Factors affecting composition properties and somatic cell count of cow milk produced in Kırsehir province

The aim of our research was to determine the influences of some environmental factors on these parameters, and somatic cell count (SCC) and chemical composition of cow bulk tank milk at four different locations and sampling seasons (autumn, winter, spring and summer). A total of 428 bulk tank milk samples were collected four times between January and October 2006 from dairy farms located in parts of Kırşehir province. The overall mean of logSCC, general SCC, fat content, solids-not-fat (SNF), protein content, lactose and pH values were determined as 5.53, 624224 cells/ml, 3.68%, 8.90%, 3.27%, 4.84%, 6.63, respectively. To evaluate the effect of farm scale, daily total milk production was classified in three groups according to bulk tank milk production of dairy farms (small: <20 kg/d; medium: 20-40 kg/d and large: >40 kg/d). Also, three groups were designed according to average SCC values; low (<200x103 cells/ml), medium (200-500x103 cells/ml) and high SCC (>500x103 cells/ml). The actual SCC were transformed by using a log10 transformation. The results showed that sampling season was significantly affected fat content (P<0.05), logSCC, SNF, protein, lactose and pH (P<0.01). The effect of location on fat content was significantly important (P<0.01), but no effects on SCC and other milk components. SCC was found to be the highest in large-scale farms, while the highest fat content was determined in small-scale farms (P<0.01) and also the lowest pH was determined in large-scale farms (P<0.01). Of all bulk tank milk composition, SCC only affected fat content (P<0.05), and the lowest fat content was determined in bulk tank milk with high SCC (>500x103 cell/ml). As a result, it is concluded that effective environmental factors should be taken into consideration in obtaining high quality and qualified milk from dairy enterprises. Keywords: Dairy cattle, somatic cell count, milk composition, bovine milk