Maine Dairy Program How to get a Dairy License By: Linda Stahlnecker

Maine’s Dairy Industry  Seen a marked decrease in dairy farms  700 Farms in 1994 now have 249 in 2016  But a marked increase in artisanal cheese, yogurt and retail raw milk, why?  Local Foods; value added; natural; source  Producing food for family and neighbors  Increasing demand and reputation Maine has second highest artisanal cheese producers in the US

Maine – A Dairy Friendly State  Washington, D.C. – The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) has released updated results from a Raw Milk Survey. 7/19/2011 Sales of licensed raw milk at retail stores separate from farm – Just 12 States allowing: AZ, CA, CT, ID, ME, NH, NM, NV, PA, SC, UT, WA

What Products Are Covered by a Dairy License?  All Retail Dairy Products  All Wholesale Ice Cream  All Dairy Containers

Who is Behind all This Dairy Production?

Maine Made Dairy Products

One of EACH TYPE of product: All BF levels for fluid

License Overview  Completed Dairy License Application  License Fee sent in with Application (usually $25.00)  Completed, Satisfactory Inspection by Dairy Inspector  Satisfactory Water Sample  Animal Health Requirements met (TB & Brucellosis)  Approved Product Label

I. Licensing Step 1  Call Meagan Damon at to have a Dairy Licensing Packet mailed to you.  Tell Meagan what region of the State you live in – get contact information for YOUR Dairy inspector.

Contents of Your Dairy Licensing Packet  Cover letter – summary of requirements  Application for Milk Distributor License  Addendums for source of supply  Product List – what you plan to sell  Animal Health Requirements  Raw Milk Production: Guidelines (sanitation, procedures, etc.)  Standards for Milk and Milk Products (lab tests)  Sample Plant Inspection Form  Clorox Service Bulletin on Sanitation  Pre-dipping Milking Procedure  Treating your well when it fails  Maine Milk Rule  Distribution Form – where your products are sold (retailed)

License Application  Fill in completely  Call if you need help  Include all sources of supply and permitted producers  Include all types of dairy you might produce  Include all distribution sites  Fill in completely  Call if you need help  Include all sources of supply and permitted producers  Include all types of dairy you might produce  Include all distribution sites

License Fees Milk Distributor License Fee Schedule  Annual sales or distribution over 25 million pounds - $  Annual sales or distribution of million pounds - $  Annual sales or distribution of 1-10 million pounds - $  Annual sales or distribution of 100,000 to 1 million pounds - $50.00  Annual sales or distribution of less than 100,000 pounds $25.00  Sales and distribution of milk and/or milk products are for within the State of Maine only.

II. Licensing Step 2  Call YOUR dairy inspector for a facility review and a water test. Inspectors:  Renee Blais Renee covers Central Maine and the County  Tanya Farrington-Thomason Tanya covers Southern and Western Maine  Beth Williams – Beth covers Central Maine and DownEast

 Renee  Tanya  Beth

Our Dairy Inspectors’ Love for Animals - this sums it up!!

III. Licensing Step 3 – 1 st Inspection & Water Test  Equipment and buildings must be cleanable and properly constructed  Ability to protect from contamination  Plans to create production records – VERY IMPORTANT!  Storage of all equipment  Approved water supply – MUST have a clean water test!  Ability to keep cold milk temperatures

Barns:

Milking Stations:

Cow Parlors – stationary and portable

Bulk Tanks – Milk Collection

Sinks and Dairy Production Areas

Storage – Clean and Organized

Refrigerated Storage

IV. Veterinary Testing  Tuberculosis Testing  All not pasteurized products: Whole herd test (all animals over 6 months) every 3 years  All pasteurized, heat-treated and aged products: Animals must be from a TB-free area (Maine is currently TB free – so if you pasteurize, heat-treat, or age your products, TB testing is unnecessary)

 Brucellosis Testing  Cow products (pasteurized and not pasteurized) : BRT- Brucellosis Ring Test on whole herd twice each year – at no charge  All other hooved mammal products (pasteurized and not pasteurized) : 1) Annual whole herd/flock test OR 2) Initial whole herd /flock test followed by all outside or new additions OR 3) If herd is larger than 50, see pg. 62 of Milk Rule

V. Send in Dairy Application  Fill out dairy application and provide check (usually $25.00)  At this point you may want to send in some “unofficial” samples of your dairy products for testing. This is a good practice to identify any sanitation issues early on.

VI. Product Label Approval Name of Farm Address of Farm Name of Product Product identified as: “Pasteurized” or “Not Pasteurized” (if not listed, “pasteurized” is understood) Cheese aged greater than 60days, greater than 35F can be labeled “Aged ” “Heat-Treated” or “Raw” may also be added (Cheese, butter, frozen desserts and non-pasteurized products cannot be stated: “Grade A”) Type of animal: cow, goat, sheep, etc. (if not listed, cow is understood) Lot #_______ Quantity, Volume or Weight of Product: _________ List of Ingredients (listed by predominate weight first)

VII. I have a license – now what? YOUR Responsibilities  Annual License Renewal – fill out application and send in fee  Maintain facility and equipment. Inspections at least every year (more often if problems)  Keep production logs up to date and available for inspection (pasteurization, heat treatment, batching of lots)  Annual Water Test – post results in processing room  Provide representative products to dairy inspectors of EACH product (type, process and butterfat level) in their final RETAIL form on a monthly basis (nearly monthly)  Maintenance of Annual Animal Health testing and records Business You may sell your dairy products in any retail setting.

STANDARDS FOR MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS

Testing Regulated Tests (Milk Rule & PMO):  Standard Plate Count (Petrifilm Aerobic Count): Total aerobic bacteria count provides a picture of overall sanitation (higher counts = earlier spoilage) STD ≤ 50,000/ml for NPW  Coliform Count (Petrifilm Coliform Count): Total Coliform bacteria count provides evidence of environmental contamination (higher counts = higher risk of illness and pathogens) STD ≤ 10/ml  Direct Microscopic Somatic Cell Count (DMSCC) “The number of somatic cells in raw milk provides a measure of the presence and the extent of mastitis or certain other abnormal milk secretions - one way of assessing raw milk quality.” 17 th ed. Standard Methods STD ≤ 750,000 cells/ml for cows ≤1,500,000 cells/ml for goats  Antibiotics (DELVO Test P 5 Pack & Charm S-L): “Drug residues may trigger hypersensitivity reactions in susceptible individuals, cause quality problems for cultured products manufacturers, and promote resistance in bacteria populations” 17 th ed. Standard Methods  Phosphatase, Dairy Waters, Containers, TC

Quality Tests (not regulated)  Butterfat (FT120): Very accurate IR test Whole STD: ≥3.25%  Total Solids (FT120): Includes fat, protein (casein & lactalbumin), carbohydrate (lactose) and minerals (incl. calcium & phosphorus) Whole STD: ≥11.75%  Solids non-fat (FT120): Includes protein (casein & lactalbumin), carbohydrate (lactose) and minerals (incl. calcium & phosphorus) Reduced fat, lowfat, skim STD: ≥8.25%  Protein (FT120) goat samples only  Freezing Point (Cryoscope): Measures added water. Base line freezing point for raw milk is.540°Hortvet Repetitive violations – adulterated product

Assistance  Dairy Inspectors – Tanya Farrington-Thomason: & Renee Blais: & Beth Williams  University of Maine Extension – Gary Anderson:  University of Maine Food Scientist Specialist – Beth Calder:  MQL – Linda Stahlnecker: & Diana McKenzie:  Maine Cheese Guild – Eric Rector:  Other Small Dairy Businesses – lots of resources!!

QUESTIONS?