The journey that dairy products undertake starts at the dairy farm and ends at the consumer's table, where milk fluid or other dairy products are consumed. Throughout that process, milk stability is critical, and farms can contribute to a positive consumer experience by managing farm-level factors that can impact the final products. In that aspect, microbiology plays a vital role, so staying up to date with the latest information is essential to reduce dairy product waste. In this episode, featuring Dr. Nicole Martin, we discuss how farm factors, particularly somatic cell count and bacteria plate count, influence the quality of the final products. Additionally, we delve into the significance of cold-resistant bacteria and spore-forming bacteria, as well as consumer decision that contribute to dairy food waste.

“We know that dairy products (namely, cheese and extended shelf-life fluid) can be severely impacted by high somatic cell count in milk.’’ – Dr. Nicole Martin

What you’ll learn:

(0:00) Highlight
(1:50) Introduction
(7:11) How somatic cell and bacteria plate counts affect dairy product quality
(12:30) Spore-forming bacteria in milk
(18:53) The waste panorama of dairy products
(24:04) Farm-level factors that affect the quality of the final product
(29:21) The final questions

Meet the guest: Dr. Nicole Martin

Experience:

Current: Assistant Research Professor in Dairy Foods Microbiology and Associate Director of the Milk Quality Improvement Program at Cornell University

Background: