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MANAGEMENT
By BILL DIMMICK
Quality milk, eh!
Ontario rolls out pilot for new prevention-based national program
A few times over the years,
.Ken Weitzel has had to
dump part of a bulk tank of
milk because the cooler got
left off overnight. He actually
inquired about a warning sys-
tem when he had a new tank
installed about two years ago
but a local dealer suggested he
really didn’t need it.
Now Ken has one with a
warning light and firmly
endorses it. The light is “pretty
hard to miss. If something goes
wrong, you’ll know,” he says.
The warning system was
installed on his farm recently
as part of the new National
Quality Assurance Program.
Dairy Farmers of Ontario
(DFO) rolled out the program
over the summer as a pilot pro-
ject.
Ken also likes the time-tem-
perature recorder that was
installed. It lets him keep tabs
on the bulk tank, showing tem-
peratures at given times. As
Ken Weitzel checks the time-temperature recorder installed as part of the quali-
well, it reveals whether wash
ty assurance pilot project rolled out by Dairy Farmers of Ontario. cycles of the complete system,
ONTARIO MILK PRODUCER, SEPTEMBER 2001 29
experience in implementing the pro-
gram. There’s also the opportunity to
work out administration details and
Ken checks wash line and tank find ways to improve it, explains
George MacNaughton, DFO’s farm
temperatures regularly now—difficult policies and field services manager.
For the last several years, indus-
tries from electronics to food process-
to do without the recorder. ing, along with some agricultural
commodities, have been developing
quality programs based on HACCP,
short for Hazard Analysis Critical
including pipeline, were done prop- confidence that everything’s working Control Points. Dairy Farmers of
erly. properly,” he says. Canada (DFC) was responsible for
Ken checks the wash line and The pilot project in which Ken’s initially developing a program at the
tank temperatures regularly now— participating includes the farms of all national level so dairy farmers could
difficult to do without the recorder. DFO board members. Ken’s wife implement HACCP-type principles
Not long after the recorder was Sharon is DFO’s board member for on their farms.
installed, he found one instance Region 10, representing Huron and In the case of milk production,
when the milking system wasn’t Perth counties. The couple milks 34 explains MacNaughton, the pro-
washed properly. It turned out that a cows in a tie-stall operation near gram’s goal has been to review on-
tap had been left on inadvertently. Stratford in Perth. farm practices and establish standard
He compares the recorder to the The pilot project could be operating procedures. Having every-
transfer line safety switches producers expanded later. Eventually, DFO envi- one on the farm following these pro-
had to install some years ago to keep sions all dairy farms in the province cedures greatly increases the likeli-
wash water out of bulk tanks. “I really being on the prevention-based quali- hood of producing top-quality milk.
like it (the recorder). It gives you ty program. The pilot will provide A regular study that DFO con-
A milk quality assurance sampler
D FO will be rolling out the national quality assurance
program in stages. The first stage would cover areas
deemed to have to the greatest quality benefits. These
withdrawal times. Storage of these medicines is part of
the package too. Proper use and storage of pesticides,
treated seed and fertilizer are other key items.
are animal identification, livestock medicines and pesti-
cides management and milking procedures. A workbook Cow Environment. This area covers manure manage-
developed for the Canadian Quality Assurance Program ment that ensures cattle cleanliness.
provides a ready reference. Note that good record-keep-
ing is needed in all these areas: Water. Since milk is 87 per cent water, you need to
ensure that what your cattle drink is of good quality. You
Cattle Identification. You must identify all cattle on your also need to ensure you’re using good quality water, free
farm under the National Livestock Identification pro- from harmful bacteria, to clean your equipment.
gram. As well you need to identify them for keeping your Maintaining water quality includes regular testing.
own records.
Milking Management, Cooling and Storage. This is where
Biosecurity. You need a plan to prevent the introduction the time-temperature recorder is invaluable for checking
of infectious disease to your herd. The plan should proper operation of milking systems. Inspecting equip-
include provisions for reducing the risk of spreading dis- ment regularly for cleanliness and other maintenance is
eases that may already be present. Mastitis treatment and part of it too. As well, this area includes using standard
prevention are a big part of biosecurity as well. operating procedures for milking and taking steps to
deal with mastitis.
Livestock Medicines. As proposed, you or a farm employ-
ee would have to complete a Livestock Medicines course Training and Communication. You need a written plan to
successfully to be part of Ontario’s quality assurance pro- ensure everyone involved in the operation knows and
gram (see Quality Corner, page 16 for details). Among the understands responsibilities. This includes responses to
quality assurance criteria are administering livestock situations that could compromise the safety of the milk
medicines, keeping records of their use and observing and meat you produce.
30 SEPTEMBER 2001, ONTARIO MILK PRODUCER
Regular sanitation of equipment, left, is a standard procedure on most farms now. Right, all cattle must be identified.
ducts on public attitudes towards On the Weitzel farm, three other is crucial.
milk shows many consumers have people besides Ken could be respon- “Staff found a risk in the way we
concerns about product quality, pro- sible for a particular milking. “I’ve handled dry cows,” Bruce says. “The
duction practices and animal welfare, been doing it (milking) for years but solution was simple. It was just a mat-
MacNaughton notes. A HACCP-based someone else may miss some of the ter of identifying a treated animal
system can re-assure consumers that steps. This way, all they have to do is better by putting a mark on her leg
quality safeguards are in place. This check the procedures and they can for identification between treatment
has the potential to increase sales ensure the milking is done properly.” and separation from the milking
and market share. When you start documenting your herd.”
Individual farms should also bene- procedures, you realize how many The farm was already using a
fit. “There are many quality defects steps there are, he says. He’s already blackboard in the barn to show which
that result in partial or whole bulk been fine-tuning them to ensure the animals had received antibiotic treat-
tanks of milk being discarded on wording is clear. ments. But the review also recom-
farms,” he says. “Reducing these There were no real changes need- mended improvements to permanent
occurrences will improve profitability.” ed for his procedures in the areas of record keeping of antibiotic use.
Another big part of the program cleanliness and sanitation. However, a “Better record keeping raises your
is having producers documenting staff review did identify a risk in awareness,” Bruce says. And, once it’s
procedures used on their individual antibiotic treatment record keeping. set up, it’s just a matter of minutes,
farms, MacNaughton says. “Most While Ken identified treated cows to not hours, a week to keep up to date.
farms have standard operating proce- keep inhibitors out of the bulk tank, He’s been close to the quality pro-
dures. If I had to milk your cows the review found he needed to do a gram since it was at the idea stage. A
tonight, for example, you’d be able better job of recording treatment DFO representative at DFC, he
to tell me what to do. The only real dates. chaired the Canadian Quality Milk
change for you, under this program, Staff made a similar recommenda- Steering Committee. This group
would be to write it down so I could tion to Bruce Saunders, DFO’s vice- oversaw the program’s inception, a
follow your directions precisely.” chairman, also board member for pilot project on British Columbia
Many dairy farmers might balk at Region 11, which covers Grey and dairy farms and progress through to
having to write out instructions on Bruce counties. The Saunders family the current stage.
how to milk and tend cows. “When farm milks 150 cows in a free-stall As a producer, he sees real merit
you first get into it, you wonder why,” operation. With up to four family in the program just from a farm man-
says Ken Weitzel. “Now, I can see members and an employee involved agement standpoint. “It’s encourages
where it has real value.” in milking, having proper procedures a better management style. It lets you
ONTARIO MILK PRODUCER, SEPTEMBER 2001 31
stage and is ready for printing. The
steering committee’s work essentially
is done and now an implementation
“Very few producers would have to committee is needed, Bruce says.
Implementation would include pro-
change much, if anything, in the way gram certification by the Canadian
Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
In Ontario, DFO has to get CFIA
they do things now.” that the province’s proposal meets
government quality assurance
requirements. As well, DFO will be
spreading the word to grassroots pro-
identify risks and solve problems ducers would have to change much if ducers. Quality assurance will be a
before they happen.” anything in the way they do things major topic at the annual Geneva
The Saunders farm has had a now. It’s a matter of putting on paper Park policy conference this fall.
time-temperature recorder since what you do every day.” The program basically boils down
March 2000, installed by DFO to test That’s where he sees benefits to to these key points, Bruce says. They
the equipment before the pilot pro- assuring the quality of milk you pro- are:
ject rollout in Ontario. It’s already
proved its worth. After three or four
days, Bruce explains, you can identify
a regular pattern. If there’s a devia-
tion, you know there’s a problem.
Such deviations have shown up
twice. “In both cases the blend tem-
perature in the tank during milking
was higher than normal,” says Bruce.
“ We identified a solenoid on a
plate that remained closed and
wouldn’t open. We were able to find
the problem and have it fixed.
Another example was when we dis-
covered the bottom compressor of
our two-compressor bulk tank wasn’t
working.”
Bruce figures these problems
would have been discovered eventual-
ly but the recorder provided an early
warning, before the farm had to lose
a tank of milk.
That’s a big part of the thinking Employee Steve Williamson checks procedures posted in the Weitzel barn.
behind quality assurance. “I could
foresee this program, if implemented
provincially, could easily save a few duce and safeguarding your income. • say what you do (written and post-
hundred bulk tanks of milk per year,” “What it (the program) does is raise ed procedures);
he says. the profile of risks your operation • do what you say (follow those pro-
On his farm, saving just one faces and how you should deal with cedures);
7,000-litre tank, worth more than them.” • prove it (keep records).
$3,500, would more than cover the The program is gaining accep- If there is a problem, correct it
capital costs of the equipment tance, he adds. In July, after DFC’s and record when it was corrected.
involved (DFO is currently investigat- annual meeting, producer delegates “We have a good product, a quality
ing equipment from various manu- attended a quality assurance work- product, but we need to prove it to
facturers. Cost estimates range from shop. Producers from almost all the consumer,” Bruce says. “This pro-
$750 to $2,500). provinces spoke positively about how gram, in effect, allows us to prove it.”
Aside from capital costs, however, they would be implementing the pro-
producers might be leery of having to gram at home.
follow set procedures. Bruce is quick At the national level, the program Bill Dimmick is editor of
to allay such concerns. “Very few pro- manual has reached the final draft Ontario Milk Producer.
32 SEPTEMBER 2001, ONTARIO MILK PRODUCER
