Good practices in milking to reduce microbiological contamination of milk in agreste of Pernambuco

Abstract

In Pernambuco, as well as in the major part of Brazil, milk, especially in small dairy farms, is obtained in poor hygienic conditions, little technology and deficient sanitary control of animals. Raw milk presents low microbiologic quality, which compromises the product’s composition, reduces its shelf life and can constitute risk to public health. Food quality and safety are related to the Good Manufacturing Pratices (GMP). Implementation of GMP results in reduction of the number of microorganisms in milk, leading to a better microbiologic quality and enhanced shelf life of the final product. The aim of this work was to evaluate the impact of implementation of Good Milking Practices on the improvement of microbiological quality of milk, aiming to achieve the standards established by Normative Instruction 51. Different practices of milking were applied in the main points of contamination, identified previously, in four dairy farms of Agreste of Pernambuco. The practices were evaluated through enumeration of indicator microorganisms mesophilic aerobes, psychrotrophics, coagulase positive staphylococci, total coliforms and Escherichia coli before and after the application of the practices. The practices adopted were: elimination of first three jets of milk, immersion of teats in chlorinated solution, vigorous cleaning and posterior inversion of buckets and cans for elimination of residual water. Results showed, with the application of the practices, means reduction of 99.9% for mesophilic aerobes microorganisms. The practices indicated are simple, efficient, of easy adoption in milking routine in any situation of technology at the dairy farms and do not require spends with installations.