From Grass To Glass

At the dairy

When the milk tanker arrives at the dairy it is weighed. The milk is then tested to make sure it still looks and smells fresh, and also to ensure it is at the correct temperature. Once the milk has been checked it is pumped out of the tanker into storage tanks. The empty tanker is then weighed again to calculate how much milk has been delivered to the dairy. The tanker is then carefully washed before it is used for the next milk collection.

The next step is to heat–treat the milk. Heat–treatment ensures the milk is safe to drink (by killing any harmful bacteria) and also helps to keep it fresh for longer. The most common form of heat treatment used on milk in Northern Ireland is Pasteurisation, which involves heating it to 71.7°C for at least 15 seconds, and then cooling it very quickly to less than 3°C. Once the milk has been heat treated it is ready to be packaged and sold to consumers.

Some milk is sent for cheese making or to a creamery to make cream, butter or yogurt. Why not take a look at the ‘Dairy Industry‘ section to find out how milk is used to make cheese, yogurt and butter and have a look at the different dairies in Northern Ireland?