Optimum hygiene in robotic milking to solve butyric acid problems
Throughout silage production, microbial processes take place to conserve the roughage. A major element within the process of making good silage is to stimulate the production of lactic acid to ensure that the silage is well conserved. If the responsible bacteria fail to do their job quickly enough, the rotting process starts. This process is caused by the bacteria that produce butyric acid. When a cow eats this kind of silage, the butyric acid bacteria (BAB) will eventually get into the manure, since they are not destroyed by the cow's digestion system. In case the cow's udder is dirty and not cleaned properly, the milk may be contaminated by the butyric acid bacteria. Contamination of milk by BAB is a major problem for the dairy industry. BAB affect the cheese making process, because they cannot be removed through the pasteurisation process. That is also the reason why some dairy factories apply a penalty system for BAB.
Relevant data from dairy companies shows that dairy farmers using an Astronaut milking robot seem to have fewer problems in terms of BAB than farmers using traditional milking equipment. From these favourable figures it may be concluded that the Astronaut udder cleaning system works very effectively. Due to the brush udder cleaning system, it is not only the teats themselves that are cleaned, but the surrounding area as well. The Astronaut milking robot favours overall hygiene within the automated milking process as well as providing an effective means to avoid BAB problems as much as possible.