Effect of ‘chlorine‐free’ cleaning of milking equipment on the microbiological quality and chlorine‐related residues in bulk tank milk

Evaluating the effectiveness of minimum chlorate technologies employed by manufacturers of skim milk powder from both microbiological quality and chemical residue perspectives

Dairy processors in the Republic of Ireland have adopted chlorine-free chemicals for cleaning and chlorine gas for water disinfection as a means of minimizing chlorate residue in dairy products. For these "minimum chlorate technologies" to be satisfactory, they must be able to deliver product with acceptable levels of bacteria as well as minimum levels of chlorate and other chlorine-based residues. To establish the effectiveness of these technologies, sampling was conducted across the skim milk powder (SMP) manufacturing chain in 3 separate milk processing sites. Across the 3 sites a total of 11 different batches of SMP were sampled in duplicate from the whole milk silo through the manufacturing process to the powder product; yielding a total of 137 samples. Samples were tested for chlorate, perchlorate and trichloromethane alongside a suite of microbiological plate count tests including total bacteria, thermophilic bacteria, thermoduric bacteria and both mesophilic and thermophilic spore-forming bacteria. Chlorate was detected at reportable levels (≥0.01 mg/kg) in 9 of 22 SMP samples analyzed; resulting in a mean chlorate concentration 0.0183 mg/kg. Bacteria were ubiquitous across all samples analyzed with spore-forming bacteria counts ranging from 1.30 to 2.33 log cfu/g in SMP.

Sustainable detergent-disinfectant agent based on whey mineralizate and silver nanoparticles for cleaner production in dairy industry

Detergents and disinfectants for dairy industry must meet a variety of characteristics, including low toxicity, high antibacterial activity, and excellent rinsing of pollutants from working surfaces. This work presents an innovative detergent-disinfectant agent based on whey mineralizate and silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), which allows reducing production costs and ensuring high cleanliness of treated surfaces compared to analogues. For this purpose, a method for obtaining sols of Ag NPs stabilized with didecyldimethylammonium bromide (Ag NPs-DDAB) was developed and optimized using neural network algorithms. Characterization of Ag NPs-DDAB showed particles with a radius of 4.5 nm and 20 nm, stable in the pH range from 2 to 11. An acute toxicity study of Ag NPs in mice showed LD50 = 4230 μg/kg. Based on the degree of accumulation and inhalation toxicity, Ag NPs-DDAB are classified as low-hazard chemicals. The developed detergent-disinfectant had a washability of about 90%, high antimicrobial activity (0.005 mg/mL) against Penicillium roqueforti and a sanitary and hygienic effect on coliforms, general contamination and pathogenic microorganisms, a low-corrosive effect and low toxicity (315 mg/mL) to Danio rerio. It was concluded that the use of detergent-disinfectant agent will completely eliminate the consumption of water for the equipment cleaning process and can be used to clean an electrodialysis unit's circuits, enabling the utilization of secondary waste from membrane milk processing and promoting resource efficiency and cleaner production in the dairy industry.

A Survey of knowledge, attitude, and practices surrounding antimicrobial use by family dairy farmers to mastitis control

This study determined the family dairy farmers' knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding the management strategy of mastitis, antibiotic use, and antimicrobial resistance in dairy farms in Türkiye. A total of 455 dairy farmers participated in face-to-face surveys from the villages of Çanakkale in Türkiye. A total of 62 questions that were divided into 5 categories were asked of the participants. Farmers (252/455; 55.4%) noted that they had not heard of any term about the expression of microbial resistance. They believe that antibiotic residues (156/455; 34,3%) do not pass into the soil and environment with animal wastes, and diseases such as mastitis (173/455; 38%) cannot be cured without antibiotics. Farmers indicated that they used antibiotic therapy in the treatment of udder diseases such as mastitis at a rate of 44.8%. Moreover, most dairy farmers (78.2%) decided to start antibiotic treatment with the decision of the veterinarian. Farmers believe that the barn environment is not as clean as necessary at a rate of 23.5%, and the necessary hygiene conditions are not followed in animal care 23.4% as the cause of mastitis. They highlighted that they detected mastitis from the redness or swelling of the udder at a rate of 38.2%. 55.8% of the farmers participating in the study had undergone analysis for the diagnosis of mastitis disease. On the other hand, 57.4% of farmers tried natural products such as olive oil, soft soap, vinegar, clay soil, honey, soapy, and yogurt, instead of antibiotics treatment for mastitis diseases. They have been relying mostly on veterinarian recommendations for AU. The use of culture and susceptibility test results for antimicrobial selection should be expanded among veterinarians. All stakeholders should be included in periodic training programs on topics such as AU, AR, preventive treatments for mastitis, vaccination, public health, and environmental health. Surveillance systems are needed to monitor AU and AR in animals, as in human medicine.