How Does Milk Production Work?

Producing Milk

Cows make milk when they give birth to a calf and their bodies release hormones that stimulate milk production. Cows, however, make far more milk than is needed for a single calf, and if they are milked regularly, they will continue to make milk even when the calf is weaned.

Processing Milk

Most dairy farms are automated, with a milking machine in each stall. The cows enter through a chute, are directed into individual stalls and the machines are hooked to their udders. The machines pump the milk from the udders into long tubes, which transport the milk to large holding tanks, where it is pasteurized and homogenized. Pasteurization is the process of heating the milk to a high enough temperature to kill any bacteria. Homogenization is the process of emulsifying the milk so that the cream does not separate and form clumps.

Transporting Milk

Once the milk is pasteurized and homogenized, it is poured into containers which are sealed, cooled and transported to stores.
Some dairy farms focus on managing the herds and collecting the milk, at which point it is transported to the dairy facility via large tanker trucks. At the dairy, the milk is pasteurized, homogenized and sealed in containers to be delivered to the dairy's customers.

Resources

• Milk Production