Milk quality
Clean milking, clean milk
Simple habits that keep milk clean, stop it being rejected at the co-op and protect the udder.
4 min read
Before you milk
- Wash your hands with soap and clean water. Keep your nails short.
- Milk in a clean, dry place away from dung and dust.
- Use aluminium or stainless-steel cans. Plastic scratches and holds dirt that sours milk.
Prepare the udder
- Wash the teats with warm clean water, using a separate cloth or paper towel for each cow.
- Dry the teats well. Wet teats let dirty water run into the milk.
- Squirt the first two or three streams from each teat into a strip cup or dark cup. Clots, blood or watery milk are early signs of mastitis.
Milk well
- Start within a minute of washing, when the cow lets down her milk.
- Milk gently and fully, in about 5 to 7 minutes. Milk left in the udder lowers yield and invites infection.
- Milk sick cows or cows being treated last, into a separate container.
After milking
- Strain the milk through a clean cloth or strainer and cover the can.
- Keep milk cool and in the shade, and deliver it as soon as you can.
- Wash cans with hot water and detergent, rinse, and dry them upside down in the sun.
- Give the cow feed after milking so she stays standing while the teats close.