Open AccessInfluence of attitudes and behavior of milkers on the hygienic and sanitary quality of milk
Author(s) -
Oscar David Múnera-Bedoya,
Laerte Dagher Cassoli,
Paulo Fernando Machado,
Mário Fernando Cerón-Muñoz
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0184640
Subject(s) - milking , udder , bulk tank , affect (linguistics) , somatic cell count , hygiene , quality (philosophy) , cluster (spacecraft) , multivariate analysis , environmental health , mastitis , toxicology , microbiology and biotechnology , zoology , agricultural science , biology , medicine , mathematics , statistics , psychology , computer science , lactation , herd , philosophy , pathology , genetics , communication , epistemology , ice calving , programming language , pregnancy
Recognizing how human behaviors affect the milk process can be useful to understand variations in hygienic and sanitary parameters in bulk tank milk. Furthermore, this knowledge could be used to design management programs that guarantee milk quality, favoring the optimization of such processes. Forty-six milkers from the same number of dairy farms in Antioquia province (Colombia) were interviewed to establish the main factors associated to milk quality. Technical knowledge, motivations, and behavior of the personnel and its effect on hygienic and sanitary quality of milk were evaluated. Quality was assessed in terms of colony-forming units (CFU) and somatic cell count (SCC) in bulk tank milk. Two factors from a multivariate mixed data analysis were evaluated. One of those factors explained 9.51% of the total variability, related with in-farm availability and use of tools and the relationships between milker and manager. The other factor, associated with work environment and recognition, explained 6.97% of the total variability. The variables that best explained CFU levels were Knowledge of the udder condition at milking , and Milking type (parlor or pasture) . The SCC was associated to knowledge of animal handling , schooling of milkers , milking site , and the groups derived from the cluster analysis by farm. In conclusion, milker attitudes and behaviors can affect CFU and SCC in bulk tank milk.