The owner of Raw Farms in Fresno says Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants him to apply for a role in the Food & Drug Administration to create standards for getting raw milk safely on the shelves.

Kennedy and his vice presidential running mate in the November election, Nicole Shanahan, are long-time customers of Raw Milk, dairy owner Mark McAfee said.

Kennedy dropped his presidential bid despite being on the ballot in many states and endorsed Donald Trump. After winning the election, Trump nominated RFK Jr. as secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the FDA.

While the FDA warns against consuming raw milk, Kennedy touts its benefits and is making the drink part of his “Make America Healthy Again” initiative.

“One of the things that RFK wants to do is have responsibly produced, high standards, tested raw milk, like we produce here at Raw Farm, be available for more people across the nation as a choice,” McAfee said. “That’s because he’s found tremendous health benefits himself.”

McAfee Wants Standards for Raw Milk Created

The FDA has long-time safety standards for milk under the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance. McAfee says he wants to help create a raw milk ordinance.

“Raw milk intended for humans would come under something I would help develop, which would be the raw milk ordinance: one dairy, one farmer, high standards, training for the farmer, and individual testing on those cows on that dairy and on farm labs for that dairy,” McAfee said.

Pivoting from a dairy sending milk to pasteurization would take a major investment, said McAfee, who bought major equipment to ensure the safety of the product, including $120,000 for Thermo Fisher technology to detect for salmonella, listeria, and E. coli.

Shifting from a pasteurization model to being raw milk marketer requires a mindset shift, he said.

“It’s requires branding and labeling and testing and liability insurance that would not be required if you’re selling milk to be processed,” McAfee said.

Is FDA Warning Against Raw Milk Consumption Political?

Since 2006, Raw Farms has had 13 recalls, including three bird-flu related events in November, according to the Los Angeles Times. The FDA says from 1998 to 2018, there were 2,645 illnesses and 228 hospitalizations attributed to consumption of raw milk — many involving children and teenagers.

Related Story: Raw Milk Recall in Fresno Expands After Tests Detect More Bird Flu Virus

Raw milk cannot be sold across state lines.

“These germs can seriously injure the health of anyone who drinks raw milk or eats products made from raw milk,” the FDA reports. “However, the germs in raw milk can be especially dangerous to people with weakened immune systems.”

However, McAfee touts raw milk’s benefits and calls many of the measures against raw milk “political.” He says raw milk helps boost natural immunities.

The detection of bird flu at his dairy in November caused him to stop selling raw milk. There are no confirmed cases of bird flu in humans from raw milk, but pet owners are warned against feeding products to animals.

Hundreds of dairies have had positive bird flu tests in the Central Valley. He said his company has located a dairy north of Sacramento, where he has workers cleaning and scrubbing so he can send healthy cows there to begin producing milk.

“It was our time. Mother Nature has her ways and our cows are well into getting herd immunity. We expect to be off this quarantine 60 days at the max,” McAfee said.