Small-Scale

Dairy Farming Manual

Volume 1

Technology Unit 6

Milk Collecting Centres

page 101

Extension Materials

What should you know about milk collecting centres ?

1 What is important in milk collection ? (5-7)

- delivering your milk quickly and at a low cost

- testing your milk.

2 What does the milk collecting centres do ? (8-19)

If your milk is good quality, the centres:
- recieves your milk
- keeps it in good condition
- dispatches your milk and arranges for payment

3 What is important in the location of milk collecting centres ?

- water supply and waste disposal
- ease of transport
- no flooding and good shade.

4 What type of utilities, buildings and equipment are necessory ? (21-41)

A centre needs:
- water and energy supply
-the right buildings and equipments.

page 103

Note: (The numbers in brackets refer to illustrations in the Extension Materials)

What is important in milk collecting ?

5 Getting milk to the collecting centre in the shortest time.

6 Getting milk to the collecting centres at low cost

7 When and how to test the quality of milk.

page 104

What does a milk collecting centre do ?

Reception

8 The centre takes samples of milk and
- tests them

9 - weighs the milk

10 - records the weights and

- tests results

for each delivery

11 - rejects poor quality milk.

Make sure your milk is good quality.

page 105

Straining and filtering

12 The centre strains your milk into a dump tank to remove impurities.

13 From the dump tank, the centre pumps the milk through a filter to a cooling tank.

Cooling and Storing

14 The centre cools the milk and stores it in a farm-tank cooler.
The cooler has an agitator to speed cooling and prevent a cream layer forming.

15 Some small centres use a surface cooler. Warm milk enters and the cool milk in cans is ready for transport.

page 106

Dispatch and Sales

16 Tanker trucks collect the milk from the centres and send it to the dairy.

17 The centre may sell milk locally

18 and also supplies for the farm such as:

- concentrates

- chemicals

- equipment.

Payment

19 The centre will keep records and accounts and arrange payment for your milk.

page 107

20. What is important in the location of a milk collecting centre ?

page 108

What utilities are necessory for a milk collecting centre ?

Water

21 If there is no town supply, drill a borehole and use a pump.

22 If a borehole is not possible, use a shallow or rain water attachment.

23 Make sure the water is safe by filtering and adding chlorine.

24 A centre needs 3 litres of water for every 1 litre of milk produced. So for 100 litres of milk, the centre needs 300 litres of milk.

page 109

Electricity

25 The centre needs electricity to cool and pump the milk.
If there is no mains supply, the centre can use a diesel generator.

Gas

26 The centre can use gas for heating water to clean and sterilize dairy equipment.

27 If no gas is available, the centre may use wood-fired or drip oil-fired boilers.

Solar heating

28 This centre collects the sun's rays to heat water in the tank.

page 110

What type of building is necessory ?

Floor

29 The floor should be:
- hard and flat, so that water does not pool
- angled to the drain, so that water runs away
Surroundings should be dry and solid - not muddy.

30 Mix concentrate correctly using cement, sand, gravel and water.

31 Let the concentrate dry slowly and sprinkle with water regularly for 3-4 days to prevent cracks.

Drains

32 Make drains from half sections of glazed tiles.

page 111

Walls and Windows

33 Use clay, stone or concentrate blocks for the walls and white wash or tile.

Roof

34 Use corrugated iron.

Design

35 Ckeck the design carefully
- with the architect, make sure your building is low cost and safe
- with extension worker, a good layout saves you work
- with the health authorities, good planning for hygiene yields high quality milk.

page 112

What type of equipment is necessory ?

Cooling and Storage

36 coolers

- cans

Cleaning

37 boilers

- brushes

Testing and Measuring

38 scales

- laboratory equipment

Safety

39 fire extinguishers
- emergency generators
- first aid kit

page 113

How to get the best from equipment ?

40 make sure spare parts are easily available.

41 Maintain equipment regularly

- clean everything
- grease bearings
- change oil.

page 114

What do you know about milk collecting centres ?

What is important ?

1.   Short delivery time
(5)

2.   Low cost delivery
(6)

3.   Method and timing of tests
(7)

Functions of milk collecting centres

1.   Reception

      - sampling and testing
(8)

      - weighing
(9)

      - recording
(10)

      -ensuring quality
(11)

2.   Straining and filtering
(12-13)

3.   Cooling and storage
(14-15)

4.   Despatch and Sales

      - transport to dairy
(16)

      - local sales
(17)

      -farm supplies
(18)

5.   Payment
(19)

Important points in location
(20)

1. Water supply

2.   Safe sewage and waste disposal

3.   Good roads

4.   Shade and little dust

5.   No floods

Utilities

1.   Water
(21-24)

2.   Electricity
(25)

3.   Gas or wood
(26-27)

4.   Solar Heating
(28)

Building

1.   Floors
(29-31)

2.   Drains
(32)

3.   Walls and windows
(33)

4.   Roof
(34)

5.   Design
(35)

Equipment

1.   Cooling and Storage
(36)

2.   Cleaning
(37)

3.   Testing, measuring
(38)

4.   Safety
(39)

5.   Spare parts
(40)

6.   Maintenance
(41)

page 115