Limiting Bacterial Contamination
The water supply used on dairy farms should be portable and located so that there is no possibility of contamination with animals or human discharge. Where public sewerage systems are not available, human wastes and floor washings from milk handling areas should be disposed of in septic tanks or cesspools. Manure should net be allowed to accumulate near milk handling areas and is best disposed of by spreading in thin layers on pastures.
Flies may be controlled in milk-handling areas, at least to some extent, by flytraps that utilize entrapment liquids, by poisons, such as formaldehyde, or by electric fly killers. The control of other insects, such as cockroaches, may require the use of an approved insecticide.
The walls and floor of the milking area should be kept clean, and the room should be reasonably well ventilated and free from dust. Personnel involved in the handling of milk should not have a history of intestinal disease. Flush toilets, in rooms that do not open directly into the area where cows are milked, should be provided or personnel, and hand washing and sanitizing facilities should be available at or near the area where milk is drawn. The hands of the milker or milking attendant should have been cleaned, sanitized, and dried before milking is started.
Limiting Bacterial Contamination
