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Extension Services for Quality Milk Production
Proceedings of an International Workshop in conjunction with the East-West-Forum
of the Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Forestry
and the "Window of German Animal Breeding" at the International Green Week
24-25 January, 1999
The Processors’ View on Milk Quality
A. Birker - Cheese Dairy "Champignon"
The dairy industry requires milk with high standards of quality in all
its processing lines.
We recognize this fact and based on the quality and hygiene standards
of the European Union we implement all respective activities to secure
high milk quality standards at all stages of milk production and milk processing,
from the farm to the individual milk processing plant.
Competition on the dairy market will demand similar quality standards
and activities to secure quality in all pre-accession countries applying
for membership in the EU.
Milk production and utilisation
Global milk production shows a positive trend. Cow milk production
increased from 471 mill. tons in 1997 to 474 mill. tons in 1998. Milk production
in the EU does not show the similar trend but a slight reduction of 0,2
%, with a total production of 121 mill tons of milk in 1997. It is assumed
that this downward trend will continue.
Cow milk production in the five pre-accession countries of Eastern
and Central Europe stood at 18,5 mill. Tons in 1997. Milk production in
the 15 countries of Central Europe has been stabilized after the dramatic
transmission period while in CIS Countries production continues its downward
trend.
In 1990 the total production in Central and Eastern Europe including
the USSR measured 140 mill. tons or 30 % of world production. In 1997 milk
production in CIS countries was reduced by 33 mill. tons or 45 % less than
the average of 1989 to 1991.
Milk delivery for industrial processing differs according to the world
region. Globally only 6 % of milk delivered are further processed while
in the EU 94 % or 113 mill. tons of raw milk are delivered and processed
into other products. In EU pre-accession countries of Central and Eastern
Europe 66 % or 11,85 mill. tons of milk is delivered for further processing.
The EU consumes 87 % of milk produced and as such is the largest exporter
of milk and milk products in the world.
Structural trends in milk processing, milk markets and milk consumption
In countries of the European Union there is a strong trend towards large
internationally operating milk factories on the one side and small specialized
companies on the other. Our company is a specialized dairy processing plant
and operates in Germany and in the EU.
The polarisation is also visible on the markets for dairy products.
Consumers exhibit an increasing awareness and confidence which results
in a small group of consumers demanding premium products and a large group
of consumers selecting their purchases on a value for money basis.
We can observe an increasing trend of retail companies to establish
their own trade mark in order to bind their customers and create independence
from milk processing companies. As a trade mark producer our Company is
concentrating on the production and supply of premium products.
The Hofmeister Group of Companies
In general the dairy industry has a clear positive image with consumers
and is seen as an adding value to the raw product. The Hofmeister Group
is a private company and part of these refinement industries. Its strategy
is diversification. Single plants are specialised on production of soft
cheese, hard cheese and dried products. The various production plants and
their most important trade products are as follows:
Production plant Heising/Allgäu (Bayern)
Cheese processor Champignon
· Products: Whitemould, Bluemould,
Red culture cheese
· Trademarks: Cambozola, Rougette,
Mirabo, Champignon Camembert,
Champignon de Luxe, Brie de Luxe
· Total milk processed in 1997: 110
mill. kg
Production plant Unterkammlach/Allgäu (Bayern)
Cheese factory Mang
· Products: Red culture cheese
· Trademarks St. Mang (Limburger,
Romadur, Münster)
· Total milk processed in 1997: 50
mill. kg
Production plant Moosburg (Bayern)
· Products: Hard cheese and whole-milk-powder
· Trademarks: Illertaler-Hard-cheese,
Patriarch, Alp-whole-milk-powder
· Total milk processed in 1997: 80
mill. kg
Production plant Freiberg / Sachsen
· Products: Whitemould cheese (Whole-Sale-Products)
· Trademarks: Champignon Camembert,
Striegisthaler Zwerge
· Total milk processed in 1997: 80
mill. kg
Profit-Centre Wheyprocessing Alpavit/Bayern
· Products: Cremepowder, Milkpowder,
Wheyproducts, pharmaceutical Lactose, customer specific products
· Trademarks: Dried products under
the trademark "Alpavit"
· Total whey processed in 1997: 600
mill. kg
The Hofmeister Group of Companies processed a total of 450 mill kg milk
in 1997, obtained from over 2 500 milk producers, and employed about 1
200 people.
Why do we need highest raw milk quality?
Our company mission declares a commitment to quality. We have to
and need to improve our profile as processor and supplier of innovative
dairy products with a high degree of speciality and quality. We stand for
quality over quantity.
For a trademark processor the product is merely a raw material being
the substance for the trademark, however, the profile of a trademark is
decisively determined by quality. This quality has to be reliable, reproducible
and has to meet consumer expectations.
The best known example of such a strategy is the fast food chain McDonalds.
Wherever you are, weather Berlin, New York, Budapest, Moscow or Hong-Kong,
the Hamburger and Cheeseburger taste the same and look the same.
Only with best raw milk quality it is possible to produce high standard
premium products throughout the year. This was already stated by Prof.
Tolle in 1980, who said: "It is the quality of the raw milk, which determines
to a large extent the quality of the milk products." This means, that there
is a significant quality relation between raw milk and the end product
of dairy processing. Thus, the claim on high quality of raw milk expressed
by the milk processing industry is justified. It is good to be reminded,
that the milk industry and the quest for reliable and continuous quality
starts in the dairy barn.
The significance of raw milk quality
Demands on quality by milk processor has always been a central point
of the professional discussion and is today more relevant than ever. The
term "quality" encompasses every trait of importance and of demand by processors
or customers. For raw milk the term quality is extremely comprehensive.
Some of the most important quality aspects are:
-
quality of content and physical-chemical condition
-
hygiene quality: bacteriological and cytological traits, absence of pathogens
and other contaminants
-
sensoric quality
-
nutritional quality
-
technological quality (processing ability)
Every milk processor, but especially the producer of trade mark products
has very specific demands on raw milk quality. Demands are product dependent
and thus they can vary. Therefore the concept of "raw milk quality - product
dependent ?" does not indicate that for example raw milk used for producing
milk powder can have a lower level of quality. It rather indicates that
especially premium cheese producers have to consider a wider spectrum of
the complex system of raw milk quality. Within the group of cheese producers
again there are differences in relation to perception of raw milk quality,
if we only think about raw milk cheese processing.
The production of cheese is a complicated transfer process of milk and
demands that the milk used fulfils all quality demands related to cheese
making. Important aspects here are the whole milk content, physical and
chemical conditions, no water adulteration, absence of antibacterial agents
and many other aspects.
Milk - the complex system
Milk constitutes over 100 macro and micro components, all in a balanced
ratio depending on the respective milk producers.
The protein fraction is a very specific milk component. Not only due
to its nutritional value but also due to its impact on the cheese production
process. Of importance are the casein fraction of the total protein (Casein
ratio: relative proportion of casein to total protein).
The protein content of milk is influenced by a number of factors, such
as breed, age, type of feeding, milking frequency, climate, season and
others. The genotype k "casein BB" guarantees an efficient cheese
making process (shorter coagulation time, improved consistency of the coagulate)
and a good milk: cheese exploitation ratio.
The cattle breed has a very decisive effect on protein content. For
the most important cattle breeds in Germany the following average protein
values are reported (ADR - Bonn, 1995): Jersey 4,04 %, Angler 3,58 %, Braunvieh
3,53 %, Fleckvieh 3,48 %, Schwarzbunt-"Ost" 3,48 %, Rotbunt 3,37 %, Schwarzbunt-"West"
3,33 %; with the total average for Germany (East) of 3,48 % and Germany
(West) of 3,40 %.
A significant influence on milk composition is caused by the month
of lactation (see table).
The somatic cell count is an indicator for udder health, but its level
is also dependent on the specific breed. Infections of udder tissue cause
an increased somatic cell count but also influence milk content and some
properties of milk. These are also shown in the tables. Of partial importance
is the decrease in lactose content, in casein and the casein ration, and
the increase of the non-protein-nitrogen fraction and of coagulation time.
Milk from a healthy udder is relatively free of contaminating microorganisms.
The major source of contamination is the barn environment, but milking
equipment is a very important source, too. Under optimal hygienic conditions
of milking and cooling equipment the total number of germs (plate count)
can be under 10 000 germs/ ml of milk. Under appropriate storage condition
such milk is less likely to be spoiled and to have negative effects on
the derived products.
Mastitis infected animals can have milk with high bacterial germ counts.
Therefore mastitis control is one of the most important measures for securing
a low plate count in milk.
Contaminating bacterial flora and somatic cells have a highly negative
effect on the natural quality of raw milk through their enzymatic activities
and residual metabolites. A negative effect can also be imposed on the
composition of the contaminating bacterial flora. Cooling of milk has a
selective effect on the flora composition.
In former days with hand milking and the absence of cooling equipment
milk contained a larger proportion of lactic acid producers and less psycho-trophic
germ groups (the ratio was approximately 80 : 20); today raw milk has less
lactic acid bacteria and the ratio to the other germ groups is almost reversed
(20 : 80).
Even in milk with an acceptable germ count, undesirable psycho-trophic
germs will be increased also under cold storage up to approximately 106/ml
after 3 days only. Enzymes of the psycho-trophic germ flora are actually
the real problem. They are heat tolerant or heat resistant, respectively,
and have extreme damaging effects mainly on sensoric quality traits.
Milk normally contains sporoform contaminants of different types. Physiologically
active tamales visit in sporoforms cause reduced durability of fresh milk
or processing failures in cheese production. The most important group is
clostridia, mainly C. tyrobutyricum, C. butyricum and C. sporogenes.
Contamination is mainly caused by silage and has a particular contamination
pathway: soil ® silage ®
digestive tract ® excretion ®
udder and skin and barn environment ® milk.
Inappropriate feeding can also cause increased clostridia stress: The absence
of pathogenic germs and their toxins are criteria of highest priority in
milk quality, which have to be fulfilled under any circumstances.
Inhibitors of any nature are not acceptable in raw milk. Their presence
will cause production failures especially in fermentation processes and
lead to a high economic damage.
Practical experiences and perspectives
We are a partner of our milk producers. Only through close collaboration
between the highly qualified milk production sector and a quality oriented
sector we are able to produce high quality dairy products for our demanding
customers. We require a holistic quality and hygiene concept and have implemented
this concept on a daily routine in a very consequent manner. We are also
engaged in extension activities to secure a high quality standard at the
level of milk delivery.
Let me give some examples of quality and hygiene parameters of milk
delivered to our plant in Heising. The protein content of the milk has
increased from 3.38 % in 1992 to 3.42 % in 1997. The fat content was around
4.16 % in 1997 and has shown a high degree of variability between years
but not a clear trend to increased levels. The lactose content was 4.8
% in 1992 and 4.77 % in 1997. Somatic cell counts has been successfully
reduced over the time period from 1992 to 1997 from around 240 million
down to 170 million cells per ml milk. The plate count was drastically
reduced during the 5 years to an average of 119 000 germs per ml milk in
1997.
We are conscious that quality of delivered raw milk cannot be improved
through specific processing technology. Some quality criteria can be maintained
by a very modest and mild processing which will retain the natural properties
of raw material, other quality criteria need to be corrected in order to
secure an expected shelf life of the product and to standardise their properties,
to fulfil official rules and regulations in relation to processing and
sales of products, and to optimize the economics of the production process.
A superb quality of raw milk is therefore a prerequisite for high product
quality and profitability of dairy processing plants. Suitable raw milk
is produced from healthy animals, kept in hygienically appropriate dairy
barns and fed with high quality feed. The use of technically sound milking
and cooling equipment, as well as all the application of activities which
maintain high optimal quality standards and hygiene practises are paramount
for a sustainable production of high quality milk. Milk producers and milk
processors have a joint responsibility to protect the superb positive image
milk and milk products enjoy with today’s customers. Compromises on quality
standards are out of question.
There are many attempts to improve the milk contents through breeding
and other means. These activities are supported by scientific methods.
Our own focus has to be directed towards the hygienic quality of raw milk.
Pathogenes have no place in milk or in milk products.
The systematic eradication of mastitis has shown major effects on the
reduction of somatic cell content and has made a major contribution to
improve hygienic quality. However, mastitis avoidance and eradication will
continue to be an important action to achieve or maintain high levels of
milk quality. The minimum specification on microbial status of raw milk
will continue to be increased, especially for some processing lines (cheese).
Even after the successful reduction of plate counts in raw milk, we should
be reminded that the proportion of germs, which are highly undesirable
in milk processing, has actually increased in the same period. We need
to concentrate on reducing these undesirable germs and especially those,
which reduce durability, processing yield and cause sensoric disorders.
This group consists of sporoforms and of gram negative psychotrophic germs.
Improvement attempts have to be directed towards silage quality and housing
hygiene and milking hygiene.
We can see, many problems still have to be solved, and only by fruitful
and constructive co-operation we can contribute to finding solutions.
Chart 1: Raw milk quality - product specific?
Table 1: Effect of month of lactation on milk composition
| Month of lactation |
Fat
(%)
|
Protein
(%)
|
Lactose
(%)
|
Total solids
(%)
|
|
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
|
4.67
4.03
3.93
3.97
3.95
3.99
4.03
3.98
4.12
4.29
4.37
|
3.38
3.00
3.12
3.31
3.48
3.46
3.57
3.68
3.73
3.86
4.05
|
4.79
4.86
4.83
4.78
4.77
4.76
4.71
4.70
4.71
4.72
4.60
|
13.57
12.63
12.60
12.78
12.93
12.96
13.05
13.08
13.28
13.58
13.75
|
Table 2: Composition and reaction of milk under disturbed and non-disturbed
secretion
|
Parameter
|
Secretion*
|
D to non disturbed (%)
|
| |
Disturbed
|
Non disturbed
|
|
| Somatic cell count (x 1000/ml)
Lactose (%)
Total protein (%)
Casein (%)
Casein count (%)
Whey protein (%)
ß-lactoglobulin (%/MP)
a -lactalbumin (%/MP)
Serumalbumin (%/MP)
Immuno protein (%/MP)
NPN (mg/100 ml)
Chlorides (mg/100 ml)
Sodium (mg/100 ml)
Coagulation time (sec)
pH value |
182
4.91
3.50
2.75
78.57
0.51
47.60
27.35
5.35
19.48
37.00
88
43
242
6.64
|
1410
4.31
3.46
2.57
74.28
0.57
43.36
25.95
6.10
24.64
48.00
124
75
381
6.72
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+ 675
- 12.2
- 1.1
- 6.5
- 5.5
+ 11.8
- 8.9
- 5.2
+ 14.0
+ 26.5
+ 29.7
+ 40.9
+ 74.4
+ 57.4
+ 1.2
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