Bacteria in raw milk made a Florida woman lose her unborn child, she claims in a new lawsuit. The woman’s toddler also became sick, the complaint said.
“I would never have allowed my son to drink it, and my second son, Ezekiel, would still be alive today if I would have known,” Rachel Maddox told WOFL-TV of Orlando. “Other people need to know that this product is dangerous.”
While the label on the raw milk from Keely Farms Dairy in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, reads, “Feed for Calves — Not For Human Consumption,” Maddox’s lawsuit claims it was not made clear or urgent.
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While federal regulators and virologists say drinking raw milk is dangerous, some officials, such as the Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., are fans of raw milk. Last October, he tweeted that the FDA’s “war on public health is about to end,” including its “aggressive suppression” of raw milk and several other products. While RFK Jr. is a self-professed drinker of raw milk, he has yet to make any sweeping changes to federal law.
Under Florida law, raw milk can be served only to animals only.
21 people sick, health department says
The Florida Department of Health issued a press release on Aug. 4 that said 21 people, including six children under age 10, have become sick this year with E. coli and campylobacter infections after drinking raw milk linked to Keely Farms. Seven of the 21 were hospitalized, the department said, and at least two experienced severe complications.
“Sanitation practices in this farm are of concern due to the number of cases,” the department said.
The department said it “will continue working with Keely Farms Dairy to ensure that effective sanitation practices are implemented consistently across every batch.”
Maddox says she bought the raw milk at a grocery store in Longwood, Florida, for her husband, a European native who has appreciated milk since his youth.
“Unaware of any potential dangers, she purchased it alongside the many other products offered at the store,” the lawsuit said. “She inquired about the raw milk’s label, which said something to the effect of ‘for consumption by animals,’ and was told that was a technical requirement to sell ‘farm milk.’ She did not question further.”
Maddox and her son drank the raw milk, according to the lawsuit.
“During the transition from breastfeeding to a bottle, Rachel and her husband began to provide milk to their toddler, L.U.,” the complaint stated. “After consuming the raw milk, on June 8, 2025, L.U. began to experience diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, chills and resultant dehydration.”
Maddox also claims she miscarried in the 20th week of pregnancy because she drank the farm’s raw milk.
Her lawyer, Ron Simon, told local media in Orlando that the milk had not gone through a heat process that kills bacteria. The farm also did not provide adequate warning, the lawsuit states.
The farm “failed to give adequate warnings and instructions” to avoid dangers from the raw milk, the complaint, filed in the Seminole County Circuit Court, said. This failure “rendered the product unreasonably dangerous.”
Dairy’s response
In response to an inquiry by Straight Arrow News, Keely Farms representative Keely Exum shared a photo of the milk label, which describes the product as not for human consumption.
Exum also referred SAN to the farm’s Facebook page, which said on Aug. 15, “The Florida Department of Agriculture inspects AND approves all raw milk labels… They mandate what the labels say on them.” On Aug. 4, the page reported that “The ag inspector visited last month. We passed, as always.”
On its website, the farm cites state and federal laws forbidding the sale of unpasteurized milk for human consumption.
Keely Farms’ claims are supported by the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, a nonprofit that promotes direct commerce between farms and consumers.
“The Florida Department of Health’s actions are unusual, confusing and frankly troubling,” said Alexia Kulwiec, the organization’s executive director, in a statement.
“If the Department had evidence that Keely Farms Dairy sold contaminated raw milk for livestock feed, it would be taking serious action against the farm,” she added. “Instead, the Department is attacking this farm with damaging publicity.”
