Effective milk cooling is one of the most important food safety controls on any dairy farm. Under Food Standards Australia New Zealand Standard 4.2.4 Division 2, Clause 2(b), dairy businesses must have control measures in place to ensure milk is cooled and stored at temperatures that prevent or reduce the growth of microbiological hazards.
To demonstrate compliance, dairy farmers should regularly verify that their cooling and storage systems are performing as intended.
Milk must be cooled to 5°C or below within 3.5 hours of the commencement of milking and maintained at or below this temperature until collection.
Alternatively, milk may be cooled to 8°C or below within two hours of completing milking, then further cooled to 5°C or below within 2 hours and 21 minutes of completion of milking and maintained at or below this temperature until collection.
Cooling systems must be capable of consistently achieving these temperatures and timeframes. Where customers or specific markets require different cooling parameters, these requirements must be validated.
Milk cooling checks not being completed is a common non-compliance identified during farm audits. Regular cooling performance verification provides evidence that cooling systems are meeting required temperature and time limits and helps farms demonstrate compliance with food safety standards.
Cooling performance checks
Cooling performance checks must be completed at least twice each year:
- Once during mid-summer, when environmental temperatures place the greatest demand on cooling systems.
- Once during peak milking capacity, when the largest volumes of milk are being cooled.
These checks help confirm that milk vats, refrigeration units and associated equipment can achieve the required cooling performance under the most challenging conditions.
Producers should maintain records that demonstrate:
- Milk cooling and storage temperatures meet the required limits and timeframes.
- Repairs, servicing and maintenance of milking, cooling and storage equipment have been completed.
- Any corrective actions taken when cooling performance does not meet requirements.
What if standard cooling times can’t be verified?
Some farms may face challenges due to extended milking times or early milk collection schedules. In these situations, an alternative validated time and temperature equivalent may be required.
Validation may be based on recognised milk cooling models or tools such as the Early Milk Collection Index (EMCI), ensuring milk safety is maintained despite variations in farm operations.
Regular cooling checks not only support compliance with FSANZ Standard 4.2.4 Division 2, Clause 2(b), but they also protect milk quality, reduce food safety risks and provide confidence to processors and consumers that milk has been handled appropriately from the moment it leaves the cow.