Continuous improvement in quality with raw milk payment analysis

Milk output and demand has risen sharply over recent decades. In response, dairy farms are becoming fewer, but bigger. Operational costs and productivity are in focus, but so too is the need to meet consumer interest in animal welfare, use of antibiotics and organic farming methods. Above all, sustainability is top-of-mind for the industry and consumers alike.

Living up to high demands for productivity on the one hand and quality standards and good farm practice on the other can be a challenge for any dairy farmer. Inconsistencies in compositional quality for parameters such as fat and protein (and casein) can compromise dairy production. Poor hygiene can affect shelf life. Accidental or deliberate adulteration can threaten food safety.

Streamlined and automated milk payment analysis are more relevant than ever in ensuring that the industry can uphold quality standards while helping farmers to continuously improve the productivity and sustainability of the raw milk supply.

Raising the hygiene level with bacteria counting

Milk with a high bacterial load is an undesirable raw material for dairy production. Although pasteurisation kills the majority of bacteria, their metabolites may cause off-flavours, and enzymes continue their activities resulting in product defects and reduction of shelf life. Most milk payment schemes therefore grade milk according to the level of bacteria.

Traditional plate count methods require at least two days of incubation before a result can be reported back to milk producers and processors farmer. Hygienic problems may go undetected for days, making corrective action more difficult and production losses larger than necessary.

By implementing the approved and rapid BactoScan™ FC+ method, offering results in less than nine minutes, farmers can be advised about possible hygiene breaches the same day as the sample is drawn. Such rapid feedback enables the farmer to correct for leaks, insufficient cleaning or cooling in the milking system, or health problems in the herd. The method includes control samples and other instrument-performance checks. Read more

Screen for adulterants as an integrated part of your analytical operations

Even it is rather rare event, it can come to accidental or deliberate contamination of raw milk within the supply chain. However, the problem is greater in developing milk industries, but even the most well-established dairy farming and delivery systems can suffer from accidental contamination. For example cleaning fluids used to clean milking and milk storage equipement or substances contaminating the cows feed could end up in the milk.

A smart line of defence is that the same analytical equipment used for raw milk analysis can also perform checks for possible adulteration at the same time.

Exploiting powerful FTIR technology, the MilkoScan™ 7 RM provides the most precise and widest scope of adulteration screening capabilities in the industry. You can check for deliberate or accidental adulteration while performing normal quality control tests.

Setting industry standards

FOSS solutions for milk payment have a unique level of compliance with international industry standards.