The need to improve quality and safety of milk produced and consumed in Brazil resulted in development of new governmental policies to support the Brazilian milk-producing sector. Among them, the most relevant is the PNMQL (National Program to Improve Milk Quality). In 2002, the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture created the Instrução Normativa 51 (Normative Instruction 51, IN51), with important innovations related to maintenance and transport of raw milk, besides establishment of microbiological standards to be implemented in different periods of time, according to the producing region, starting in 2005. The present study aimed to trace if raw milk produced in four important milk-producing regions in the country would be capable to be in accordance to the microbiological standards established by IN51. Raw milk samples, collected in 210 different milk-producing farms, located in vicinities of Viçosa (Minas Gerais state), Pelotas (Rio Grande do Sul state), Londrina (Paraná state) and Botucatu (Sao Paulo state) were submitted to counts of mesophilic aerobes using PetrifilmTM AC plates. In a significant number of samples, the counts were above the standards, being 21.3% from Viçosa, 56.0% from Pelotas, 47.6% from Londrina and 68.0% from Botucatu. Taking into account the differences in milk-producing practices adopted in the four regions, the study evidenced the importance of cooling during maintenance and transport of raw milk. The relevance of adoption of good hygiene practices and access to technical support was also evidenced. The conclusion of the study is that the difficulties to achieve the standards established by IN51 may vary from region to region. Cooling of milk for maintenance and transport is fundamental, but regional programs to assist the milk producers are also needed.
raw milk; quality; regulations; IN51
