Quality milk and tests for antibiotic residues.

One goal of total quality management is to prevent the occurrence of antibiotics in raw milk shipped from the farm. An effective approach to meet this goal is the implementation of HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) procedures, which are part of the Milk and Dairy Beef Quality Assurance Program for antibiotic avoidance. The program defines 10 critical control points, including screening tests for preventing antibiotic residues. Although milk from individual cows clearly should be tested to ensure that antibiotic-free milk is leaving the farm, it is not clear whether any existing tests can be reliably used on milk samples from individual cows, or even on samples from bulk tanks. The FDA acceptance procedures have not required that bulk milk tests undergo a population evaluation; these tests have not been objectively evaluated for individual cows. Of more concern, detection limits differ among tests, sometimes approaching zero. Despite the intent of the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance, milk acceptability definitions vary between states. In addition, the predictive value of test results has not been integrated into the regulatory process. Although largely ignored by the regulatory agencies, these issues cannot be ignored by the dairy industry. Ultimately, the milk testing program should become a component of the quality process that is centered on the farm and that measures the success of the industry in producing high quality milk rather than being a regulatory program that searches for a flawed product.