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Dairy Factory Design - Milk Reception

Milk Reception & Factory Design

First quality decision point in the dairy factory

Independent milk reception and factory design support — tanker reception, sampling, antibiotic screening, deaeration, silo selection and reception CIP. The first quality decision point in the dairy factory.

Watson Dairy Consulting brings 50 years of dairy factory design experience to milk reception layout, equipment selection and operational discipline.

Reviewing milk reception layout, equipment or operational discipline? Discuss your project →
dairy factory milk reception


Dairy factory design - continued

MILK RECEPTION Video
Dairy factory design - milk reception animation - click to play


Milk is mostly water, approximately 87.5%, with the balance of 12.5% being solids, referred to generally as Total Solids.

Milk contains (constituents vary depending on many factors such as stage of lactation, breed, feed, health, temperature and humidity):

  • Fat 4% (surplus cream is mostly used for cream, ice cream, cream cheese, butter and ghee making depending on market returns)
  • Protein 3.3% (whey proteins and casein, with casein being the main ingredient of cheese)
  • Lactose 4.5% (milk sugar - a byproduct of cheesemaking as lactose is lost to the whey)
  • Minerals 0.7% (mostly calcium)
  • Vitamins and other compounds such as a range of non-nutrient substances and protective factors including antimicrobial proteins and lipids.
Many of these are not specifically produced by the mammary gland, but are taken up from the blood of the mother and secreted in the milk. Milk also contains unwanted bacteria and enzymes some secreted in the milk and some by external contamination. Research and development coupled with advances in scientific analysis i.e Human genome research etc coupled with an increasing knowledge of the action and interaction of constituents and advances in equipment technology is leading to processes which minimize damage to milk constituents whilst increasing the efficiency of processing. Milk is important for the survival, proper development / growth of the infant. A new born infant is totally dependent upon its mother milk for all the necessary water, nutrients and bioactive protective factors for healthy growth and immune system. Colostrum (the first milk taken after birth) and mature milk also contain non-nutrient substances (such as antibodies and bioactive factors) that may be important for growth, development, and survival of the infant. Heat treatment destroys or damages many of non nutrient substances in milk. For infant feeding then the mothers breast milk is always the best for the infant, substitutes such as infant formulla can be used but only if the mother can not breast feed.

On arrival at the Dairy Factory
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Watson Dairy Consulting video - click to play

All tankers on entering the factory premises should pass over a weighbridge.
Milk reception will consist of one or more milk unloading / loading bays, each with a maximum volume in liter per hour capacity feeding through a filter, air eliminator, chiller and flow meter (independent but interlinked lines). Milk refrigeration capacity is based on the likely maximum temperature (some countries set at 30C and others at 5C) The twmperature of the milk neeeds to be reduced to <5C immediately on arrival.

The capacity of milk reception should be such that the milk tanker can be emptied in 20 to 30 minutes so that milk can be rapidly further cooled to stop microbial growth.

The quality of milk is critical to ensure a quality finished product, the longest possible shelf life and maximised yield. Our raw milk specification sets out typical quality and composition limits, including total solids, fat, protein, somatic cell count, freezing point and microbiological criteria.

An indication of milk quality is smell and acidity. If the milk acidity is out of specification it means microbial growth has likely taken place, as the microbes feed on the milk solids and excrete other compounds, including acid, into the milk. At ambient temperatures the microbes can double in numbers every 20 minutes, so multiplication is exponential.

milk reception

Tankers will unload and move to a separate location on site for CIP.

Milk will be pumped into one of 4 x 160,000 litre capacity raw milk silos (insulated + agitated) all silos will have agitation, temperature and level indication and alarm.

This line will also have the ability to circulate and cool the milk in the silos, cool milk, cream, concentrate or skim for dispatch in bulk or transfer to liquid plant.

All raw milk silos and lines will be cleaned using CIP

Silos and tanks are to be constructed locally with supplier to provide design and details of fittings

Staff working in this area will be required to follow a change procedure prior to entering the high-risk areas of the factory. (details)

Silo filling logic will automatically switch to the next available clean silo, if none selected then stop pump and sound alarm.

Processing

milk separator Milk will be pumped from any one of the raw milk silos to the separator balance tank (pump capacity 30,000 l/hr). With automatic change over selection when empty. The separator has a capacity to separate 30,000 liter per hour of liquid milk producing approximately 27,000 liter of skimmed milk and 3,000 liter of cream of 40% FAT. The milk is fed into a pre heater and heated to some 45°c prior to separation, the skim is pasteurized at min > 75°c 15 seconds (preferably 25 seconds) and cooled to less than 5°c and fed with one of 4 x 160,000 insulated, agitated skim silos.

Cream is pasteurised at some 85°c for 15 seconds (preferably 25 seconds) at 3,000 litres/hr. Fat percentage for butter making is 40% but other fat percentages are possible.

The cream is cooled to some 8°c and pumped into one of 2 insulated cooled and agitated tanks with level and temperature indication. The cream is aged prior to butter making and then fed into the butter maker. If cream is required for dispatch or for retail filling this should also be possible.

BUTTER MANUFACTURE

Cream at 8 to 10 degree c is taken from the cream storage tank by gravity to a 200 litre balance tank from where it is pumped by positive pump through a jacketed tempering line where the cream temperature can be raised or reduced by some 2°c as required by the butter making plant.

The butter maker speed can be adjusted to give the required body and texture and moisture content and also salt addition in the form of slurry takes place to give some 2% salt and 16% moisture. Butter passes to the 25 kg bulk butter packer where butter is filled into a polythene lined cardboard box, which is sealed with tape, passes through a metal detector and is date and batch coded, palletised and moved into the freezer using a hand pallet truck. 200 gm partion packing

    CREAM CHEESE manufacture and packing
  • Cream cheese production process: Yogurt manufacture and packing
  • Processed Cheese manufacture and packing
  • Lactose manufacture and packing
  • Whey manufacture and packing
  • Milk Powder manufacture and packing
  • Infant Formula manufacture and packing
CONTROL Logic

It is envisaged that a central control room serving the processes will be the provided for the plant.

Milk reception control room.
Separation and pasteurization / UHT and packing local control.
Where practical data will be fed back to the main control room.

7. CIP
CIP 1 Raw milk tanks and lines
CIP 2 High-risk areas, processed milks and juices areas
CIP 3 Tanker wash
CIP 2 Butter
CIP Separation area will be integral
CIP UHT – integral
Evaporator – Integral
Spray Dryer – Use CIP 2 and allow for higher capacity
Bulk acid / caustic storage silos
Chemical storage area
Safety showers

8. Finished product storage - detailed design required
Butter freezer store sufficient for some 15 days at full production – 21c
Powder storage / finished goods – detail required

9. Dry goods storage – detailed design required
Sufficient for some 3000 pallets

10. Air filtration - detailed design required
Main factory air will be filtered, pressure controlled and temperature conditioned

11. Staff facilities - detailed design required

Canteen and toilets may be separate to the main building which will necessitate a change prior to entering or leaving the main production building.

Lockers and wash facilities provided in main factory building

12. Utilities - consumptions to be specified by supplier
Boilers
Air
Water
Ice water
Waste water
Electricity
Nitrogen (Aseptic)
Gas
Oil

Further areas requiring detailed consideration
  • Grounds / parking etc
  • Administration buildings / offices – staffing plan
  • Sales and Marketing
  • Packing lines
  • Distribution
  • Milk collection / contracts
  • Staffing / recruitment plan
  • Product costing
  • Purchasing
  • Laboratory
  • Engineering / maintenance
  • Production and planning
  • Accounting
  • IT / communication
  • HR

Milk Reception FAQs

How quickly should a milk tanker be unloaded at reception?
Reception capacity should be sized so a tanker can be emptied in around 20 to 30 minutes, allowing the milk to be rapidly chilled to below 5 degrees C to stop microbial growth. At ambient temperatures bacteria can double roughly every 20 minutes, so fast intake and chilling directly protect quality, shelf life and yield.
Why is milk chilled to below 5 degrees C on arrival?
Microbes feed on milk solids and excrete acid and other compounds, so warm milk deteriorates quickly. Chilling to below 5 degrees C on arrival slows microbial growth dramatically, preserving the milk's quality, extending shelf life and protecting the yield of the finished product.
What checks are done on milk at reception?
Incoming milk is assessed for smell and acidity as quick indicators of quality. Out-of-specification acidity usually means microbial growth has already occurred. A typical reception line includes weighing over a weighbridge, sampling, filtration, air elimination, chilling and flow metering before the milk is pumped into chilled, agitated raw milk silos.
How is reception designed to keep raw and high-risk areas separate?
Good reception design separates the raw intake area from the high-risk processing areas, with staff following a change procedure before entering high-risk zones, tankers moving to a dedicated CIP location after unloading, and clear hygiene boundaries. This zoning is central to protecting finished-product safety in a dairy factory.

Designing or upgrading a dairy factory milk reception? Watson Dairy Consulting provides independent dairy factory design support covering milk intake, chilling, silos, CIP, separation and the wider plant. Please contact us to discuss your requirements.

Discuss Your Factory Design Project

For more information or to discuss your requirements please contact us.

Further reading: John Watson publishes articles on dairy industry topics on LinkedIn — from infant formula safety and milk supply to plant design, yield improvement and dairy commodity outlook. Browse all articles by John Watson on LinkedIn →













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