Argentina’s Dairy Institutions Promote a Plan to Improve Milk Quality

A project focused on family dairy farms in Argentina’s Pampas region is being coordinated by the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences at the National University of La Plata (UNLP), the National Agricultural Technology Institute (INTA), AUDES and CONADEV. Activities are planned in the dairy areas of Tandil, Punta Indio and Magdalena, all in Buenos Aires province.

UNLP said that 39% of dairy farms in the Pampas region keep fewer than 100 cattle. Family labour supports much of the work on these holdings, while the use of technology and management methods remains an area identified for improvement by the project.

Assessing milk and farm hygiene

The teams will examine conditions that may affect the hygienic and sanitary quality of milk. Their assessments will cover milking routines, the cleaning of equipment and the bacteriological quality of water used at the farms.

The project will also test for possible antibiotic-treatment residues in milk. Its animal-health work includes identifying cattle that test positive for brucellosis or tuberculosis and applying the relevant sanitary measures.

Diagnostics and training

A representative group of family establishments will be studied to produce indicators covering milk quality, water, antibiotic residues and, in selected cases, animal health. The technical teams will use the findings to locate critical points in each production system and prepare farm-specific management recommendations.

Training for workers, manuals on good practices and guides for family producers form part of the initiative. The project is coordinated by Karina Pellicer, Virginia Pellicer, Cecilia Villat and Florencia Aliverti, according to information released by UNLP’s veterinary faculty. It is intended to support the continued development of the farms through measures covering daily milking, facility hygiene and animal-health monitoring.