Quality of goat's milk produced on farms in the Paraná State - Brazil

Abstract

The consumption of goat's milk has increased significantly in Brazil. In 2014, its production was 153 thousand tons, and the Paraná state is responsible for the production of 380 thousand liters. Although the government regulates goat milk, this raw material is not widely studied in Brazil. The objective of this work was to study its microbiological and physicochemical characteristics. A total of 32 samples from 8 Paraná State farms were analyzed. The microbial indicators of hygiene, psychrotrophic bacteria, L. monocytogenes and Salmonella spp. were evaluated. We used physicochemical tests of goat’s milk that were established by the Brazilian legislation. In addition, phosphatase activity, pH, conductivity, boiling test, and urea content were measured. The average concentrations of mesophilic aerobes, coliforms, E. coli, coagulase positive Staphylococcus and psychrotrophic microorganisms were 4.10, 2.38, 0.65, 2.06 and 4.02 log CFU mL-1, respectively. The samples did not present L. monocytogenes and Salmonella spp. In the physicochemical analysis, 90.63% of the samples presented at least one parameter outside the legal standards. In the somatic cell count, 73.33% of the samples had counts higher than 1 x 106 cells mL-1. Raw goat's milk produced in Paraná has high coliform and psychrotrophic counts, indicating poor hygiene during milking. The fluctuating values of the physicochemical data indicate that additional studies are required to determine the parameters that reflect the Brazilian conditions of goat milk production.