Can You Eat Goat Cheese While Pregnant?
Hard goat cheese and pasteurised soft goat cheese are fine; avoid soft, mould-ripened (white-rind) goat cheese unless cooked.
The full answer
Goat cheese comes in different forms, and the form is what decides it. Hard goat cheeses are safe. Soft goat cheeses are fine too, as long as they're pasteurised and not mould-ripened. The ones to avoid are soft, mould-ripened goat cheeses with a white rind (like some chèvre) — their moisture and lower acidity can let listeria grow, and listeria is dangerous in pregnancy. Any goat cheese made from unpasteurised (raw) milk is also best avoided. The simple fix is heat: cooking goat cheese until it's steaming hot — on a tart, pizza, or in a bake — kills listeria, so a hot goat's-cheese dish is fine even when the cheese is a soft, ripened type.
How to eat goat cheese safely
- Fine: hard goat cheese, and pasteurised soft goat cheese without a white rind
- Cook soft/mould-ripened goat cheese until steaming before eating
- Avoid goat cheese made from unpasteurised (raw) milk
When to avoid: Avoid uncooked soft mould-ripened (white-rind) goat cheese and any made from unpasteurised milk.
Goat Cheese by trimester
| Stage | What changes |
|---|---|
| First trimester | It depends on the type. Soft, mould-ripened goat cheese with a white rind falls under the soft-cheese caution; hard goat cheese and pasteurised soft goat cheese without a rind are generally considered fine. |
| Second trimester | Unchanged. Reading the label for pasteurisation and noticing whether there's a rind covers most of it. |
| Third trimester | Same guidance. Cooked thoroughly — on a hot tart or baked — it's treated differently from the cold version. |
Common questions about goat cheese in pregnancy
Is goat cheese safe during pregnancy?
The hard and pasteurised soft varieties are generally considered fine. The ones to be careful with are unpasteurised, and soft mould-ripened goat cheeses with a white rind, which sit alongside brie in the guidance.
What about goat cheese on a salad or pizza?
If it's been cooked until steaming hot — baked onto a pizza or tart — that addresses the concern. Cold crumbled onto a salad is where the type matters.
Is goat cheese easier to digest?
Some people find it so, and it's a common reason for choosing it. That's a comfort question rather than a safety one, and doesn't change the pasteurisation advice.
Pregnancy food-safety basics
Most “can I have this?” questions in pregnancy come down to four things. Listeria — a bacterium that survives the fridge — is why chilled ready-to-eat meats, pâté, and mould-ripened soft cheeses are heated or avoided. Mercury is why certain fish are limited. Caffeine is capped at about 200 mg a day. And alcohol is best avoided entirely, as no safe amount is known. Cooking food until it’s steaming hot kills listeria and most other bugs, which is why “heat until steaming” solves so many of these questions.
For the full picture, see our pregnancy safety guide, and track your pregnancy with the How Far Along Am I? calculator and the week-by-week guide.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you eat goat cheese while pregnant?
- Hard goat cheese and pasteurised soft goat cheese are fine; avoid soft, mould-ripened (white-rind) goat cheese unless cooked. Goat cheese comes in different forms, and the form is what decides it. Hard goat cheeses are safe. Soft goat cheeses are fine too, as long as they're pasteurised and not mould-ripened. The ones to avoid are soft, mould-ripened goat cheeses with a white rind (like some chèvre) — their moisture and lower acidity can let listeria grow, and listeria is dangerous in pregnancy. Any goat cheese made from unpasteurised (raw) milk is also best avoided. The simple fix is heat: cooking goat cheese until it's steaming hot — on a tart, pizza, or in a bake — kills listeria, so a hot goat's-cheese dish is fine even when the cheese is a soft, ripened type.
- Why is goat cheese something to be careful with in pregnancy?
- Goat cheese comes in different forms, and the form is what decides it. Hard goat cheeses are safe. Soft goat cheeses are fine too, as long as they're pasteurised and not mould-ripened. The ones to avoid are soft, mould-ripened goat cheeses with a white rind (like some chèvre) — their moisture and lower acidity can let listeria grow, and listeria is dangerous in pregnancy. Any goat cheese made from unpasteurised (raw) milk is also best avoided. The simple fix is heat: cooking goat cheese until it's steaming hot — on a tart, pizza, or in a bake — kills listeria, so a hot goat's-cheese dish is fine even when the cheese is a soft, ripened type.
- When should I avoid goat cheese during pregnancy?
- Avoid uncooked soft mould-ripened (white-rind) goat cheese and any made from unpasteurised milk.