Safety First: Handling Fresh Milk

Ensuring the safety of dairy foods is a responsibility the dairy industry takes very seriously. As such, milk and other dairy products are among the safest and most-highly regulated foods in the world.

At the Farm:

Producing quality milk starts with begins with cutting edge animal care. Farmers provide comfortable housing, nutritious feed, preventive health care programs, and sanitary milking procedures to keep their cows healthy.

Then, milk and dairy products undergo a number of safety, quality and sanitation procedures, making them among the most highly regulated and safest foods available. The teat is first washed and checked. The modern milking machine is attached to the cow’s teats by four rubber suckers. The first milk is tested for mastitis, an infection of the udder. If the milk is healthy the milk flows through the tubes into a glass measuring flask. Each cow’s production is carefully monitored. The milk moves through fine filters to remove impurities before it is pumped into stainless steel tanks.

Milk is collected from farms every 2 days and moved to the dairy.

Laboratory tests check milk samples for bacteria or traces of antibiotics. Any milk that does not meet these stringent standards is immediately discarded. Farmers are paid according to the quantity of their milk – but a higher price is also paid for milk with a low bacteria count and a higher butterfat and protein content.

Fast Fact: Ensuring milk's quality and safety requires proper attention to conditions at every step in the process, from the farm to the consumer.

Tips:

• Buy your diary products last at the supermarket.
• Put them straight into the fridge, don’t leave them lying in a hot car for hours
• Always keep your milk in the fridge.
• Don’t expose your milk to direct sunlight as it will lose some of its flavour and nutritional value.
• Milk and dairy products absorb flavours easily – keep them in a sealed container to prevent this.