Two conditions define how it works. The milk is sold directly to the consumer at the farm where it was produced, so a visit is part of the arrangement, and the producer does not advertise it, which is why these farms are found through local networks rather than listings. Retail sale of raw cow milk sits outside this route under ORS 621.116, so the farm gate is the pathway.

Licensing

Producers working outside the ORS 621.012 exemption hold a dairy licence from the Oregon Department of Agriculture, which brings herd health, bacterial and somatic cell standards, sanitation and labelling requirements. Licensed raw milk farms are also registered as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations under ODA policy, a classification that carries additional permitting.

Where to buy

Goat and sheep milk is the easiest starting point, available through licensed producers and distributors. For cow milk, small exempt farms sell at the gate and are found through community networks, farmers market contacts and word of mouth, which remains an effective route in a state with a strong local food culture. Availability is best around the Portland metro area, Eugene and throughout the Willamette Valley, with producers scattered across the Columbia Gorge, southern Oregon and the coast range. Advocates continue to pursue off-farm delivery and eventual retail access for cow milk, with bills heard in the 2023 session. For the federal framework, see the United States raw milk laws overview.