Fact Sheet : Food Manufacturing Series

Dairy Manufacturing

Dairy processors produce a wide range of milk products. Fluid milk products include bottled and packaged milk (whole,
pasteurised, skim, UHT etc.), flavoured milk, buttermilk, eggnog, yoghurt, cream etc. Other dairy products include butter,
butter oil, curds, cheese and cheese spreads, condensed and powdered milk, malted milk, ice cream, lactose, and whey
products.

A general process flow diagram for dairy processing is shown below. The actual process will vary depending on the product
and the processes, however this diagram summarises the major steps in the production of most dairy products.

General Process Flow Diagram for

Dairy Processing Operations
Source: Adapted from (Barnes, et al, 1984)

The most significant sources of wastes are:

● CIP Processes, washing, cleaning and sanitizing of all piping, pumps, processing equipment, tanks, milk tankers and
filling machines;

● start-up, product changeover and shut down of High Temperature and Short Time (HTST) and Ultra High
Temperature (UHT) pasteurisers;

● loss in filling operations through equipment jams and broken packages; and

● lubrication of casers, stackers and conveyors.

● wastage of spoiled, returned, and by-products (dairy products);

● vehicle and equipment maintenance (fuel, lubricants, chemicals, truck wash);

Effluent is generated from most steps in the process and is generally milk or milk products diluted in cleaning wastewaters,
together with detergents, sanitisers, lubricants, and chemicals from boiler and water treatment processes. They are
characterised by a relatively high organic concentration. All dairy plants exhibit fluctuations in flow and strength of effluents
throughout a production day depending on the processing and cleaning operations taking place.

Best practice for water consumption in market milk processes is reported to be 0.8-1.0 litre water / kg of milk (UNEP,
1997a). Typical COD concentrations range from 180 - 23,000 mg/L. Low values are associated with milk-receiving
operations and high values reflect the presence of whey from the production of cheese, with a typical value being 4,000
mg/L. Total COD load in effluent has been estimated to be approximately 8.4 kg / m3 milk intake. The COD of whole milk is
210,000 mg/L, and thus a rate of 8.4 kg /m3 milk implies that 4% of the milk solids received are wasted, which is not
uncommon (Barnes, et al, 1984).

Optimising cleaning-in-place (CIP) processes and batch scheduling can provide significant Cleaner Production gains. Short
production runs have an inherently higher wastage, therefore reducing the number of changeovers through better
scheduling will minimise losses of product.

The utilisation of cheese whey is has been a significant problem for the industry. Whey is the liquid remaining after the
recovery of the curds, which are formed by the action of enzymes on milk. It comprises 80-90% of the total volume of milk
entering the process and contains more than half the solids present in the original whole milk, including 20% of the protein
and most of the lactose (Lyons et al, 1989). It has a very high organic content with a COD of approximately 60,000 mg/L
(Morr, 1992). There are opportunities to develop value-added by-products from whey such as whey concentrates, protein
and carbohydrate extracts.

Use the following checklist to generate ideas for Cleaner Production in a dairy processing plant.
 Food Manufacturing Checklist
Dairy Processing

Process Stage Issue Opportunity

Inputs and Improve the quality control of the herd and milk
Modify Inputs
Inventory storage temperatures on farm and in transit.

Inventory Store all materials under cover to ensure there is no

-
Management product loss or damage during rain.

Implement storage control procedures (e.g. cheese

vats, ice cream mix vats, cooling tanks etc.) to ensure
- -
that they are not filled to such a high level that
spillage will occur when the product is agitated.

Ingredient Process Improve systems of handling and transfer of dry bulk

Dispatch / Make-up Improvement materials (e.g. use pneumatic conveying systems).

Develop systems to prevent milk foam spilling into

sewer. Common sources of excessive foaming are
Process Control / open-type separators, splashing when filling tanks, air
Product Preparation
Improvement sucked in through leaky connections in lines under
partial vacuum, leaky packing and faulty rotary seals
or pumps.

Improve temperature control systems (e.g. on plate,

- -
tubular, or surface coolers).

Thoroughly drain all lines, tanks, and processing vats

- - before rinsing and rinse before product dries on
surface.

Improve clarification/separation processes (e.g. by

- - using improved centrifugal devices or mechanical
filters).

Install a product-recovery system to collect products

- -
at time of change over.

Improve cleaning practices (e.g. sweep up all spilled

- Housekeeping
cheese curd particles from the floor).

Dispatch and
Housekeeping Reclaim spilled dry bulk materials (e.g. sugar).
Distribution

Re-use and Recover entrainment loss (e.g. from condensed and

Reuse
Recycling evaporated milk processes) from evaporators.

Capture and return evaporator condensate to the

- -
process.
 Reuse process water from high volume pasteurizing
- -
units.

Identify opportunities to recover heat from boilers,

- -
pasteurisation units and evaporators.

Recover products from faulty and broken packages

- - and return material to processing line, or use as
animal feed or for other uses.

Identify opportunities to utilise whey.·

reuse in products, ·
- Recycling
●

● production of whey concentrate.·

● anaerobic digestion to produce methane.

Waste Treatment Segregate strong acid or alkali waste streams and use
Segregation
and Disposal them for pH control in wastewater treatment.

Install screens on all drains (e.g. bag type filters in

- Primary Screening
the floor drains in the cottage cheese room).