News milk
Stricter rules for home milk sales after all
For milk sold fresh from the farm, stricter rules will apply from the new year 2025. The milk to be sold must be checked twice a month for the total aerobic germ count at 30°C and sellers must be able to provide proof of this.
Farmers' organisation Agractie protested against the tightening, because according to them this would mean the end of the milk tap. Moreover, according to the organisation it is an expensive and unnecessary measure. This is because the infections that the NVWA fears mainly come from raw meat and not from milk. According to Agractie the disappearance of the milk tap is also a shame because it means another moment of contact between farmer and citizen is lost.
The dairy inspection agency, the COKZ, must monitor compliance with the new requirement, points out that the regulations will be implemented and what measures are required for this at the company.
The stricter home sales rules apply not only to cow's milk, but to all farm milk and cream, including goat's and camel's milk.
According to the explanation accompanying the publication of the decision in the Official Gazette, the inspection costs can still be reasonable if the dairy processor returns the regular inspection data to the farmer, but the farmer often still has to take additional measures on the farm.
Less strict requirements apply to milk directly from the tank, but tapping directly from the tank is not always very practical or desirable.
The tightening of the requirements can be traced back to an advice from BuRo, an independent body of the NVWA, from 2022.
Klaas van der Horst
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