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nelson mandela bay's family lifestyle
author:
xandre van der berg
so this is where milk comes
issue:
6, winter 2008
from
No! It does not come from a bottle and it is not made in a factory. Not a man made factory, anyway. Join People Talk Magazine as we explore cows, milk and nutrition with a visit to Bushy Park Farm Dairy, Nelson Mandela Bay's own free-range Dairy. Where does that endless supply of farm fresh milk come from? First you need a herd of cows and an awesome pasture with lush green grass. You let them feast in the pasture - cows spend most of their day grazing away – and this has nothing to do with skate boarding, “grazing” is what “eating grass” is called. Mammals produce milk to feed their young. The mammary glands of female mammals produce this liquid that is basically a water based solution (80 – 90 percent water) containing sugar (lactose), proteins (mostly casein) and salts of calcium, phosphorus, chlorine, sodium, potassium and sulphur. In South Africa and the United Kingdom most milk comes from cows, but in other countries goats, camels, llamas, reindeer (north pole?), sheep and buffalo are all important sources of milk. Now you know “why” the pasture, the cows and the grazing. The cow's milk is actually intended to feed its calf (baby-cow) and we've taken advantage of this to obtain the perfect food source. Don't worry – there is more than enough left over for the baby-cows – the more you milk a cow, the more she produces, so that we have some to drink and the calf has enough to grow. From the pasture the cows move to the holding yard, where they wait to be milked. This happens twice a day - at Bushy Park Farm Dairy 04h00 in the morning and again at 16h00 in the afternoon. The milking parlor is automated and rotary, holding 50 cows at a time. They milk 600 cows, every day, twice a day. Each cow delivering about 20 liters of milk with every milking and it takes almost 2 hours to get all 600 cows milked. To ensure cleanliness, cows walk through a water foot spray to get rid of all mud and grass on their hooves, before stepping onto the rotary table where the milking will be done. Don't think the cows at Bushy Park Farm Dairy are just another number. Each cow is equipped with a micro chip, recognized by a computer and when she comes in for milking her whole history is available with new information collected. Information on age, weight, pregnancy and how much milk she produces is regularly recorded and reviewed. The computer calculates how much supplement she needs and a “cow-specific-treat” is given to her – something to chew on while she is being milked. This relaxes her and ensures her perfect health. Once on the rotary table the cow's teat is stripped of initial milk, then a milking cluster is clipped onto her four teats, and the milking begins. The rotary is sprayed down regularly during the milking process to ensure high hygienic standards. Being a rotary this parlor constantly moves, taking seven minutes to complete full circle. It takes six minutes for each cow to be milked. When the rotary has almost come full circle, the cluster is removed and a disinfectant and cleaning solution is sprayed on the cow's teats, once more, to keep her comfortable and healthy. Once milked, the cows reverse off the rotary and make their way back to the pasture. Yes! To resume grazing! The cluster that is connected to the cow's teats is a suction device, “sucking” the milk into a holding tank. From the holding tank a series of pipes transport the milk, through filters and “heat exchangers” to the first bulk storage tank. This is also the start of the “cooling process”. When the milk reaches the first bulk storage tank it is cooled down to 4 oC. This prevents any bacteria from growing in the milk. From the bulk storage tank, careful to keep the temperature at 4 oC, the milk is transferred to the main silo at the milk factory where processing and packaging is done. This silo can hold up to 12000 liters of milk. At the factory “fat free milk” is produced when a separator separates the cream from the milk. The milk is also pasteurized by heating and rapid cooling. As soon as packaging is complete, the milk is taken into a holding area or cold storage room. This room is even colder than your fridge at home, and remains at a temp of 2 oC. At this cold storage room, trucks acting as freezers, pick up the milk and deliver it to the shops where we buy it.
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