Here you’ll find guidance on how to effectively rinse dairy plant detergents, prevent chemical residues in milk, and follow best practices for safe, compliant cleaning.
Summary:
The effective cleaning of your dairy plant is an important part of supplying high quality milk to Fonterra.
Fonterra and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), need to demonstrate to our customers and markets we are supplying milk and milk products that are free from contaminants.
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Your dairy detergents and chlorine solution must be MPI-approved for use in farm dairies. When using chlorine sanitisers as part of your wash programme, you must ensure that the milking plant is rinsed with potable water to reduce the risk of residues.
Organise a traceback
Your milk quality results are available daily on your tanker docket or on the Farm Source website. If you have any questions about these results call the Farm Source Service Centre on 0800 65 65 68.
Your farm dairy detergent supplier, Farm Dairy Assessor and milking equipment supplier can provide more specific information on the proper volume of water required to achieve an effective rinse in your plant and review your wash programme to ensure it is optimal for achieving a clean plant and residue-free milk.
A snapshot of what to look for:
- Elevated chlorate levels in milk can indicate issues with cleaning and rinsing processes.
- Chlorates form as chlorine products break down, especially when stored at higher temperatures.
- Overuse or overdosing of chlorine in water treatment or plant cleaning increases residue risk.
- Residual cleaning chemicals can enter milk if detergent rinsing is not effective.
- Following recommended chemical use levels helps reduce the risk of residues in milk.