Goat milk safety and consumption
in Abergelle, Ethiopia
Sarah Warren
International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) – World Food Prize intern
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
August 2013

OUTLINE
Personal Background
 Food Safety in the Sheep and Goat Value Chain
Project
 Introduction to my Project
 Methods
 Results
 Acknowledgements


PERSONAL BACKGROUND

Nicholasville, Kentucky, USA

FOOD SAFETY IN SHEEP AND GOAT VALUE CHAIN
Food Safety and Zoonoses, “Safe Food Fair
Food”
 Roles in the process of the value chain, from
production to market and consumption
 Diseases and their effect on production


MY PROJECT: GOAT MILK SAFETY AND
CONSUMPTION IN ABERGELLE
Wanted to test perceptions and realities on
goat milk production and consumption in
Abergelle
 Test the milk to see what is actually in it,
compare to perceptions


METHODS
2 villages (Zaquala and Tanqua)
 11 questionnaires

2
enumerators
 Open ended, multiple choice questions

ZAQUALA
ABERGELLE VILLAGES
TANQUA

ZAQUALA – TESFAY GLINORIAN
ENUMERATORS
TANQUA – HAILAI HAGUS

METHODS – GOAT MILK SAMPLES
Collected 19 samples
 Processed them at Holetta Agricultural
Research Center in the Dairy Lab
 Microbial Analysis and Chemical Constituent
Analysis


METHODS - MICROBIAL ANALYSIS
15 samples were tested in this analysis
 Serial Dilution with Pepton water
 Plate Count agar, incubate for 24 hours
 Mark colonies, count bacterial colonies and
contaminations


METHODS – MICROBIAL ANALYSIS: SERIAL
DILUTION

METHODS - CHEMICAL CONSTITUENTS ANALYSIS
8 samples, combined based on herd
 Water:Milk ratio accounted for to fill the tubes
 Analyzed: Fat, Lactose, Protein, and Total Solids
percentage content
 Lactoscope


LACTOSCOPE
Cleaning the Lactoscope
Milk Analysis

RESULTS - QUESTIONNAIRES
Generally, goat milk was believed to be safe,
healthy, and important.
 Milk and goats are susceptible to disease, so
villagers take precautions.
 Women not allowed to drink goat milk.
 Production and consumption levels vary with
season.


RESULTS - QUESTIONNAIRE
Goat Milk
Collection
Store in smoked container,
in a cool place
Churn, Separate
Ferment
Butter
Milk
-Use (cooking, cosmetics)
- Sell at market
Boil, Separate
Drink
Skim
Milk
Boil
Whey,
Soft
Cheese
Yogurt
Whole
Milk
Drink
Other Info:
- Sometimes villagers prepare
a dish called “tagamino” to
which they add yogurt
- Prepare a traditional cheese,
called “agip”

RESULTS – QUESTIONNAIRES: WEBA TREE
Thought to have
medicinal
properties, the
leaves of these
trees would be
smoked into the
milk container
prior to milk
storage, lining the
pot with the
residue.

RESULTS – QUESTIONNAIRES: WEBA TREE

RESULTS – QUESTIONNAIRE: PROCESSING AND
STORAGE
Raw Milk
Storage (above)
Butter Storage >
Churning milk
by suspending
container by
strap and
agitating
(above)

<- Milk collection pot
Storage containers with “lids”
(below)
<- Child’s milk drinking cup

RESULTS – MICROBIAL ANALYSIS
The colonies were counted at the highest
dilution
 Ranged from 5-106 colonies


RESULTS – CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
Sample
Total Solid
Protein % Lactose % %
Fat %
Z31, Z32,
Z33
3.52
5.97
2.35
11.84
T11, T12,
T13
14.71
9.06
5.14
28.94
Z11, Z12,
Z13
9.65
6.27
4.74
20.66
Z21, Z22
15.24
8.48
5.6
29.32
Z41, Z42
19.18
9.5
6.54
35.23
A21, A22
16.07
6.63
4.73
27.42
A11
10.87
6.31
3.31
20.28
T21, T22
16.65
9.1
5.93
31.69
3.5
3.1
4.6
12
Average for
goat milk
Found higher
contents than
the average for
goat milk,
maybe due to
first milk

CONCLUSIONS
Women need to drink milk (break taboo,
education?)
 Test vaccines from Woreda Ag Center
 Milk seems to be healthy enough, though a
large number of bacteria was found in some
samples, suggesting there is possibility of
disease


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS – THANK YOU!!
Dr. Tadelle, Grum, “Team Mike,” and the whole
Biotech department
 Holetta Dairy Research Center
 Respondents in the Abergelle village
 My Ethiopian mom, Tigist
 Barbara Szonyi, the best advisor ever


BARBARA AND TIGIST!