Milk getting from the cow to the consumer includes the following steps: Step 1 : Cows Grazing, Step 2 : Harvesting Milk, Step 3 : Storing Milk, Step 4 : Transporting Milk, Step 5 : Lab Testing, Step 6 : Packaging and Step 7 : Distributing and Selling Milk

1. How Milk gets from the
Cow to the Consumer

2. Step 1 ­Cows
Grazing
Dairy cows typically spend their days eating, sleeping, and ruminating or
chewing their cud. Typically cows spend about 8 hours eating, 8 hours
sleeping and 8 hours ruminating or chewing their cud. Cows are usually
provided with a fresh paddock of grass in the morning after milking and
another fresh paddock of grass in the evening after milking. They may
also be fed some grain in the dairy while being milked and Hay or Silage
(conserved forage) if there is not enough grass available. Many large
dairy farms utilize growth hormones and antibiotics during the rearing
process to artificially increase a cow's milk production and to decrease the
spread of infectious diseases among their cows.

3. Step 2 – Harvesting Milk
In the Past:
A cow is ready to be milked when her udder is full. The farmer has some
flexibility when making a schedule of cow milking times. Usually, cows
are milked in the early morning and again in the late afternoon. It is
possible to milk a cow by hand. However, milking a whole herd of cows
twice a day in this manner would take a great deal of time and energy.
Before the invention of milking machines, people milked their dairy cows
by hand by squeezing gently on the cow's teats using the thumb and
forefinger. Some people continue to milk a little by hand today.

4. Today:
Cows are normally milked at least twice a day. Milking time takes about
five minutes per cow depending on the type of machine and the amount
of milk the cow is producing. Most dairies have enough machines to milk
more than 20 cows at one time. Milking machines mimic the action of a
young calf by creating a pulsating vacuum around the teat, which causes
the milk to be released from the udder.

5. Step 3 – Storing Milk
Milk storage vats or silos are refrigerated and come in various shapes and
sizes. Milk is usually stored on the farm at 39 degrees Fahrenheit or
colder for no more than 48 hours. Vats and silos are agitated to make
sure that the entire volume remains cold and milk fat does not separate
from the milk. After milk has been collected, storage vats and stainless
steel pipes are thoroughly cleaned before the farmer milks again.

6. Step 4 – Transporting Milk
Milk is collected from the farm every 24 or 48 hours. The tankers that are
used have a special stainless steel body which is heavily insulated to keep
the milk cold during transportation to the processing factory. Milk tanker
drivers are accredited milk graders, which allow them to evaluate the milk
prior to collection. Tanker drivers grade and if necessary reject milk
based on temperature, sight and smell. A representative sample is
collected from each farm pickup prior to being pumped onto the tanker.
After collection, milk is transported to factory sites and stored in
refrigerated silos before being processing.

7. Step 5 ­Lab
Testing
Samples of milk are taken from farm vats prior to collection and from the
bulk milk tanker on arrival at the factory. Samples from the bulk milk
tanker are tested for antibiotic and temperature before the milk enters the
factory processing area. Farm milk samples are tested for
milkfat/protein/bulk milk cell count and bacteria count. If milk is
unsuitable for our quality products the milk will be rejected. Most
farmers are paid on quality and composition of their milk and it is
extremely important that these samples are collected and stored correctly.

8. Step 6 – Packaging
Now the milk is ready to be packaged for delivery to the stores. The milk
travels through pipes to the automatic packaging machines that fills and
seals the milk into paper cartons or plastic jugs. As the containers move
through the assembly line, a date is printed on each of them to show how
long the milk will stay fresh.

9. Step 7 – Distributing and Selling Milk
After packaging, the milk is finally ready for the customers, and it is
stored in a big, refrigerated room until it is delivered to stores to be sold.

10. Sources
http://parmalat.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=45&Itemid=222
http://milk.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000658
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