We all remember the old shepherds, who milked their sheep by hand, starting with the first one until they had finished with the flock and without delaying too long, to then make the
cheese
. Those ancient shepherds milked their sheep twice a day to obtain a greater number of liters.
This recognizable hand movement was carried out perfectly so as not to cause udder diseases, such as mastitis, in the sheep.
Now there are no longer any shepherds left to carry out this arduous task, but all the effort that used to be made has been replaced by mechanical milking equipment. The milking machine is an equipment that tries to simulate the suckling of the lamb, in the most natural way, thus reducing the work of the shepherds, who with one piece of equipment simultaneously milk a group of sheep, in variable numbers depending on the equipment. This equipment is used twice a day, early in the morning and late in the afternoon, in the same way as our shepherd grandfathers did in their time.
The milking machine consists of a cup, which is applied to the teat, and two alternating stages of suction and massage, similar to lamb suckling. It is important that this is precisely regulated because it can lead to udder disease, such as mastitis.
At the exit of these milking machines, the milk is conveyed to the farm’s tanks, equipped with refrigeration equipment, where it is kept at a refrigerated temperature until a tanker truck collects the milk from the farm.
With the beginning of the use of this equipment, it has been proven in milk analysis that a product with less beneficial bacteriology is obtained, since they are the cause of milk alteration, although the beneficial bacteriology is also reduced.
In the event that a new or revised cleaning control The risk of contamination of the milk by the farmers can become a high risk equipment, which would be immediately detected with the daily analysis of the milk of each farmer, analyzed by an accredited entity such as the interprofessional laboratories.
If our shepherd grandfathers would raise their heads………
