Raw milk trade: profile of the consumers and microbiological and physicochemical characterization of the product in Palotina - PR region

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the profile of milk consumers in Palotina - PR using a standard questionnaire, and focusing on the identification of the consumer of raw milk. At the same time, microbiological and physicochemical analysis of samples of this milk were also carried out. From 235 interviews conducted, it was found that 10.6% households consumed type B milk; 17.4% consumed type C milk; 33.6% consumed UHT milk and the majority, 38.3% households, consumed raw milk. From the 30 samples of raw milk analyzed, the presence of Escherichia coli and positive coagulase Staphylococcus was observed in at 70 and 73.3% of them, respectively. Mean mesophilic microorganism count was 4.6 x 107 CFU / ml; psychrotrophs, 1.4 x 10⁷ CFU / ml; total coliforms, 9.3 x 106 CFU / ml; thermotolerant coliforms, 5.4 x 105 CFU / ml and mean E. coli count was 6.4 x 103 CFU / ml. Addition of water was found in 20% of all samples; 23.3% of the samples showed high acidity. California Mastitis Test (CMT) was positive in 92.7% of the samples. Based on the results, we concluded that raw milk trade in Palotina is highly common and that the physicochemical and microbiological quality of the milk evaluated was inadequate. Because of all these factors, raw milk consumption is considered to be a cultural, social and technological problem, both for producers and consumers.