Assessment and quantification of levels of microbial contamination in bovine milk from smallholder dairy farmers of Monze district in the Southern Zambia

Two types of bovine milk; processed milk (PM). and unprocessed milk (UM). each replicated five (5). times were tested for bacterial plate count (BPC). and microbial species (MS). Five replicates of each were randomly assigned for testing in a Time Series Experimental Design (TSED). at the Samora Machel School of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Zambia. The two types of milk samples were tested for quality and microbial load (ML). The two types of milk samples (PM and UM). did not differ significantly (p<0.05). in terms of ML. The coliforms values for PM samples were 45 x 10⁴, 0.14 x 10⁴, 1 x 10⁴, and 0.1 x 10⁴ while those for the UM samples were 38.6 x 10⁴, 45.6 x 10⁴, 83 x 10⁴ , and 0.16 x 104. The bacterial Load (BL). in milk depends upon the hygienic practices and the method of processing used. Results of this study provide evidence that the processing method used at the plant is not effective in reducing BL at Monze Dairy Farmers Cooperative Society (MDFCS).