Is goat cheese high in histamine?
Ripened goat cheese is high in histamine, like other aged cheeses (averages of 18.05 to 59.37 mg/kg in lab tests), but fresh, rindless goat cheese is unripened, and 20 unripened cheeses had none detectable.
- Histamine
- Varies by sample
- Other amines
- Not measured
- Liberator
- Not on the lists we use
- DAO blocker
- No evidence
What each source says
| Source | Verdict | What it says, in our words |
|---|---|---|
| Lab measurements, Spain 1 | Measured | Raw-milk cheese averaged 59.37 mg/kg and pasteurised-milk cheese 18.05 mg/kg (20 samples each); 20 unripened cheeses had none. Goat cheese was not reported separately. |
| 10 published low-histamine diets 2 | All 10 exclude cured, semi-cured and grated cheese. Goat cheese is not named separately, and fresh cheese has no bar on the chart. | |
| Clinical review, 2024 3 | Lists aged cheese among the foods a low-histamine diet avoids. | |
| SIGHI food list 4 | See source | See SIGHI's own list for its rating. |
Measured histamine
| Food tested | Samples | Histamine | Other amines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheese made from raw milk, Spanish market (group; median 18.38 mg/kg) 1 (Table 1) | 20 | mean 59.37 mg/kg, range nd–389.86 mg/kg | — |
| Cheese made from pasteurised milk, Spanish market (group; median 4.59 mg/kg) 1 (Table 1) | 20 | mean 18.05 mg/kg, range nd–162.03 mg/kg | — |
| Unripened cheese, Spanish market (group), for fresh goat cheese 1 (Table 1) | 20 | not detected | not reported |
mg/kg = milligrams of histamine per kilogram of food. "Not detected" means below the laboratory's detection limit.
How freshness and processing change it
The type matters more than the date. A soft, rindless goat cheese sold in a tub or a plain log is fresh; a white or wrinkled rind, a firm texture or an age statement means it has been ripened. Soft-ripened goat logs keep ripening in the fridge, and a 2012 review of dairy foods reports that amines can still build up in cheese under refrigeration.
Unripened cheese group: none detected in 20 samples. (measured)
Pasteurised-milk cheese group: mean 18.05 mg/kg, up to 162.03 mg/kg. (measured)
Raw-milk cheese group: mean 59.37 mg/kg, up to 389.86 mg/kg. (measured)
Why we rate goat cheese 3
Goat cheese covers two very different foods, and for histamine the difference is ripening, not the goat. Fresh goat cheese, the soft white log or tub with no rind, is an unripened cheese. Goat cheeses with a white or wrinkled rind, aged logs and firm goat cheeses have been ripened, and many traditional ones are made from raw milk. None was tested on its own in the Spanish surveys we use, so the rating comes from the group each type belongs to.
A University of Barcelona team measured three groups of cheese sold in Spain, reported in a 2020 review. Twenty unripened cheeses had no detectable histamine. Twenty cheeses made from pasteurised milk averaged 18.05 mg/kg, with a median of 4.59 mg/kg and a highest sample of 162.03 mg/kg. Twenty made from raw milk averaged 59.37 mg/kg, with a median of 18.38 mg/kg and a highest sample of 389.86 mg/kg. The review does not say which animals the milk came from, so there is no evidence here that goat's milk is better or worse than cow's.
A 2012 review of amines in dairy foods explains the split. Ripening breaks protein into free amino acids, and in general the longer a cheese ripens, the more amines it holds. Raw milk carries more bacteria, including kinds that make histamine; pasteurisation cuts their numbers, which is why cheese made from pasteurised milk is usually lower, but some survive or get in later.
All ten published diets in the team's 2021 review exclude cured, semi-cured and grated cheese, and a 2024 clinical review lists aged cheese among the foods to avoid. Neither names goat cheese.
We rate goat cheese 3, "high", for the ripened kinds: both ripened groups include samples above 100 mg/kg, and under our rule a fermented food with samples that high is rated 3. Fresh, rindless goat cheese is the exception, and we rate it 0, the same as other fresh cheeses. The label and the look usually tell you which you have. If you are not sure, or the shop only has rinded logs, ricotta or cream cheese has a similar soft texture on toast, in a tart or crumbled over a salad.
Questions about goat cheese and histamine
Is goat cheese low histamine?
Fresh, rindless goat cheese is an unripened cheese, and unripened cheese had no detectable histamine in 20 samples, so we rate it 0. Goat cheese with a rind or that has been aged belongs with the ripened cheeses, which we rate 3.
Is goat's milk cheese better than cow's milk cheese for histamine?
The Spanish surveys we use cannot answer this: they group cheese by ripening and by raw or pasteurised milk, not by animal. What matters is ripening: fresh goat and cow's milk cheeses both belong in the unripened group, and aged ones of either kind in the ripened groups.
Evidence behind this page
- Twenty cheeses made from raw milk averaged 59.37 mg/kg of histamine and twenty made from pasteurised milk 18.05 mg/kg; twenty unripened cheeses had none detectable. 1
- All ten published low-histamine diets in the 2021 review exclude cured, semi-cured and grated cheese. 2
- In general, the longer a cheese ripens, the more biogenic amines it contains. 5
- Raw milk carries bacteria that can make amines; pasteurisation reduces them, so cheese made from pasteurised milk usually has lower amine levels, though not always. 5
- A 2024 clinical review lists aged cheese among foods that low-histamine diets avoid. 3
Sources
- Comas-Basté O, Sánchez-Pérez S, Veciana-Nogués MT, Latorre-Moratalla M, Vidal-Carou MDC. Histamine Intolerance: The Current State of the Art. Biomolecules 10(8):1181, 2020. doi:10.3390/biom10081181 (Comas-Basté O et al. 2020)
- Sánchez-Pérez S, Comas-Basté O, Veciana-Nogués MT, Latorre-Moratalla ML, Vidal-Carou MC. Low-Histamine Diets: Is the Exclusion of Foods Justified by Their Histamine Content? Nutrients 13(5):1395, 2021. doi:10.3390/nu13051395 (Sánchez-Pérez S et al. 2021)
- Jochum C. Histamine Intolerance: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Beyond. Nutrients 16(8):1219, 2024. doi:10.3390/nu16081219 (Jochum C 2024)
- Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI). Food compatibility list for histamine intolerance. histaminintoleranz.ch (accessed November 2026), 2026. Link (Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI) 2026)
- Linares DM, del Río B, Ladero V, Martínez N, Fernández M, Martín MC, Álvarez MA. Factors Influencing Biogenic Amines Accumulation in Dairy Products. Frontiers in Microbiology 3:180, 2012. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2012.00180 (Linares DM et al. 2012)