1. Yutzy*,A.N.1, Strait*, G.L.2
1Dairy Herd Health Educator, Penn State Extension in Huntingdon County, Huntingdon, PA
2Dairy Herd Health Educator, Penn State Extension in Fulton County, McConnellsburg, PA
Producing the highest quality milk on a farm is one of the most important jobs. Many factors play into a dairy’s Somatic Cell County(SCC). Reducing this count can be done by implementing standard operating procedures and
having a consistent milking routine. The objectives for this program is to have dairy producers decrease Somatic Cell County (SCC), increase profitability and develop Standard Operating Procedures on their farm. Participants will
be educated on the newest research that is available on milking procedures and sanitation of the milking facility. Participants will also be given the tools needed to detect mastitis early for the best treatment options. Education
will be delivered through one day workshops, consisting of a morning lecture and discussion period, in addition to a hands on portion that will be held on farm. This program had a total of 307 participants with 71% (N=256)
indicating the intent to implement a new practice learned as a result of the program. A six month follow up evaluation was implemented by phone indicating that 89% (N=198) of participants implemented at least one or more
practices discussed at the program. 83% (N=198) of participants experienced a decrease in SCC, as a result of recommendations made at the workshop. The average reduction in SCC was 162,000. It was also determined that
69% (N=198) of participants implemented a change in their milking procedure.
A total of five educational objectives were developed for this
program. A total of 307 participants attended the “Best Milking Practices”
workshops statewide. As a result of this educational initiative:
Participants showed an increase in knowledge in the following
• Producers will develop a written standard operating procedure
categories:
for their milking facility.
 62% (n=159) impact of stress on milk let-down, 78% (n= 161)
• Producers will implement the use of a strip cup, pre-stripping, importance of cleanliness on milking speed and mastitis risk, 85%
milking gloves, and California Mastitis Test. (n=160) importance of lag time on teat health, 70% (n=161)
importance of wearing gloves, 87% (n=160) importance of pre-
• Producers will develop a standard milking procedure that has a stripping and 95% (n=160) importance of early detection of
lag time of 60-90 seconds. clinical mastitis.
• Producers will recognize the importance of early detection of Participants indicated the intent to implement the following
clinical mastitis. practices on their farm:
• Producers will develop a treatment protocol that identifies  71% (n=254) will start pre-stripping, 87% (n=255) begin wearing
animals with greatest chance for a cure. milking gloves, and 63% (n=149) segregate infected cows.
A six month follow up evaluation was implemented by phone with the
following results.
 89% (n=198) of participants implemented one or more practices
discussed during the workshop. Those practices included: use of
Our goal for this program was to have dairy producers strip cup, pre-stripping, milking gloves, written standard operating
decrease Somatic Cell Count (SCC), increase profitability and procedure, written treatment protocol and use of the California
develop Standard Operating Procedures on their farm. We educated Mastitis Test.
participants on the newest research that is available on milking  83% (n=198) of participants experienced a decrease in SCC, as a
procedures and sanitation of the milking facility. We also gave result of recommendations made at the workshop. The average
participants tools needed to detect mastitis early for best treatment reduction in SCC was 162,000. This reduction from Pennsylvania
options. herd average would result in a 1% less loss of production that
equates to $4,000 increased profit per farm. If the producer
received a $0.15/cwt quality premium to go from 280,000 to
118,000, there would be an additional $3,000 profit per farm.
 69% (n=198) of participants implemented a change in their milking
procedure to meet the recommended 60-90 second lag time.
The “Best Milking Practices” program was taught using a one day
The Pennsylvania dairy industry is currently ranked 5th in workshop model. The morning session consisted of a lecture using
United States total milk production. In 2010, 10.73 billion pounds of power point presentations and the afternoon session was taught on
milk were produced (Center for Dairy Excellence [CDE], 2011). farm using hands on learning tools. This program used a number of
Pennsylvania has 539,000 dairy cows producing an average of 21,033 different resources to aid in the delivery of the material.
pounds of milk each year. The state currently ranks 4th in total cow
numbers and 15th in milk production per cow. One significant way to Technology played a big part in delivering power point presentations,
improve on farm profitability is to improve milk production, every and showing videos of proper milking procedures. Written material
three pounds of additional milk increases income by $100 per year. such as current research articles, standard operating procedure
The current average Somatic Cell Count for Pennsylvania dairies is posters, cow cleanliness charts, and teat end score charts were
265,840 (CDE, 2011). The national Somatic Cell Count average on included in the packet that each participant received.
dairies is 228,000.
Participants had the opportunity to practice the skills that were
This program helped to provide learners with the knowledge learned and evaluate others within the group, during the hands on
needed to improve their individual farms milk quality, in turn, helping learning portion of the program.
to improve the state average. The dairy industry is very important to The “Best Milking Practices” program was a success in increasing
Pennsylvania; yearly it generates $1.5 billion in cash receipts, on farm profitability and decreasing Somatic Cell Count. Past
contributing to 40% of the states agricultural receipts (CDE, 2011). participants have continued to recommend this program to fellow
The Pennsylvania dairy industry also generates more than 40,000 producers. This type of marketing has helped us to look into the
jobs. In order for dairy producers to stay at the forefront, they must future for other needs in udder health and milk quality programming.
produce the highest quality product available.
Through needs assessment and recommendations by producers the
Citation: Center for Dairy Excellence. (2011). Pennsylvania dairy industry “Best Milking Practices” program has been developed and taught in
performance. Retrieved from
http://www.centerfordairyexcellence.org/index.php/industry_performance.html
Spanish, meeting the needs of the dairy Hispanic workforce. We have
also developed and plan to teach a “Best Milking Practices- On Farm
Culturing” program in the spring of 2013.
By providing this type of program, Penn State Extension Dairy Milk
Quality team hopes to continue to improve the profitability of the
Pennsylvania dairy farm.
Where trade names appear, no discrimination is intended, and no endorsement by Penn State
Cooperative Extension is implied.
Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce.