Milk Hygiene Research Articles

Review on Hygienic Milk Products Practice and Occurrence of Mastitis in Cow’s Milk

Milk is composed of approximately 87.2 % water, 3.7 % fats, 3.5% protein, 4.9% lactose 0.7% ash and has a pH 6.8; and is universally recognized as a complete diet due to its essential nutritional components. The key factor for quality dairy products is to avoid contamination of the raw milk and milk products. Failure to maintain adequate sanitation practices has been contribute to contamination of milk with undesirable or pathogenic micro-organisms or chemical or physical hazards derived from different sources. The common predisposing factors of milk contamination by microorganisms are milking environment, cows, milking personnel, milking equipment, milk transportation and water. Generally, the milk hygiene practice has interests in preventing the transmission milk-born zoonotic diseases, preventing the transmission of communicable diseases of man through milk, preventing diseases or physical defects that may arise from malnutrition and improving the nutritional status of man in general and of infants, children, and mother in particular. Therefore, it is crucial to keep hygienic milk production practices at household level and farm so that safeguards public health. Keywords : Cow’s Milk, Hygiene, Mastitis

A Brief History of Milk Hygiene and Its Impact on Infant Mortality from 1875 to 1925 and Implications for Today: A Review

The objective of this review is to provide an integrated historical account of the complex, often convoluted events impacting milk hygiene and its resultant effect on infant mortality from 1875 to 1925. Heat pasteurization of cow's milk is necessary for rendering this important nutrient source safe for humans-particularly infants. Developed by Louis Pasteur in 1864, pasteurization evolved from the commercially important parboiling of wine and beer when the Industrial Revolution was effecting rapid societal change in Western societies. In European and American societies of the early and mid-19th century, infant mortality rates were 30- to 60-fold higher than the current rates of five or six deaths per 1,000 live births per year. With proof of the germ theory of disease came convincing evidence of the role of microbes in the transmission of infections, which led to the discovery that microbial pathogens were transmissible via milk. Diseases caused by milkborne pathogens include human and bovine tuberculosis, brucellosis, salmonellosis, streptococcal infections, diphtheria, and "summer diarrhea." With pasteurization of milk, infectious diseases with their high infant mortality rates decreased by only half by the early 20th century, despite concurrent medical and dairy hygiene advances. To further mitigate unacceptably high infant mortality rates, social support providers-including public health nurses and midwives-encouraged breastfeeding, especially among socioeconomically disadvantaged mothers. Improvements in pulsating vacuum milking machines also favorably impacted food safety by providing a clean, enclosed environment. Currently, bottle feeding still competes with breastfeeding as the preferred method, and the sale of raw, unpasteurized milk remains a contentious issue. Informed and responsible food safety professionals, physicians, and public health officials currently view breastfeeding as the preferred feeding method and milk pasteurization as the safer and more prudent alternative.

Non-specific Liquid Fingerprinting in Monitoring the Hygiene and Authenticity of Milk

The objective of this study is to introduce the usefulness of the liquid fingerprinting technology in spotting potential health hazards in foodstuff, exemplifying milk. The presented method relies on the use of long lifetime photoluminescent europium chelate and individual cross-reactive modulators in an array form. Here, we demonstrate the potency of liquid fingerprinting technology as a fast and cost-effective tool for detection of (i) melamine at the concentration of 1 ppm and (ii) Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus at the level of 1000 and 3000 bacterial cells/ml, respectively, directly from milk without any bacterial concentration methods. The commonly used methods are often limited in their generic usability due to many factors, e.g., sensitivity, cost, and time of analysis. Presented technology offers monitoring within short measurement time and without any sample pre-treatment.

Prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus contamination in bovine milk from local dairy herd in Oyo State, Nigeria

Unhygienic practices, handling and transportation; pooling of milk from unscreened mastitic cows and indiscriminate prophylactic, therapeutic and growth promotion use of antibiotics in Nigerian cattle production could result in dissemination of resistant bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus and leading to food poisoning. This work aims to determine the prevalence of Methicllin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in bovine milk from local herds. A total of 165 fresh bulk milk samples were collected from local herds at Ibarapa, Oyo and Oke-Ogun in Oyo State for isolation of Staphylococcus aureus. Standard bacteriological methods were used to determine the bacterial load, isolate and characterize Staphylococcus aureus in fresh bovine bulk milk from dairy herds in Oyo State. Antibiotics sensitivity of the isolates was determined using disc diffusion method. Bacteriological assay revealed high total mean bacterial counts ranging from 1.5+0.069 to 6.1+23.19 log cfu/ml, with the highest contamination in 13.9% of milk from Oke-Ogun, followed by 4.2% from Oyo and Ibarapa respectively. There was a prevalence of 31.5% coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus with 7.9% isolates indentified as MSRA. The isolates showed very high resistance to several antibiotics with the highest resistance to augmentin (88.5%) and the highest sensitivity to ofloxacin (96.1%). This study established the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in milk from local herds with a prevalence of 33.1%. This signified the high risk of mastitis in the dairy cows from the study area. The high prevalence of MRSA is of food safety concern and could have resulted from indiscriminate use of antibiotics. Enforcement of milk hygiene practices, constant screening and treatment of mastitic cow as well as effective milk pasteurization are hereby suggested to ensure food safety.Keywords: Animal, Antimicrobial agents, Bulk milk, Staphylococcus aureus

An epidemiological investigation on occurrence of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli in raw milk.

Aim:The aim of the present investigation was to study the epidemiology of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) in raw milk and molecular characterization of isolates using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR).Materials and Methods:A total of 125 raw milk samples were subjected to isolation, identification, and confirmation of virulence-associated genes by multiplex PCR (mPCR). The samples were collected from a milk cooperative society of Thrissur district, Kerala. For further epidemiological investigation, samples such as dung (126), hair coat of cow (60), udder swab (60), udder wash (60), milking utensil wash (36), Milker’s hand wash (36), water (36), soil (36), and feed (36) were collected from the households from which the raw milk tested positive for EHEC.Results:The occurrence of EHEC in individual raw milk samples was found to be 8.8%. The major source of contamination to raw milk was found to be dung (19.84%) followed by udder swab (16.67%), hair coat of cow (15%), Milker’s hand and milking utensils and water (11.11% each), and udder wash and soil (8.33% each). For identification of virulence genes, all the isolates were subjected to mPCR, of 75 isolates 73.33% of isolates harbored stx 2 gene while 53.33, 36, and 36% of isolates were encoded by stx 1, eae A, and hly A genes, respectively. On epidemiological survey, the multiple risk factors accountable for occurrence of EHEC in raw milk were found to be the quality of water used, improper and inadequate udder preparation, unhygienic hands of Milker’s, use of insufficiently cleaned milking utensils, and using common utensil for washings of udder and milking purposes.Conclusion:The result of the present study signifies that raw milk was contaminated with EHEC and possesses a high public health threat. As dairy cattle and its environment serve as a potential niche for EHEC, hygienic milking practices should be adopted to curb the occurrence of EHEC in raw milk.

IbM Peternak Sapi Perah dan Pengolahan Susu di Pakem Sleman

Community service aims to make (a) the creation of a clean enclosure environment; clean water supply, availability of cattle breeding facilities, availability of standard and hygienic milking equipment, the achievement of milk that meets quality standards, availability of milk heating equipment, and the availability of cooling equipment for milk storage; (b) the creation of marketing networks of milk products, increased ability to use the Internet network for expansion of marketing, increased ability to manage finance through cash book entry and cash out, increasing ability of partner to operate computer-based financial application programs, obtain permission trade mark and entrepreneurship spirit for keeper of dairy cattle. After conducting discussion with Partners 1 and Partner 2, we provided the necessary trainings to help overcome the weaknesses of Partnerss. Partner's weaknesses were limited marketing of milk to cooperatives, cattle raising, simple pasteurization milk processing, business management/marketing, and bookkeeping and profit report creation. There were several steps that were taken, which included: cleaning training, milking training, pasteurized milk making training, business management training, bookkeeping training and production cost calculation, profit and loss calculation, and marketing management training. The results were providing facilities for activities and new markets that can increase revenues.

Defining a functional unit for dairy production LCA that reflects the transaction between the farmer and the dairy processor

The two main functions of dairy farming are to produce raw milk and to generate an economic income for the farmer (Powell et al. in Nutr Cycl Agroecosyst 82:107–115, 2008), both of which drive the downstream value chain. Farm profit is mainly determined by the quantity and quality of milk, and at the same time, dairy farmers have a responsibility for animal welfare and the protection of human health through milk hygiene. When dairy farmers supply milk to a processor, the payment is based on both the quantity and the quality in terms of composition (fat and protein) and hygiene (total bacterial count and somatic cell count). Somatic cell count reflects the health status of the mammary gland and contributes to reduced shelf life and reduced cheese yield and quality, whilst total bacterial count reflects herd health and farm sanitation. The objective of this work was to create a new functional unit for raw milk at the farm gate/ processor gate, which could be used to better capture the economic function of milk, while still reflecting the quality criteria captured by energy corrected milk and fat and protein corrected milk. Base price-adjusted milk (BPAM) is proposed as a functional unit to capture more of the functions of the transaction between the farmer and the processor. It expresses the volume of milk delivered as the equivalent volume at base price, such that greater milk solids increase the volume and poor hygiene decreases the volume. The BPAM was compared with energy-corrected milk and was tested using a survey of 54 farms in Ireland and eight scenarios compared with the observed values and an “ideal” scenario with no hygiene penalty imposed. It was found that kg BPAM for the sample of farms was strongly correlated with kg ECM because of the overall hygiene standard from the sample of farms available. For specific farms at specific times, the hygiene properties contributed to the economic function of the milk in a way that could not be captured using energy-corrected milk. The scenario analysis indicated that high levels of biological contamination, if captured in the raw milk functional unit, could increase carbon footprint by > 200%. It was concluded that BPAM may not be a necessary functional unit for all studies, but those that focused on the farmer and processor perspectives should consider using BPAM because it captures more of the obligatory properties of raw milk than just quality expressed in terms of milk solids.

Pelatihan Proses Pasteurisasi Sebagai Upaya Menumbuhkan Kemandirian Pemasaran Susu Kambing di Kelompok Sukorejo I, Turi, Sleman

The activities of community service which were conducted in Sukorejo, Girikerto, Turi, Sleman aimed to train farmers to be able to produce high quality goat milk, be skillful to process pasteurized milk, and be capable of marketing their dairy products. The activities consisted of counseling and training, focusing on the implementation of hygienic milking procedure and processing pasteurized milk. The community service was carried out in partnership with Plaza Agro, the Faculty of Animal Husbandry of Universitas Gadjah Mada, which is engaged in the sale of dairy and agricultural products. The training materials consisted of lactating goats, stage pens, goat milk, pasteurization and packaging equipment, and chemicals for milk quality testing. Counseling and discussion were done either during farmers meeting or between their activities in the communal goat houses. The program also carried out the procurement of equipment for milk processing and packaging which was facilitated by IbM Ristek Dikti (Higher Education) program 2016. Training results showed that an increase in the number of farmers who implemented hygienic milking, especially on the sanitation aspect, resulting in good quality milk. Density ranged from 1.030 to 1.034 in gravity, 5.5 to 5.6% of fat content and 15.3 to 15.5% of dry matter. The mild had a good flavor, odorless, and without alcohol. The quality of pasteurized milk was good, odorless, and had a typical goat's milk flavor. The reduction time of metylene blue reduction test was 7.9 hours, indicated that the approximate number of bacteria in milk approached 150000/mL, whose average of shelf life was 7 days. Initial marketing of pasteurized goat milk in Plaza Agro was limited on a small scale. The study concluded that processing pasteurized milk was useful for farmers to find an alternative market of goat milk.

Pelatihan Proses Pasteurisasi Sebagai Upaya Menumbuhkan Kemandirian Pemasaran Susu Kambing di Kelompok Sukorejo I, Turi, Sleman

The activities of community service which were conducted in Sukorejo, Girikerto, Turi, Sleman aimed to train farmers to be able to produce high quality goat milk, be skillful to process pasteurized milk, and be capable of marketing their dairy products. The activities consisted of counseling and training, focusing on the implementation of hygienic milking procedure and processing pasteurized milk. The community service was carried out in partnership with Plaza Agro, the Faculty of Animal Husbandry of Universitas Gadjah Mada, which is engaged in the sale of dairy and agricultural products. The training materials consisted of lactating goats, stage pens, goat milk, pasteurization and packaging equipment, and chemicals for milk quality testing. Counseling and discussion were done either during farmers meeting or between their activities in the communal goat houses. The program also carried out the procurement of equipment for milk processing and packaging which was facilitated by IbM Ristek Dikti (Higher Education) program 2016. Training results showed that an increase in the number of farmers who implemented hygienic milking, especially on the sanitation aspect, resulting in good quality milk. Density ranged from 1.030 to 1.034 in gravity, 5.5 to 5.6% of fat content and 15.3 to 15.5% of dry matter. The mild had a good flavor, odorless, and without alcohol. The quality of pasteurized milk was good, odorless, and had a typical goat's milk flavor. The reduction time of metylene blue reduction test was 7.9 hours, indicated that the approximate number of bacteria in milk approached 150000/mL, whose average of shelf life was 7 days. Initial marketing of pasteurized goat milk in Plaza Agro was limited on a small scale. The study concluded that processing pasteurized milk was useful for farmers to find an alternative market of goat milk.

IbM Peternak Sapi Perah dan Pengolahan Susu di Pakem Sleman

Community service aims to make (a) the creation of a clean enclosure environment; clean water supply, availability of cattle breeding facilities, availability of standard and hygienic milking equipment, the achievement of milk that meets quality standards, availability of milk heating equipment, and the availability of cooling equipment for milk storage; (b) the creation of marketing networks of milk products, increased ability to use the Internet network for expansion of marketing, increased ability to manage finance through cash book entry and cash out, increasing ability of partner to operate computer-based financial application programs, obtain permission trade mark and entrepreneurship spirit for keeper of dairy cattle. After conducting discussion with Partners 1 and Partner 2, we provided the necessary trainings to help overcome the weaknesses of Partnerss. Partner's weaknesses were limited marketing of milk to cooperatives, cattle raising, simple pasteurization milk processing, business management/marketing, and bookkeeping and profit report creation. There were several steps that were taken, which included: cleaning training, milking training, pasteurized milk making training, business management training, bookkeeping training and production cost calculation, profit and loss calculation, and marketing management training. The results were providing facilities for activities and new markets that can increase revenues.

English

Raw milk plays an important role in the survival and transport of pathogenic bacteria including Escherichia coli strains. This study was performed to determine the existence of E. coli in raw milk intended for human consumption and its associated virulence determinants. In this context, a total of 232 milk samples were obtained from different dairy shops located at Mansoura city and its surrounding villages. Milk samples were subjected for bacteriological and serological examination of E. coli. Furthermore, E. coli strains were tested for its haemolytic activity on blood agar plates. The recovered E. coli strains were also screened by Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the presence of enterotoxins including heat –labile (LT), heat- stable (ST) toxins and haemolysin (hly) genes. The recovery rate of E. coli was 14.65% (34/232). Among the recovered E. coli strains, 12 different E. coli serotypes were identified namely, O26:H11 (n꞊6), O111:H2 (n꞊5), O128:H2 (n꞊5), O91:H21 (n꞊4), O124 (n꞊3), O127:H6 (n꞊3), O103:H21 (n꞊2), O153 (n꞊1), O113:H4 (n꞊2), O6 (n꞊1), O121:H7 (n꞊1) and O146 (n=1). Regarding PCR results, 31(91.19%) E. coli strains harbored STa and seven strains carried hly gene (20.59%) while non E. coli isoates harbord LT gene. Conclusively, raw milk can be considered as serious source of pathogenic E. coli, therefore, proper management practices and effective control measures are recommended to improve milk hygiene and sanitation.   Key words: Raw milk, Escherichia coli, enterotoxin genes, haemolysin gene.

Evaluación de la calidad de leches crudas en tres subregiones del departamento de Sucre, Colombia

El objetivo fue evaluar la calidad fisicoquímica, microbiológica, recuento de células somáticas y presencia de inhibidores en leches crudas en el departamento de Sucre. Mediante un estudio descriptivo de corte transversal, se tomaron 150 muestras de leche cruda procedentes de seis centros de acopio o plantas procesadoras de tres subregiones del departamento de Sucre (Sabanas, San Jorge y Golfo del Morrosquillo). En cada centro de acopio se tomaron 25 muestras que correspondieron a 25 productores de las diferentes subregiones del departamento, para un total de 50 muestras por cada subregión. Se determinaron parámetros fisicoquímicos, microbiológicos y de sanidad de la ubre. Los datos obtenidos se analizaron de acuerdo a la normatividad vigente en Colombia. Los parámetros fisicoquímicos en su mayoría se hallaron dentro de los valores aceptados establecidos en el decreto 616 de 2006 y el decreto 1880 de 2011(proteína ?2,9%, grasa ?3,0%, densidad (15oC) ?1.030, ST ?11,30, SNG ?8,30). El recuento de unidades formadoras de colonias (UFC/mL) en las diferentes subregiones fue mayor a 600.000. El recuento de células somáticas (RCS/mL) fue mayor a 500.000. En el 8% de las leches muestreadas se encontró presencia de inhibidores. Se encontró buena calidad fisicoquímica, sin embargo la calidad microbiológica y la sanidad de la ubre son deficientes, lo que requiere de implementación inmediata de programas para la obtención de leches de buena calidad higiénica.

English

A cross-sectional study was conducted in Bishoftu town, Ethiopia, from November, 2016 to April, 2017, to assess smallholder urban dairy farmers’ milk hygiene practices and awareness on cattle milk-borne zoonoses. Data were collected from a total of 100 randomly selected dairy farmers using structured questionnaire. The results of the study showed that all respondents practiced hand milking, with twice (90%), once (8%) and thrice (2%) milking frequency per day. Most of the respondents (86%) cleaned their barn before milking and 98% used treated pipe water supply for farm activities. Plastic containers were commonly used for storage and transportation of milk. About 26 and 28% of the farmers used individual and common towel for wiping udder after washing, respectively. Most of the farmers (98%) did not practice post-milking dipping of teats. In all the farmers interviewed, respondents’ awareness levels of milk-borne zoonoses were 38.89, 33.33, 19.84, 6.35 and 1.6% for tuberculosis, mastitis, anthrax, brucellosis and salmonellosis, respectively. Based on the findings of this study, farmers’ awareness level on cattle milk-born zoonoses was low except for tuberculosis and mastitis. In conclusion, there was little awareness about milk borne diseases and some farmers adhered to some dairy hygiene practices. Therefore, it is imperative to strengthen farmers’ awareness, extension services and training programs for smallholders in dairy industry on milking hygiene practices and post-harvest handling of milk, to minimize the likely losses due to rejection of spoiled milk and milk-borne dangers which may occur due to consumption of contaminated milk. Key words: Bishoftu, farmers’ awareness, milk-borne zoonoses, milking hygiene.

Milk hygiene in small ruminants: A review

Somatic cell count (SCC), mammary pathogens prevalence, total and specific bacterial counts, antimicrobial residues, macroscopic sediment, water addition, aflatoxins and other contaminants constitute the basis for milk payment-schemes, monitoring and improvement of flock hygiene and health management, and development of analytical surveillance programs in the dairy small ruminants. The present work reviews factors influencing the variation of these variables, including milk analytical methods, storage and preservation, along with management implications during the last two decades. Following farmer and cooperative educational programs, progressive reductions have been reported for total bacterial count and antimicrobial residue occurrence in bulk tank milk. These results were consistent, however, with high values for SCC and specific bacterial populations. Thus, mastitis control programs should be intensified to increase hygiene in milk and economic returns for producers and processors. In addition, the implementation of programs to reduce specific bacterial counts (i.e., psychrotrophs, coliforms, Clostridium spp. spores) and mammary pathogen prevalence (i.e., Staph. aureus, Mycoplasma spp.), as well as the use of combined screening methods for an increased rate of antimicrobial detection, are currently required strategies which are positively valuated by milk processors, industry and consumers. Other contaminants may also be present, but cost-effective screening and analytical systems have not yet been implemented. This review aims to be helpful for troubleshooting milk quality and safety, developing future premium payment systems and industry quality-standards, optimizing management, on-farm risk traceability systems and consumer acceptance.

Milk Hygiene Practices Of Dair Workers of milk colony, Dhanas,Chandigarh.

Milk Hygiene Practices Of Dair Workers of milk colony, Dhanas,Chandigarh.

Study on Milk Hygiene, Quality Control in the Market Chain in Jimma

Raw milk quality and hygienic status of dairy farms study were conducted from October 2013-March 2014 in Jimma town with the objectives to assess hygienic milking and handling practices and quality of raw milk at different critical points throughout the milk value chain, in Jimma zone, south western Ethiopia. The study was performed by questionnaire survey, personal observation and milk sample testing in the laboratory. For the survey a total of 54 purposively selected milk producing households who sell raw milk to the town were interviewed to assess the hygienic milking and handling practices. A total of 162 bulk raw milk samples were collected aseptically from selected farms, milk cooperative and cafeterias for raw milk quality testing and tested with different test. Clot-on-boiling test positive results for farm, cooperative and cafeterias were 7.78%, 55.56% and 58.7%, respectively. Positive cases recorded for alcohol test were 48.89% in farm milk whereas 77.78% in cooperatives milk and 87.43% in cafeterias milk. In this study average mean pH for three sources was 6.68, 6.646 and 6.614, respectively. The mean titratable acidity of samples was 0.191, 0.226 and 0.261, respectively. The mean specific gravity of the milk samples were 1.0297, 1.028 and 1.0126 g/ml, respectively. Analysis of variance for pH, titratable acidity and specific gravity shows the mean values to be significant. For MBRT only 3.33% of samples from farms reduced the dye above 4½ an hour and about 41.11%, 33.33% and 26.98% decolorized the dye within 2-4½ hours; about 38.89%, 44.44% and 34.92% reduced within 1-2 hours; about 14.44%, 11.11% and 30.15% reduced in ½-1 hour; and 2.22%, 11.11% and 7.9% of samples reduced the dye below ½ an hour, respectively. Methylene blue reduction test shows bacterial load increased as level increased up to consumer The test result indicated that milk quality deterioration increased from farms to cafeterias. In addition at all level adulteration with water was observed, however it is highest at cafeterias. However, as compared to other sources farm milk had better quality. Reduced quality is related to public health risks and these calls for improvement of quality by awareness creation on hygienic milking and handling of milk and educating milk sellers to avoid adulteration of milk. It is also important to apply appropriate quality control system before receiving the milk to assure quality.

Adoption of Good Dairy Farming Practices among Commercial Dairy Owners of Karnataka

Karnataka has been purposively selected due to the highest milk producing state in South India where commercial dairy farming is also in developing stage. In all, 135 respondents from 3 districts form the total sample size for the study having equal representation of small (10-20 milch animals), medium (20-40 milch animals) and large (>40 milch animals) commercial dairy farmers. Questionnaire was prepared on animal health, hygienic milking, animal feeding, animal welfare and environmental friendly practices according to “Guidelines on good dairy farming practices” by FAO (2014). The study shows that average adoption score of animal health practices,hygienic milking practicesand environmental practices was medium. The average adoption score of animal feeding and animal welfare practices was high. The average overall adoption score of good dairy farming practices was medium whereas average overall adoption score of both small and medium farmers group was medium and large farmers group was high. The study also shows that education, occupation, herd size, annual income and extension agency contact were highly significant and positively correlated with adoption level of good dairy farming practices, whereas livestock rearing experience, land holding, social participation and mass media were positively and significantly associated with adoption. The study further reveals that annual income, herd size, education and extension agency contact were the main contributing factors to adoption of good dairy farming practices.

Association between polymorphism of ABCG2 gene and somatic cell count in Czech dairy sheep breeds

In the Czech Republic, dairy sheep have traditionally been used as a dual-purpose species, generating income from both milk and meat. The functionality and health of the mammary gland are directly correlated with milk production, as well as with the hygiene and quality of milk and dairy products. Mastitis is one of the main infectious diseases in dairy sheep. One of the candidate genes that affect milk production traits is the ATP-binding cassette sub-family G member 2 (ABCG2) gene. The ABCG2 gene, a member of the ATP-binding cassette family, transports cytostatic and xenobiotic drugs across the cytoplasmic membrane. The study was based on 1747 records from 387 head of dairy sheep of the Lacaune breed (139) and the East Friesian breed (248). The analysis was performed by means of polymerase chain reactions (PCR). Genomic DNA was extracted from blood. Phenotype data used in the study were provided by the Association of Sheep and Goat Breeders in the Czech Republic (ASGB). We typed all three genotypes: DD, DI and II. In the Lacaune breed, the frequency of occurrence of the major D allele was 0.694, and the minor I allele had a frequency of occurrence of 0.306. In contrast, in East Friesian sheep the frequency of allele D was 0.216 and that of allele I was 0.784. Mutation c.683-80_46del in the intron 5 region of the ABCG2 gene confirmed the effect on somatic cell count in the dairy sheep population observed in this study. Further studies are needed to evaluate this possible association in other sheep breed populations. Mutation c.683-80_46del in intron 5 of the ABCG2 gene could be used as a candidate gene for somatic cell count..

Milk hygiene practices of dairy workers of Milk Colony, Dhanas, Chandigarh

Milk hygiene practices of dairy workers of Milk Colony, Dhanas, Chandigarh

Prevalence and Contamination Level of Staphylococcus aureus in Raw Camel Milk and Associated Risk Factors in Jigjiga District, Eastern Ethiopia

A cross sectional study was conducted from August, 2014 to February 2015 aimed to determine the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in raw camel milk and to assess risk factors. The study was conducted on a total of 384 bulk milk samples from three critical points. For this study both laboratory and questionnaire based data were collected. The overall prevalence of S. aureus was found to be 11.45% (44/384). The frequency of isolation of S. aureus varied between sources of sample and ranged from 7-15%. The prevalence of S. aureus was 7.03% (9/128), 11.71% (15/128) and 15% (20/128) from household, primary collection centers and selling sites, respectively. The raw camel milk samples were contaminated and the S. aureus counts markedly variable among samples at different sampling points. Mean S. aureus count was found to be 4.2 × 104 CFU/ml and the mean count of the samples at household was 8.9 × 102 CFU/ml, 9.9 × 103 CFU/ml at primary collection centers and 1.1 × 105 CFU/ml at selling sites. The difference was not statistically significant between the sampling points (p>0.05). In the study area, camel milk is consumed (100%) in its raw state without being subjected to any sort of processing treatment. The outcome of the present results suggests that, the examined raw camel milk samples were produced and handled under poor hygienic conditions with high health risk to the consumers. Consumption of raw camel milk should be of major concern from public health point of view. This study recommends for urgent development and adaptation of feasible and sustainable interventions to improve the camel milk hygiene and safety in study area and to mitigate staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP) in the region.