A new tool to improve milk quality standards has recently been developed at Teagasc, Moorepark. It comprises a series of video clips showing critical stages of the milking process and provides guidelines and recommendations for the production of high-quality milk.
This user-friendly tool provides valuable information on all aspects of quality milk production (for example TBC, SCC and residues). Specific topics addressed include: milking management on smaller (12 unit parlour) and larger (24 unit parlour) farms; and milking management on farms with adequate labour (two-people milking); and those with some automation (automatic cluster removers and cluster flushing).
“A critical prerequisite for the manufacture of quality dairy products is to start with milk of the highest quality. The milk quality criteria requested by milk processors and by customers generally are becoming more strict and rigorous,” explains Dr Bernadette O’Brien of Teagasc.
“It is important that requests to milk producers for improved quality milk be accompanied by the necessary information required to produce such milk, particularly in light of new pressures from expansion of herds and the reality of reduced labour supply,” she says.
The tool will also be of benefit to milk quality advisors, veterinarians and milking machine manufacturers. The video series and additional information on the chemical composition of cleaning products and procedures for cleaning equipment can be accessed at: www.agresearch.teagasc.ie/moorepark/milkquality/index.asp
Videos can also be seen on the TeagascMedia YouTube channel.
Here is one of the educational clips.
This tool was developed by Teagasc’s Dr Bernadette O’Brien, Dr David Gleeson, Mr Tom O’Dwyer and Mr Padraig O’Connor.