Milk Diseases and Milk Hygiene

Although  scientists have made great strides in milk hygiene and technology after Second World War, milk-borne zoonosis diseases are still very important in human health. That is why milk hygiene and control is very important part of the food science.

Milk is contaminated by bacteria and viruses via unhealthy animals, people hands, milking utensils or water. Milk is very suitable medium fr microorganisms to grow.

For food safety, milk must be healthy to produce milk products. Although animal doesn’t show any disease symptoms, its milk can contain pathogen microorganisms. For instance, foot-and-mouth-disease viruses contaminates milk long before animal shows disease symptoms. So viruses can contaminate humans and spread environment very easily.

The other important pathogen which exist in animal’s normal intestine flora is E. coli 0157:H7. This bacterium doesn’t cause disease while it is in the intestine but cause bloody diarrhea, renal failure and even deaths when it contaminates milk.

Tuberculosis is another milk-borne disease. Tuberculosis occurs in udder and may not be determined by the owner for a long time. Brucellosis is very common zoonosis in the world. It causes important economical lost and spreads easily.

To insure milk hygiene;

• Disease that can contaminate milk must be prevented
• Animals and people who make milking must be healthy.
• Barns must be very clean, well kept and not invased.
• Contagious animal diseases must be detected and struggle with the disease.
• Environment must be very clean.
• Milk must be saved against microbial contamination.
• Milking utensils must be cleaned and disinfected.