7 Steps to Clean Milk Production

7 Steps to Clean Milk Production

Producing clean milk is essential for increasing shelf life, fetching a better market price, and ensuring food safety. Bacterial contamination often starts at the farm level but can be easily prevented with strict hygiene practices.

1. Animal Hygiene

Always wash the buffalo's udder and hindquarters before milking. Trim long hairs on the udder to prevent dirt accumulation.

2. Milker's Hygiene

The milker must wear clean clothes, tie up hair, and wash hands thoroughly with soap. Nails should be trimmed to avoid injuring the teats.

3. Clean Milking Utensils

Use seamless stainless steel utensils instead of plastic or aluminum. Wash buckets with hot water and detergent immediately after use.

4. Proper Milking Environment

The milking shed should be free from dust, flies, and strong odors. Sweeping should be done at least an hour before milking so the dust settles.

5. Teat Dipping

After milking, the teat canal remains open for about 30 minutes. Dip the teats in a mild iodine or chlorhexidine solution to block bacteria from entering and causing mastitis.

6. Fore-milk Stripping

Discard the first few streams of milk from each teat into a strip cup. This removes bacteria residing in the teat canal and helps detect early signs of mastitis.

7. Immediate Cooling

Chill the milk to 4°C within two hours of milking using bulk milk coolers to prevent bacterial growth.