More than half of dairy parlour washes are failing to meet manufacturer’s recommendations, according to new research from leading hygiene business Diversey.

Its research has shown that 53.8 per cent of washes failed to optimise the chemical concentration with the correct wash temperature, and that 46.75 per cent failed to deliver the correct chemical concentration for the entire wash cycle.

“This is extremely worrying research for British dairy producers,” said Rob Kelly, Diversey’s regional sales director.  “At a time when the industry is looking to reduce antibiotic use on farm, and meet ever-tightening milk contract demands, it’s an area that farmers should be putting top of their action list.”

With its Deosan range of hygiene products, the company said it is committed to partnering with its customers to help them to produce safe and high-quality milk.

“It’s a fact that ‘one size fits all’ doesn’t work for cleaning in place (CIP) routines,” he adds.  “No two farms will have the same challenges, or the same equipment.”

A full CIP programme includes parlours, robots and bulk tanks, with every part of the cleaning process as important as the next.

Mr Kelly said: “Meeting these standards starts with an efficient teat preparation routine with a pre-milking teat disinfectant that ensures the teats are clean before milking. The full CIP routine will use detergent, descaler and disinfectant, combined with our support to ensure an individually-tailored routine for every farm.