Page 191 - Agriculture_Form_Three

Agriculture for Secondary Schools

Handling and processing of milk
Milk is obtained from indigenous and exotic dairy cattle. Some farmers have also
started keeping dairy goats and camels for milk production. Milk reaching the
consumers and dairy processors must be safe and of good quality. Good quality
milk must be of normal composition with no added contents, low in bacterial counts,
free from abnormal smell, off-flavours and chemical residues. In order for the milk
to reach final consumers while still in good condition, the following principles must
be observed.
(a) Proper hygiene during milking
The first point where milk can be spoiled or contaminated is at the time of milking. To
avoid contamination, hygienic milking practices must be followed. These practices
include:
(i) Clean and healthy milker (especially for hand milking) and cleanliness of the
milking utensils, facilities and equipment.
(ii) Cleanliness of the udder: This is achieved by washing and wiping all teats of
the udder of the dairy animal with clean piece of cloth.
(iii) Checking the udder health: Each teat should be checked by close observation for
any physical injury, abnormality on the udder and the type of milk it produces.
A strip-cup is used for checking abnormality of milk produced, where you can
observe traces of blood, pus or any abnormal fluids coming from the teats.
(iv) Sick animals should be milked last and their milk discarded. Milk from
animals recovering from disease after treatment can continue to be used again
depending on the withdrawal period indicated by the drug manufacturer.
(v) Using clean milk collection utensils: Utensils used for milk collection should
be thoroughly cleaned and sterilised. Stainless steel and aluminium cans are
preferred over plastic containers because they can be easily cleaned with hot
water and they are not easily corroded.

(vi) Straining of milk using clean double cloths, preferably cheese cloth. This
ensures proper separation of all foreign particles from milk.
(b) Minimising spoilage at the farm
In hot environments, milk may start fermenting or get spoiled within 3 - 4 hours
after milking. This is because many spoilage microbes and some enzymes in the
milk remain active at room temperatures. Cooling milk to 4 C helps to slow down
°
or stop activities of spoilage microbes and keeps the milk safe.
(c) Proper milk handling at collection and processing centres
Immediately after milk is received at the collection or processing centre, it must
be judged for its wholesomeness. This quick assessment helps in avoiding bad in-
brought milk from contaminating good milk that had already been collected. Things
that need to be checked are:

Student’s Book Form Three
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AGRICULTURE FORM 3 9.11.2022.indd 180
AGRICULTURE FORM 3 9.11.2022.indd 180 10/01/2025 12:31