Farms often see thermoduric bacteria rising in the backend of the year, especially those in the south-east still dealing with drought conditions.

The heat-resistant bacteria is able to survive the pasteurisation process and ultimately has significant implications on the quality and type of products that can be produced from milk.

Therefore, high thermoduric levels will impact the milk cheque, which would be far from ideal as margins are already razor thin.

The most effective way of reducing the number of thermoduric bacteria in the process is to limit the bacteria at farm level.

Thermoduric bacteria is present in dung, soil, and animal bedding, and can enter the milking equipment through dirty teats at milking time.

Thermoduric bacteria

The risk of higher thermoduric readings increases as we move into the autumn months, where conditions are not as favourable for cow hygiene.

The risk is also high for farms with limited grass growth. If cows are entering sacrifice paddocks or unhygienic feeding areas for silage diets, thermoduric bacteria may rise.

Steps to control your thermoduric levels on the farm are as follows:

The main thing is keeping the cow's environment clean, particularly yards and roadways;
Change liners and rubber-ware in parlour before they deteriorate - many herds will be due a milk liner change now;
Descale the milking machine regularly, at least once a week;
Check the cleaning of the milking machine and bulk tank, making sure no residue is visible;
Disinfect the milking machine with paracetic acid as the final rinse;
Make sure you are using a clean filter sock during washing;
Ensure your hot water is at a sufficient temperature of 75-80°C.

Many problems with high total bacteria count (TBC) or thermodurics are often caused by inadequate levels of detergent being used for washing.

This is likely to happen when automatic washing systems have not bee checked for some time, leaving lines and detergent levels go astray.

Farmers must stay alert when it comes to detergent and washing, making sure the drums of detergent are replaced before they run out.

All of the milking equipment must be checked consistently to ensure it is running to a high standard, as quite often, worn rubbers and liners can cause a sharp spike in thermoduric bacteria counts.