Goat milk: close to cow milk, with far less vitamin B12

The firmest evidence on goat milk comes from baby formula. A meta-analysis of 4 randomized trials in 545 infants found no difference in growth of weight, length or head circumference between goat milk and cow milk formula, with the weight gap at 0.21 z-score units and a 95% interval from -0.16 to 0.58. The same authors rated all 4 trials as raising some concern for bias, and all 4 were industry funded. These results are for infant formula made from goat milk, not for plain goat milk given to a baby, and no trial here tested plain goat milk as a baby's main drink. As a drink for adults, goat milk sits close to cow milk. In US survey data, 100 g gives 69 calories, 3.6 g protein, 4.1 g fat and 134 mg calcium, slightly more than whole cow milk, and about 8 times less vitamin B12, 0.07 mcg against 0.54 mcg. The idea that it is easier to digest was tested in one trial we found. In a crossover trial in 30 young adults drinking fortified commercial drinks, goat and cow milk gave similar amino acid and digestive responses over 5 hours, with no difference in digestive comfort. Goat milk is not a safe swap in cow milk allergy: a position document on children with that allergy says goat milk must be excluded too, because of cross-reactivity.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, goat milk has 69 calories, 3.6 g protein, 4.1 g fat and 134 mg calcium, a little more than whole cow milk, but only 0.07 mcg vitamin B12 against 0.54 mcg in cow milk. — US survey food codes, FNDDS 2021-2023 (n = 2 food codes) Evidence E source
  Goat vs cow: +8 calories, +0.9 g fat, +11 mg calcium, about 8x less vitamin B12 per 3.5 oz (100 g)
• The UK composition table gives pasteurized goat milk 62 calories, 3.1 g protein, 3.7 g fat, 100 mg calcium and 0.04 mg riboflavin per 3.5 oz (100 g), lower than the US figures for calcium and riboflavin. — UK composition table (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  Calcium 100 mg (UK) vs 134 mg (US); riboflavin 0.04 mg vs 0.138 mg

What a real portion looks like

• One cup of goat milk weighs 8.6 oz (244 g), which at the US survey values gives about 168 calories, 8.7 g protein and 327 mg calcium. — US survey portion weights, FNDDS 2021-2023 (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  1 cup = 244 g; recalculated from 100 g values

What your body absorbs

• In a crossover RCT in 30 young adults, a goat milk drink and a cow milk drink gave similar plasma amino acid and digestive responses, with no difference in digestive comfort. — 30 young adults (15 men, 15 women), single isonitrogenous drinks, 5 h follow-up (n = 30) Evidence B source
  Similar postprandial plasma amino acids and gastric emptying for goat vs cow whole-protein drinks

What cooking and storage change

• A meta-analysis of 38 Iranian studies found Brucella in 27 percent of raw goat milk samples, the highest of any milk tested. — 38 studies, 11,130 dairy samples, Iran 2008-2023 (n = 11130 samples) Evidence C source
  Raw goat milk 27% (95% CI 11 to 42%); all dairy 22%

What it does to your health

• A meta-analysis of 4 RCTs in 545 infants found no difference in growth of weight, length or head circumference between goat milk and cow milk formula. — 4 RCTs, 545 infants in pooled growth analysis, median intervention 175.5 days (n = 545) Evidence A source
  Weight z-score MD 0.21 (95% CI -0.16 to 0.58); length MD 0.02 (-0.29 to 0.33); head MD 0.12 (-0.19 to 0.43)
• In a crossover trial in 12 healthy adults, goat milk yogurt had a glycemic index of 26 against glucose. — 12 healthy adults, 25 g available carbohydrate portions (n = 12) Evidence B source
  GI 26 for goat milk yogurt; 47 with Corinthian raisins

Safety, limits and interactions

• In a double-blind RCT in 200 term infants, goat milk formula gave the same growth as cow milk formula to 12 months, though parents reported blood-stained stools more often with goat milk formula. — 200 formula-fed term infants from 2 weeks to at least 4 months, South Australia (n = 200) Evidence B source
  No difference in weight, length, head z-scores; more parent-reported blood-stained stools (secondary outcome)
• A review of 82 published cases found that allergy to non-cow milks, most often sheep or goat milk, starts later in life and is usually severe. — 82 published cases plus 22 Belgian patients (n = 82 cases) Evidence D source
  Mean onset age 8.6 years; CoFAR grade 3-4 in 66%; sheep and/or goat in 56 cases
• A case report describes a 2 year old fed mainly unfortified goat milk who developed severe folate-deficiency anemia with hemoglobin of 2.4 g/dL. — one 2-year-old boy, Somalia (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Hemoglobin 2.4 g/dL, serum folate below 0.8 ng/mL; recovered with folic acid

What people believe that the data does not support

• A cow milk allergy position document advises that the elimination diet must also exclude goat and sheep milk because of cross-reactivity. — children with IgE-mediated cow milk allergy Evidence E source
  Goat milk not a substitute in cow milk allergy

Who this works differently for

• In a post hoc analysis of a double-blind RCT, infants on goat milk formula slept 8.6 hours in the daytime against 8.1 hours on cow milk formula. — healthy term infants from a 304-infant RCT, 112 days, sleep diaries in 230 (n = 230 with diaries) Evidence B source
  Daytime sleep 8.6 h (SE 0.17) goat vs 8.1 h (0.17) cow, p < 0.05; total sleep trend only

What is still unknown

• The same meta-analysis rated all 4 goat milk formula RCTs as raising some concern for bias, so the evidence rests on few, industry-funded trials. — 4 RCTs of goat vs cow milk infant formula (n = 4 trials) Evidence A source
  Risk of bias: some concern in 4 of 4

The bottom line

The numbers move with the table you read. The UK composition table gives pasteurized goat milk 100 mg calcium and 0.04 mg riboflavin per 3.5 oz (100 g), against 134 mg and 0.138 mg in the US data, and breed, season and feed all change what is in the milk. A 244 g cup at the US values works out to about 168 calories, 8.7 g protein and 327 mg calcium. Goat milk yogurt scored a glycemic index of 26 in a single test in 12 healthy adults, and that yogurt was made with added ACE-inhibitory peptides, so the figure belongs to that product. In a post hoc look at a formula trial, parents of 230 infants on goat milk formula recorded 8.6 hours of daytime sleep against 8.1 hours on cow milk formula, from diaries, as a secondary analysis. Goat milk is no escape from a cow milk allergy. A position document on cow milk allergy in children says the elimination diet must also exclude goat and sheep milk because of cross-reactivity. Allergy to goat or sheep milk alone also exists. A review of 82 published cases, a rare and selected group, found it started at a mean age of 8.6 years and was severe in 66 percent. In a double-blind trial in 200 infants, parents reported blood-stained stools more often on goat milk formula, a secondary outcome whose importance the authors call unclear. One case report describes a 2 year old in Somalia, fed mainly unfortified goat milk and also infected with malaria, who developed folate-deficiency anemia with hemoglobin of 2.4 g/dL. The US table lists 1 mcg folate per 3.5 oz (100 g). Raw goat milk carried Brucella in 27 percent of samples (95% CI 11 to 42) in a meta-analysis of 38 studies from Iran. That is one country's data, and it does not show raw goat milk is safe anywhere else. We did not find a study of what heating does to the nutrients in goat milk.

Sources

1. gtml-r2-01 · dataset
   FNDDS 2705395 Goat milk: Energy 69 kcal · Protein 3.56 g · Total lipid (fat) 4.14 g · Calcium 134 mg · Folate, total 1 ug · Vitamin B-12 0.07 ug per 100 g | FNDDS 2705385 Milk, whole: Energy 61 kcal · Protein 3.27 g · Total lipid (fat) 3.2 g · Calcium 123 mg · Folate, total 0 ug · Vitamin B-12 0.54 ug per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, fdc_id 2705395 (Goat milk) and 2705385 (Milk, whole) · checked 2026-09-30
2. gtml-r2-02 · dataset
   CoFID 12-328 Milk, goats, pasteurised: Energy 62 kcal · Protein 3.1 g · Fat 3.7 g · Satd FA 2.37 g · Lactose 4.4 g · Calcium 100 mg · Riboflavin 0.04 mg · Folate 1 ug · Vitamin B12 0.1 ug
   CoFID 2021 (Public Health England, OGL v3.0), code 12-328 Milk, goats, pasteurised · checked 2026-09-30
3. gtml-r2-03 · dataset
   FNDDS 2705395 Goat milk: 1 cup 244 g · 1 fl oz 30 g · Energy 69 kcal · Protein 3.56 g · Calcium 134 mg per 100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 portions, fdc_id 2705395 Goat milk (1 cup = 244 g) · checked 2026-09-30
4. gtml-r2-07 · randomized crossover trial
   Overall, WC and WG had similar protein and digestive responses with no differences in digestive comfort.
   Nutrients, 2018 · checked 2026-09-30
5. gtml-r2-13 · meta-analysis of prevalence studies
   The highest and lowest overall prevalence of Brucella spp. in milk were found in raw goat milk 27% (95% CI: 11-42%) and raw camel milk 15% (95% CI: -0.42 to 72%), respectively.
   Foodborne Pathog Dis, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
6. gtml-r2-04 · meta-analysis of RCTs
   Based on the pooled results of four RCTs involving 545 infants [20,21,22,23], there were no significant differences between infants fed with GMF or CMF in the mean changes in z-scores for weight (MD 0.21; 95% CI −0.16 to 0.58; I2 = 56%), length (MD 0.02; 95% CI −0.29 to 0.33; I2 = 24%), and head circumference (MD 0.12; 95% CI −0.19 to 0.43; I2 = 2%).
   Jankiewicz M, van der Zee L, Szajewska H. Nutrients 2023;15:2110 · checked 2026-09-30
7. gtml-r2-09 · randomized crossover trial
   GMY provided low GI (26), C and S provided high GI/low GL (75/10 and 70/9, respectively) and GMYC provided low GI (47) values on glucose scale compared with D-glucose.
   Br J Nutr, 2023 · checked 2026-09-30
8. gtml-r2-06 · randomized controlled trial
   Z-scores for weight, length, head circumference and weight for length were not different between the two formula-fed groups. ... The incidence of parentally reported blood-stained stools was higher in the goat milk formula-fed group, although this was a secondary outcome and its importance is unclear.
   Br J Nutr, 2014 · checked 2026-09-30
9. gtml-r2-11 · case series
   These cases typically showed late onset (mean age 8.6 years; range 1-70 years), severe reactions (CoFAR (Consortium for Food Allergy Research) grade 3 or 4 in 66%, and one fatality), and selective sensitization (affecting sheep and/or goat, camel, mare, buffalo, donkey, or combinations thereof in 56, 10, 5, 5, 4, and 2 cases, respectively).
   Nutrients, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
10. gtml-r2-12 · case report
    Laboratory evaluation showed severe anemia with a hemoglobin level of 2.4 g/dL, thrombocytopenia, megaloblastic changes on peripheral smear, profoundly reduced serum folate (<0.8 ng/mL), normal vitamin B12 and ferritin levels, and positive Plasmodium antigen testing.
    Int Med Case Rep J, 2026 · checked 2026-09-30
11. gtml-r2-10 · practice guideline
    The elimination diet must include milk from other mammals (e.g., sheep, goat, etc.) due to the risk of cross-reactivity with the proteins of cow's milk.
    Allergol Immunopathol (Madr), 2015 · checked 2026-09-30
12. gtml-r2-08 · randomized controlled trial, post hoc
    Longitudinally, daytime sleep duration was significantly longer for GMF (mean 8.6 h, standard error [SE] 0.17) and HM (8.8, 0.18) fed infants as compared to CMF (8.1, 0.17; p < 0.05).
    J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
13. gtml-r2-05 · meta-analysis of RCTs
    Overall, the risk of bias was assessed as raising some concern in the four included RCTs.
    Jankiewicz M, van der Zee L, Szajewska H. Nutrients 2023;15:2110 · checked 2026-09-30