Advantage Good Agricultural Practices Manual

9.3 Milking Practices

Pathogens may contaminate milk and proliferate during storage on-farm. Antibiotic residues can contaminate milk if treated animals are not properly identified and their milk not separated from the bulk tank.

This Good Agricultural Practice applies to:

Farms that milk goats or sheep.

Farms that hold cow milk quota are required to follow license requirements from the Dairy Farmers of Ontario and are not included here.

Note: Under federal law, all milk from all species must be pasteurized for sale for human consumption (Food and Drug Act (Canada), R.S. 1985).

Useful references from OMAFRA

• Installation Recommendations for a Milk Pipeline Fact Sheet #89-118
• Maintenance of Milking and Milk Handling Equipment Fact Sheet #89-001
• A Refresher on Cleaning Pipelines and Coolers
• Keeping Milk Bacteria Counts Low
• Trouble Shooting Film and Deposit on Equipment
• The Importance of Water Quality on your Bottom Line
  

What needs to be done

Carry out proper sanitation before, during and after milking. Identify treated animals and milk them separately.

How to do it

Cleaning and sanitizing for milking equipment

Use only potable water to clean milking equipment and systems.

Have an up-to-date wash chart posted in the milkhouse that details hardness and pH of the milkhouse water and the appropriate concentrations for cleaning solutions.

Make sure the water temperature for the milkhouse is high enough to maintain the appropriate effectiveness for each cleaning cycle:

Do not recirculate the pre-rinse water through the milking system.

Check that all solutions have drained completely after each cycle.

Ensure the bulk tank is thoroughly cleaned after all milk has been transferred. Use the above steps for cleaning.

Check outlet valves, gaskets, inlet areas, receiver jar, pipe to bulk tank, and manhole cover for cleanliness. Replace the milk filter where necessary.

Periodically monitor milking systems:

• replace any rubber parts (e.g. liners, any gaskets, milk hoses or pulsator air lines) immediately if cracking or inking is observed, or as per your equipment supplier's recommendations.
• check the chemical injectors and timing of cycles for cleaning systems, check the pipeline for proper slugging action, check the slope for proper drainage and check the line for any air leaks.
• check the sanitary trap and line for any residue, and clean when necessary.
• make sure the wash sink is free of rust, scale build-up and leaks.

 

Milking practices

Develop written practices for milking animals on your operation. Consider posting these practices in the parlour or by the milking stand where animals are milked.

Check all animal health records to identify which animals have been treated recently and need to be milked separately. A temporary notice board of which animals have been treated can also help communicate to workers which animals need to be milked separately.

Set up the milking system:

• Sanitize all milking equipment.
• Check equipment (e.g. bulk tank, receiver jar, hoses, pipes, milk units, liners) to verify cleanliness and make sure all sanitizing solution has been drained. Make sure the bulk tank cooler and agitator are on prior to milking. If the bulk tank is empty, start the cooler and agitator when the level of milk in the bulk tank reaches the bottom of the agitator paddle.
  
  

Check the udder for signs of clinical mastitis:

• Strip milk from each teat into a cup to observe any signs of abnormality: stringiness, wateriness, clots or lumps, and presence of blood.
• Check udders for swelling, hardness, heat, redness, evidence of pain, lumps, or a bluish colour that is cold to the touch.
  
  

Perform proper udder preparation before attaching milking unit. Discuss proper techniques with an OMAFRA Raw Milk Specialist, or follow these steps:

• Prepare fresh teat dip or udder wash solutions and clean, single-use towels for udder preparation. Use only potable water to mix teat dip or udder wash solutions in clean containers. Never pour unused solutions back into original containers.
• Dip each teat with a germicidal dip or sanitizing udder wash solution. Do not wash entire udder as it cannot be dried sufficiently and excess moisture will carry pathogens to the milking unit. Clean off very dirty teats before applying dip.
• Strip two to three squirts of milk from an individual teat into a designated, dark-coloured cup. If milk appears abnormal:
  • Identify the animal.
  • Milk separately from the rest or at the end.
  • Divert the milk from this animal away from the bulk tank and discard.
  • Clean and sanitize any milking equipment used on this animal before using on another.
  • Wash hands thoroughly during and after milking this animal.
• Dry the teats thoroughly with a single-use towel. Towels can be? disposable or reusable cloth towels that have been thoroughly washed and dried before use. Using one towel on more than one animal can pass pathogens from one animal to another, resulting in additional mastitis cases.
  
  

Avoid excessive air admission into the milking unit while the vacuum is on, and do not let the teat cups fall to the floor.

Milk treated animals (e.g. withdrawal time not passed, positive antibiotic residue test) last or separately into a bucket milker. Keep the milk separate from the bulk tank and discard. The method of identification of treated animals must be communicated to the workers who are milking so that any treated animals are not accidentally milked into the bulk tank.

Take immediate action if treated milk is accidentally mixed into the bulk tank:

Post a sign on the tank or hose port warning the hauler not to transfer the milk.

Contact an OMAFRA Raw Milk Specialist to notify of a possible residue.

Apply an appropriate post-dip solution to all teats after milking is complete.

Milk storage

Regularly monitor the bulk tank for the following temperature requirements for milk storage:

• Make sure the milk is cooled to 10°C (50°F) within the first hour of milking and 1-4°C (34-40°F) within 2 hours after milking.
• For subsequent milkings, make sure the blend temperature never goes above 10°C (50°F) and the milk is cooled to 1-4°C (34-40°F) within 1 hour after milking is finished.
• In between milkings and until milk is picked up, make sure milk temperature is maintained at 1-4°C (34-40°F).
• Record bulk tank temperatures.
  
  

Properly calibrate thermometers used to measure milk temperature.
For more information, refer to 3.1 Equipment Maintenance and Calibration in this manual.

Make sure the bulk tank cooling system is on and working properly and the agitator timer is set at appropriate intervals.

For long-term storage of sheep milk only:

• Make sure sheep milk is cooled to 1-4°C (34-40°F) before being put into a freezer or within 1 hour of being put into the freezer.
• Make sure freezers maintain a temperature of -18°C (0°F) at all times.
• Make sure the containers used to freeze sheep milk are food-grade, easy to clean and designated only for sheep milk storage.
• Properly label all containers with the date they were put into the freezer.
• Sheep milk containers are recommended to be completely frozen within 48 hours. Do not add additional fresh fluid sheep milk to containers that are already frozen.
  
  

Monitor dairy animals for sub-clinical mastitis regularly
Mastitis can be difficult to detect in sub-clinical cases, as the udder may not exhibit any of the signs of clinical mastitis. However, a reduction in milk produced by the animal or an elevation in somatic cell counts (SCC) can indicate sub-clinical mastitis may be present, which may lead to a clinical case. Use the California Mastitis Test (CMT) to score each animal for SCC and to detect any changes in counts. CMT test kits are available at your local retail farm outlet.

In general

Wear clean clothing; wash hands before, during and after milking; and wear gloves where necessary (i.e. covering any cuts or wounds on hands). Provide hand washing facilities in the milkhouse.

Did you know?

Teats may look clean, but bacteria cannot be seen with the naked eye, so all teats should receive the same udder preparation before milking. Cleaning with a dry cloth or just wiping with a hand is not sufficient cleaning and could result in pathogens entering the milking system, infecting other animals milked with that unit, or contaminating the bulk tank.

Did you know?

Some dips contain emollients that provide a moisturizing effect to the teat skin to prevent dryness or cracking of the skin. Dry or cracked teats are harder to clean as bacteria can hide within their cracks and crevices. Open sores on teat skin will also harbour more bacteria, especially Staphylococcus aureus, which is a major cause of contagious mastitis that can spread during milking through contact with contaminated liners or dirty hands.

Records to keep

• Temperature Monitoring Record. We have provided a record template for your use in the Training and Support Tools section. A printable version is also available. Or keep your own record that includes:
  • Date/time
  • Temperature
  • Initials
• Wash Chart (usually supplied by equipment supplier)
• Written practices for milking animals
  
  

If you need an audit

Be prepared for the auditor to review:

• Temperature Monitoring Records for milk storage
• Up-to-date Wash Charts
• Written practices for milking animals
  
  

Laws and regulations that apply

The Milk Act covers the production of cow and goat milk only. However, sheep milk producers are encouraged to use this Act as a guideline. The Health Protection and Promotion Act addresses sheep milk as well as cow and goat milk (see definition of "milk" in the Health Protection and Promotion Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.7, s. 1(1)). S. 18 requires that milk, cream or milk products be pasteurized in a plant licensed under the Milk Act, if they are to be sold, offered for sale, delivered or distributed.

Milk Act, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 761, s. 3 states that no producer shall sell or offer for sale milk or cream that is not produced, handled and stored in accordance with the Regulation.

Milk Act, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 761, s. 4, 5, 8(1) (4), 9 (1) (3), 10-16, 18(9), 19-34 are sections pertinent to food safety with respect to dairy animal health, parlour and milkhouse construction; worker practices; cleaning and sanitizing of parlour, milkhouse and milking equipment; as well as storage requirements for milk. Refer to each good agricultural practice in this manual for specific references to these sections of the Milk Act.

Food and Drug Act (Canada), R.S. 1985, Food and Drug Regulations, Part B, Division 8, s. B.08.002.2 (1) states that all milk from all species must be pasteurized for sale for human consumption.

Proceed to 9.4 Egg Handling