Category Archives: Recent Publications

Thoughts on SQF and Food Safety Culture

On Sunday I will be heading to New Orleans for SQF Unites, their annual meeting. I always enjoy the SQF meetings, they do a great job with speakers and topics related to improving your Food Safety Programs. The buzz this year will be Edition 10 is coming! I hope to learn if there will be any major changes and what will it look like.
SQF has lasted as a Food Safety System because they are continually improving and updating as new knowledge and experiences happen in the Food Safety World. When I was first introduced to SQF, my thought was, “This program is different from other programs because it is a system that can oversee all your food safety and quality programs.” When you set up your system, it should include everyone in the facility from quality, production, maintenance, and all other departments. It should be a team effort.
It will be another year before Edition 10 is officially rolled out but in the meantime, you should be continually trying to strive for Continuous Improvement in your programs.
A great place to start is with Food Safety Culture. Is your Food safety Culture obvious to a new employee, a customer, or an auditor?
The best way to show that you have a good food safety culture is at your opening meeting. Who is at your opening meeting? Is it just the QA staff? What does that say about your facility to an auditor? As an auditor, I would like to meet all the key managers at the opening meeting, and then when I go to their areas of the plant, they can describe to me what is happening, and I can observe and interview key employees. I can see if they are doing what the company intends them to do. I will also try to observe that the employees are doing the right thing when no one is watching.
I like to use the example of washing hands in the facility. It’s a simple way to see the employee’s commitment to doing what is right. When I go into a facility, I wash my hands at every single handwash station. The number one reason is it’s the correct thing to do, but it is also a way to check if it has proper soap, water, etc. And, finally, I know that all your employees are watching me and looking to see if I will do the right thing. Many times, I have been in facilities where I have seen senior management walk into the plant without washing their hands. What kind of message does that send to the employees?
When the auditor questions your employees, how will they respond to food safety culture questions? A lot of times, employees will get confused by the word “culture,” especially in the dairy industry when I’m in a cheese plant or a yogurt plant. I was in one facility where they told me that instead of using “culture,” they were using the word “attitude.” I really liked that because that’s really what we’re looking for. We want to have an attitude in the facility that everybody cares about food safety and quality.
The Food Safety culture in your facility once again should involve everyone. At my workshops I like to tease and pick on any Maintenance people in the room. Firstly, because they can take it, usually that don’t mind, and mostly because they are all over your plant so if they don’t come to work with Food Safety in their toolbox you will not be successful.
When is the last time you did Food Safety Culture training specifically with your Maintenance staff. Don’t ignore them because they will be your downfall. This also includes outside contractors, especially if you are doing any construction projects at your facility. A robust training program that includes inperson discussions with your maintenance and outside contractors is key to your success. By communicating with them in person that will help them understand how important Food Safety is in your facility. You need to get their buy in and help. During construction projects weekly check-in meetings are helpful to discuss any potential food safety issues.
When I get back from the SQF meeting I will share any insights I learned from the meeting but in the meantime go make some food safety connections with your maintenance staff!

Celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance
We are very excited to let you know that this year will mark the 100th anniversary of the Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO). To commemorate this outstanding public health accomplishment, you will see a number of celebratory activities throughout 2024. Many of these activities will be planned and conducted through the collaboration of NCIMS and FDA, as well as other dairy stakeholders.
The year-long celebration will include activities to recognize the strides that we have made in this program over the last century, to educate the public about pasteurization and dairy food safety, and to honor the efforts of our state dairy programs and our industry.
For January, you can expect to see:
NEW Infographic – New on the FDA PMO Centennial page (www.fda.gov/milk100), you will now find a link to an infographic (underneath the thumbnail for the video). The infographic is based on concepts from the video. It features a 100 year timeline with historical events in milk and dairy safety and great photos. It can also be downloaded from this link for use on social media, websites or other materials.
Saluting the States – Every week on social media, FDA will post a state-specific infographic highlighting a dairy fact or two. For January, look for Alabama, Vermont, Ohio, New Mexico, and Washington. These can be viewed on the FDA Centennial webpage: https://www.fda.gov/milk100
Animated Video – highlighting the importance of pasteurization and the PMO is now live on social media:
X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/US_FDA/status/1742627401350197603
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/fda_fda-celebrates-100-years-of-milk-and-dairy-activity-7148395211105214464-qcf1?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
Facebook: https://fb.watch/plslkZ6iHD/?mibextid=K8Wfd2
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1plZLZPw43/?igsh=dmpvM2ZpZTYyYzcwou can also view the video here: https://youtu.be/S1nqCYChpzs
You can also view the video here: https://youtu.be/S1nqCYChpzs
FDA Centennial Webpage where we will be linking other materials throughout the year as we continue our celebration: https://www.fda.gov/milk100
PMO Centennial Celebration Icons have been developed for use with our various commemorative activities. You will see them in videos, infographics, presentations, etc. The icons below may be downloaded and used on social media and may also be used in email signatures.

Anniversary Icon100 Milk Anniversary Icon – download link Continue reading

Dairy Foods Extension: Workforce Update

A persistent issue among employers in nearly every industry is the workforce; the problem is with both numbers and talent. Industry partners have echoed this sentiment, resulting in a significant expansion of workforce development within Cornell’s Dairy Foods Extension. This includes the addition of two workforce specialists, Hannah Moyal and Taylor Pelcher. Hannah and Taylor aim to ask and answer urgent questions while addressing this seemingly insurmountable challenge. Recent accomplishments and lessons learned, plans for the upcoming year, and insights into potential solutions to the workforce crisis will be covered in this update.
The team aspires to host quarterly bootcamps, and due to the high demand, the 2024 workforce calendar is nearly full. There have been two successful three-day bootcamps in the last six months in Western New York. The bootcamp content remains relatively consistent, though each experience is tailored to the attending audience. Subject matter includes presentations on good manufacturing practices (GMP), food safety, sensory sampling, introduction to dairy science through a ‘composition of milk’ module, plant tours, a career panel with employees from dairy and food processing plants in the local area, and several other topics. The immersive educational experience in and out of the classroom effectively keeps the participants engaged and contributes to accelerated learning. Upon completion, participants earn a certificate which they can add to their resume. Though some participants may not immediately seek employment in the dairy and food processing industries, if and when they decide to do so, the certificate will give them an advantage in the candidate pool.
In August, the team traveled to Erie County, where they hosted a bootcamp tailored for under- or unemployed adults. 24 individuals successfully completed the bootcamp, gaining new skills and insights to help shape their professional trajectories. The program extended beyond the classroom setting, offering participants a unique chance to see day-to-day industry operations. Visits to Lactalis, Upstate Niagara, and Perry’s Ice Cream provided direct exposure and facilitated engaging discussions with plant representatives. Participants heard about their experiences and the benefits of pursuing employment within their companies. Amazingly, six of the participants applied for positions at the partnering plants and currently one of the participants is happily employed at Lactalis.
Again, in November, the team took the show on the road; this time to Genesee County, where they hosted another three-day Bootcamp targeting High School Seniors within the Genesee Valley BOCES region. 27 students completed the bootcamp, which provided them with ample opportunity to interact with industry representatives and encouraged them to seriously consider this career path. Partnering companies in this region included five local plants: HP Hood, Nortera, Yancey’s Fancy, Upstate, and O-AT-KA. Tours of the latter three plants added a practical aspect to their learning, allowing them to witness firsthand the work within the industry. These experiences go beyond traditional education, providing participants with tangible, real-world perspectives, and relevant experience in the food and dairy processing industry.
With the wisdom gained from experiences thus far, the team will be pivoting their future approach to facilitate even greater exposure to careers in food processing through a pilot program aimed exclusively at high school students. Hannah and Taylor will partner with a high school educator and spend a day with students to hold a condensed bootcamp. This strategy also allows for the longer bootcamps to be focused on the adult population, reaching a wider audience.
Through additional reflection, it is also clear that the commitment to providing individuals with knowledge goes hand in hand with the necessity for companies to offer support, ensuring potential employees make informed and positive career choices. The team has identified common barriers that hinder individuals from securing offered positions and sometimes even applying for work. The barriers include transportation, childcare, language barriers, and insufficient education. Many otherwise willing and able potential employees have these issues compounded by the lack of resources to help them achieve self-sufficiency.
It is important to note that these challenges do not affect everyone equally and can unfairly affect underprivileged groups, leading to disparities in employment opportunities and hindering overall workforce diversity and inclusion. Addressing these barriers requires strategies that encompass education and training initiatives, commitment to fostering an inclusive and fair work environment, and programs to aid employees who require additional support. Furthermore, the identification of these barriers emphasizes the need for companies to proactively address these challenges if they intend to successfully fill their vacancies and retain talent. Recognizing and working to lessen the burden these barriers pose is not just a moral imperative but also a strategy that is necessary for companies aiming to cultivate a skillful and diverse workforce. Companies that work towards eliminating these barriers not only contribute to a more equitable job market but also position themselves as leaders in creating an inclusive and supportive workplace. This includes investing in employee education and training and providing the necessary support structures to assist with transportation or childcare barriers. In doing so, companies not only break down barriers for individuals seeking employment, but also enhance their own organizational culture in a professional way.
The team’s ability to effectively advise on solutions is only proportionate to a company’s willingness to honestly acknowledge the workforce problems they face, whether within or outside of their control. This requires accurate assessment of shortcomings and a thorough plan to conquer them. The team’s mission is to serve the dairy industry to the best of their ability, priding themselves on completing cutting edge work, with the dairy and food processing bootcamp exemplifying that. The success experienced so far in the realm of workforce development only encourages them to continue improving as they look forward to proving their commitment to these evolving goals. Difficult problems require creative solutions and there are many exciting achievements waiting to materialize. Thanks for taking the time to read this update.

Recent Dairy Research

Park, Hyeon Woo, V. M. Balasubramaniam, and Abigail B. Snyder. “Inactivation of Enterococcus Faecium and Geobacillus Stearothermophilus Spores on Stainless Steel through Dry Sanitation Approaches Using Superheated Steam and Ultraviolet C-LED.” Food Control 156 (February 1, 2024): 110144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2023.110144.

Rivera Flores, Viviana K., Timothy A. DeMarsh, Xingrui Fan, and Samuel D. Alcaine. “Cheese Whey Permeate as a Precursor of Lactose-Free, Galactose-Rich Bioproducts: An Approach for Optimization and Application.” Food and Bioprocess Technology, October 24, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11947-023-03234-7.

Rivera Flores, Viviana K., Xingrui Fan, Timothy A. DeMarsh, Dana L. deRiancho, and Samuel D. Alcaine. “Leveraging Milk Permeate Fermentation to Produce Lactose-Free, Low-In-Glucose, Galactose-Rich Bioproducts: Optimizations and Applications.” Fermentation 9, no. 9 (September 2023): 825. https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation9090825.

Recent Dairy Research

Chen, Hanyu, and Carmen I. Moraru. “Exposure to 222 Nm Far UV-C Effectively Inactivates Planktonic Foodborne Pathogens and Inhibits Biofilm Formation.” Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies 87 (July 1, 2023): 103411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ifset.2023.103411.

Fan, Xingrui, Viviana K. Rivera Flores, Timothy A. DeMarsh, Dana L. deRiancho, and Samuel D. Alcaine. “Aerobic Cultivation of Mucor Species Enables the Deacidification of Yogurt Acid Whey and the Production of Fungal Oil.” Foods 12, no. 9 (January 2023): 1784. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12091784.

Feng, Jingzhang, Devin Daeschel, Damion Dooley, Emma Griffiths, Marc Allard, Ruth Timme, Yi Chen, and Abigail B. Snyder. “A Schema for Digitized Surface Swab Site Metadata in Open-Source DNA Sequence Databases.” MSystems 8, no. 2 (February 27, 2023): e01284-22. https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01284-22.

Lau, S., M. Wiedmann, and A. Adalja. “Economic and Environmental Analysis of Processing Plant Interventions to Reduce Fluid Milk Waste.” Journal of Dairy Science 106, no. 7 (July 1, 2023): 4773–84. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-23019.

Zhou, P., S. Madarshahian, A. Abbaspourrad, and R. Dando. “Wavelength-Tailored Light-Emitting Diodes Reduce Damage to Sensory Properties of Light-Exposed Milk.” Journal of Dairy Science, June 7, 2023. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22585

New York State, State Fair 2023 Dairy Products Competition

The Dairy Products Competition celebrates New York’s dairy industry and its finest dairy producers and processors from across the state with gold or silver honors, or an Award of Excellence. This year there were 197 entries across 26 categories, including fluid milk, various types of cheeses, sour cream, yogurt, dips, cottage cheese, and for the first time ever, ice cream.

Cheese classes were evaluated by 13 expert judges, including several representatives from the Department of Agriculture and Markets, Cornell University, and Steve Funk from Nelson Jameson. This year, the Chief Judge was Valerie Catlin from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets’ Division of Milk Control. Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Milk Quality Improvement Program judged the fluid milk and ice cream portions of the competition.

The winners of this year’s competition were honored, as has been tradition, during a special awards ceremony on Dairy Day at the Great New York State Fair on August 31, 2023.

The winners are as follows:

Competition Winners
Class 1- Current Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lake Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98
Silver Great Lake Cheese Cheddar Cheese 97.5
Award of Excellence Agri-Mark Inc Cheddar Cheese 97

Class 2- Aged Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98.5
Silver Worlds Best Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98
Award of Excellence Argi-Mark Inc Cheddar Cheese 97.5

Class 3- “Super” Aged Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98.5
Silver Agri-Mark Inc. Cheddar Cheese 97
Award of Excellence Agri-Mark Inc. Cheddar Cheese 96.5

Class 4- Cottage Cheese Full Fat
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville 4% Large Curd Cottage Cheese 99
Silver Hood Arkport Small Curd Cottage Cheese 97
Award of Excellence Hood Vernon Small Curd Cottage Cheese 96.5

Class 5- Lowfat Cottage Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Lowfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 96.5
Silver Hood Arkport Lowfat Cream Cottage Cheese 95.5
Award of Excellence Hood Lafargeville Lowfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 95

Class 6- Nonfat Cottage Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Nonfat Cream Cottage Cheese 98.5
Silver Hood Lafargeville Nonfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 94

Class 7- Cream Cheese/ Neufchatel
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Kraft Heinz Regular Cream Cheese 99.5
Silver Kraft Heinz Whipped Cream Cheese 99
Award of Excellence Kraft Heinz Jalapeno Cream Cheese 98

Class 8- Low Moisture Mozzarella
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese LM Whole Milk Mozzarella 96
Silver Great Lakes Cheese LM Part Skim Milk Mozzarella 95.5
Award of Excellence Lactalis American Group LM Part Skim Milk Mozzarella 95

Class 9- Mozzarella, non-pizza
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Part Skim Mozzarella 98.5
Silver Lactalis American Group Part Skim Mozzarella 98
Award of Excellence Upstate State Niagara Low Moisture Mozzarella String Cheese 97.5

Class 10- Ricotta
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Made With Whole Milk Ricotta 98
Silver Lactalis American Group Double Cream Ricotta 97
Award of Excellence BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Original Ricotta 95.5

Class 11- Provolone
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Provolone 98.5
Silver Great Lake Cheese Smoked Provolone 96.5
Award of Excellence Great Lake Cheese Provolone 96

Class 12- Cold Pack/ Process Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Yancey Fancy Maple w/Bacon Cheddar 99
Silver Agri-Mark Inc. Horseradish Cheddar 98.5
Award of Excellence Yancey Fancy Steakhouse Onion 98

Class 13- Flavored Natural Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Smoked Fresh Mozzarella Ball 99
Silver Old Chatham Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese with Cranberries 98.5
Award of Excellence BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Pesto Sliced Fresh Mozzarella Log 98

Class 14- Open Class Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Old Chatham Creamery Nancy’s Hudson Valley Camembert 99.5
Silver BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Fresh Mozzarella Log 99
Award of Excellence Yancey’s Fancy Bergenost 98.5

Class 16- Goat/ Sheep Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Old Chatham Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese w/Garlic &Herbs 99.5
Silver Nettle Meadow Simply Sheep 99
Award of Excellence Cotton Hill Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese 98.5

Class 18- Farmstead/Artisan Cow’s Milk Soft Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Four Fat Fowl St. Stephen 99
Silver Four Fat Fowl CamemBertha 98
Award of Excellence Chuchtown Dairy Coperthwaite 97

Class 19- Farmstead/Artisan Cow’s Milk Hard Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold East Hill Creamery Silver Lake 99
Silver Eden Valley Creamery Alpine Style with Caraway 98.5
Award of Excellence Jake’s Cheese Gouda 95.5

Class 20- Sour Cream
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Arkport Sour Cream 97.5
Silver Upstate Niagara Dairy Sour Cream 96
Award of Excellence Hood Arkport Sour Cream 95.5

Class 21- Buttermilk
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Arkport Buttermilk-Reduced Fat 98
Silver Upstate Niagara Dairy Whole Cultured Buttermilk 97.5
Award of Excellence Argyle Cheese Factory Full Fat Buttermilk 97

Class 22- Dairy Dips
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Heluva Good French Onion 98.5
Silver Hood Arkport Heluva Good French Onion Dip 96.5
Award of Excellence Upstate Niagara Dairy French Onion Dip 96

Class 23- Plain Yogurt
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Vernon Nonfat Plain Yogurt 96.5
Silver Stoltzfus Family Dairy Plain Yogurt 95.5
Award of Excellence Argyle Cheese Factory Greek Plain Yogurt 95

Class 24- Flavored Yogurt
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Argyle Cheese Factory Maple Greek Yogurt 99
Silver Stoltzfus Family Dairy Raspberry Yogurt 97
Award of Excellence Old Chatham Creamery Ginger Sheep Milk Yogurt 96.5

Class 25- Fluid Milk
Overall Company Entry Name
Gold Stewart’s Processing Fluid Milk
Silver Upstate Farms Buffalo Fluid Milk

Small Processor Company Entry Name
Gold Weissmann Farms Fluid Milk

Company Entry Name
Gold Dygert Farms Creamery Chocolate Milk
Gold Stewart’s Processing Flavored Milk

Class 26-Ice Cream
Company Entry Name
Gold Mikey Dubb’s Frozen Custard Vanilla Ice Cream
Gold Stewart’s Processing Chocolate Ice Cream
Gold Stewart’s Processing Open Class Mint Cookie Crumble

2023 Dairy Products Competition
Grand Champion
Four Fat Fowl St. Stephen’s

New York State, State Fair 2023 Dairy Products Competition

New York State, State Fair
2023 Dairy Products Competition
148 Stocking Hall, Cornell University

Competition Winners
Class 1- Current Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lake Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98
Silver Great Lake Cheese Cheddar Cheese 97.5
Award of Excellence Agri-Mark Inc Cheddar Cheese 97

Class 2- Aged Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98.5
Silver Worlds Best Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98
Award of Excellence Argi-Mark Inc Cheddar Cheese 97.5

Class 3- “Super” Aged Cheddar
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese Cheddar Cheese 98.5
Silver Agri-Mark Inc. Cheddar Cheese 97
Award of Excellence Agri-Mark Inc. Cheddar Cheese 96.5

Class 4- Cottage Cheese Full Fat
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville 4% Large Curd Cottage Cheese 99
Silver Hood Arkport Small Curd Cottage Cheese 97
Award of Excellence Hood Vernon Small Curd Cottage Cheese 96.5

Class 5- Lowfat Cottage Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Lowfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 96.5
Silver Hood Arkport Lowfat Cream Cottage Cheese 95.5
Award of Excellence Hood Lafargeville Lowfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 95

Class 6- Nonfat Cottage Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Nonfat Cream Cottage Cheese 98.5
Silver Hood Lafargeville Nonfat Small Curd Cottage Cheese 94

Class 7- Cream Cheese/ Neufchatel
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Kraft Heinz Regular Cream Cheese 99.5
Silver Kraft Heinz Whipped Cream Cheese 99
Award of Excellence Kraft Heinz Jalapeno Cream Cheese 98

Class 8- Low Moisture Mozzarella
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Great Lakes Cheese LM Whole Milk Mozzarella 96
Silver Great Lakes Cheese LM Part Skim Milk Mozzarella 95.5
Award of Excellence Lactalis American Group LM Part Skim Milk Mozzarella 95

Class 9- Mozzarella, non-pizza
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Part Skim Mozzarella 98.5
Silver Lactalis American Group Part Skim Mozzarella 98
Award of Excellence Upstate State Niagara Low Moisture Mozzarella String Cheese 97.5

Class 10- Ricotta
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Made With Whole Milk Ricotta 98
Silver Lactalis American Group Double Cream Ricotta 97
Award of Excellence BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Original Ricotta 95.5

Class 11- Provolone
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Lactalis American Group Provolone 98.5
Silver Great Lake Cheese Smoked Provolone 96.5
Award of Excellence Great Lake Cheese Provolone 96

Class 12- Cold Pack/ Process Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Yancey Fancy Maple w/Bacon Cheddar 99
Silver Agri-Mark Inc. Horseradish Cheddar 98.5
Award of Excellence Yancey Fancy Steakhouse Onion 98

Class 13- Flavored Natural Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Smoked Fresh Mozzarella Ball 99
Silver Old Chatham Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese with Cranberries 98.5
Award of Excellence BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Pesto Sliced Fresh Mozzarella Log 98

Class 14- Open Class Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Old Chatham Creamery Nancy’s Hudson Valley Camembert 99.5
Silver BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Fresh Mozzarella Log 99
Award of Excellence Yancey’s Fancy Bergenost 98.5

Class 16- Goat/ Sheep Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Old Chatham Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese w/Garlic &Herbs 99.5
Silver Nettle Meadow Simply Sheep 99
Award of Excellence Cotton Hill Creamery Fresh Goat Cheese 98.5

Class 18- Farmstead/Artisan Cow’s Milk Soft Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Four Fat Fowl St. Stephen 99
Silver Four Fat Fowl CamemBertha 98
Award of Excellence Chuchtown Dairy Coperthwaite 97

Class 19- Farmstead/Artisan Cow’s Milk Hard Cheese
Company Entry Name Score
Gold East Hill Creamery Silver Lake 99
Silver Eden Valley Creamery Alpine Style with Caraway 98.5
Award of Excellence Jake’s Cheese Gouda 95.5

Class 20- Sour Cream
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Arkport Sour Cream 97.5
Silver Upstate Niagara Dairy Sour Cream 96
Award of Excellence Hood Arkport Sour Cream 95.5

Class 21- Buttermilk
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Arkport Buttermilk-Reduced Fat 98
Silver Upstate Niagara Dairy Whole Cultured Buttermilk 97.5
Award of Excellence Argyle Cheese Factory Full Fat Buttermilk 97

Class 22- Dairy Dips
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Lafargeville Heluva Good French Onion 98.5
Silver Hood Arkport Heluva Good French Onion Dip 96.5
Award of Excellence Upstate Niagara Dairy French Onion Dip 96

Class 23- Plain Yogurt
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Hood Vernon Nonfat Plain Yogurt 96.5
Silver Stoltzfus Family Dairy Plain Yogurt 95.5
Award of Excellence Argyle Cheese Factory Greek Plain Yogurt 95

Class 24- Flavored Yogurt
Company Entry Name Score
Gold Argyle Cheese Factory Maple Greek Yogurt 99
Silver Stoltzfus Family Dairy Raspberry Yogurt 97
Award of Excellence Old Chatham Creamery Ginger Sheep Milk Yogurt 96.5

Class 25- Fluid Milk
Overall Company Entry Name
Gold Stewart’s Processing Fluid Milk
Silver Upstate Farms Buffalo Fluid Milk

Small Processor Company Entry Name
Gold Weissmann Farms Fluid Milk

Company Entry Name
Gold Dygert Farms Creamery Chocolate Milk
Gold Stewart’s Processing Flavored Milk

Class 26-Ice Cream
Company Entry Name
Gold Mikey Dubb’s Frozen Custard Vanilla Ice Cream
Gold Stewart’s Processing Chocolate Ice Cream
Gold Stewart’s Processing Open Class Mint Cookie Crumble

2023 Dairy Products Competition
Grand Champion
Four Fat Fowl St. Stephen’s

Recent Dairy Research

 

Callero, K. R., E. M. Teplitz, D. M. Barbano, C. R. Seely, J. A. Seminara, I. R. Frost, H. A. McCray, R. M. Martinez, A. M. Reid, and J. A. A. McArt. “Patterns of Fourier-Transform Infrared Estimated Milk Constituents in Early Lactation Holstein Cows on a Single New York State Dairy.” Journal of Dairy Science, February 22, 2023. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22588.

 

Evanowski, Rachel L., Sarah I. Murphy, Martin Wiedmann, and Nicole H. Martin. “Low-Cost, on-Farm Intervention to Reduce Spores in Bulk Tank Raw Milk Benefits Producers, Processors, and Consumers.” Journal of Dairy Science, January 27, 2023. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22372.

 

Martin, N. H., R. L. Evanowski, and M. Wiedmann. “Invited Review: Redefining Raw Milk Quality—Evaluation of Raw Milk Microbiological Parameters to Ensure High-Quality Processed Dairy Products.” Journal of Dairy Science, January 9, 2023. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22416.

 

Sakai, Nobumitsu, Ola Yetunde Esho, and Motoko Mukai. “Iodine Concentrations in Conventional and Organic Milk in the Northeastern U.S.” Dairy 3, no. 2 (June 2022): 211–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/dairy3020017.

 

Dumpler, Joseph, and Carmen I. Moraru. “A Process Optimization Approach for Microwave Vacuum Drying of Concentrated Skim Milk.” Journal of Dairy Science 105, no. 11 (November 1, 2022): 8765–81. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2021-21459.

 

Griep-Moyer, E. R., A. Trmčić, C. Qian, and C. I. Moraru. “Monte Carlo Simulation Model Predicts Bactofugation Can Extend Shelf-Life of Pasteurized Fluid Milk, Even When Raw Milk with Low Spore Counts Is Used as the Incoming Ingredient.” Journal of Dairy Science, October 4, 2022, S0022-0302(22)00571-9. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-22174.

 

McGillin, Meghan R., Dana L. deRiancho, Timothy A. DeMarsh, Ella D. Hsu, and Samuel D. Alcaine. “Selective Survival of Protective Cultures during High-Pressure Processing by Leveraging Freeze-Drying and Encapsulation.” Foods 11, no. 16 (January 2022): 2465. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11162465.

 

Basbas, Carl, Sharif Aly, Emmanuel Okello, Betsy M. Karle, Terry Lehenbauer, Deniece Williams, Erika Ganda, Martin Wiedmann, and Richard V. Pereira. “Effect of Intramammary Dry Cow Antimicrobial Treatment on Fresh Cow’s Milk Microbiota in California Commercial Dairies.” Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) 11, no. 7 (July 18, 2022): 963. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics11070963.

 

Cheng, Rachel A., Renato H. Orsi, and Martin Wiedmann. “The Number and Type of Chaperone-Usher Fimbriae Reflect Phylogenetic Clade Rather than Host Range in Salmonella.” MSystems 7, no. 3 (June 28, 2022): e0011522. https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.00115-22.

 

Hassoun, Abdo, Nour Alhaj Abdullah, Abderrahmane Aït-Kaddour, Mohamed Ghellam, Ayşegül Beşir, Oscar Zannou, Begüm Önal, et al. “Food Traceability 4.0 as Part of the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Key Enabling Technologies.” Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, August 11, 2022, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2022.2110033.

 

“In‐mouth, Self‐disintegrating Milk Protein Puffs‐I: Process Development – Arora – Journal of Food Process Engineering – Wiley Online Library.” Accessed August 30, 2022. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jfpe.14144.

 

Qian, Chenhao, Yuhan Liu, Cecil Barnett-Neefs, Sudeep Salgia, Omer Serbetci, Aaron Adalja, Jayadev Acharya, Qing Zhao, Renata Ivanek, and Martin Wiedmann. “A Perspective on Data Sharing in Digital Food Safety Systems.” Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition 0, no. 0 (July 26, 2022): 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2022.2103086.

 

Rudlong, Autumn M., Yuto T. Koga, and Julie M. Goddard. “Advances in Nonfouling and Antimicrobial Coatings: Perspectives for the Food Industry.” ACS Food Science & Technology, August 17, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.2c00148.

 

Wang, Mingming, Lu Wang, Xiaomei Lyu, Xiao Hua, Julie M. Goddard, and Ruijin Yang. “Lactulose Production from Lactose Isomerization by Chemo-Catalysts and Enzymes: Current Status and Future Perspectives.” Biotechnology Advances 60 (July 25, 2022): 108021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biotechadv.2022.108021.

 

The ‘Magical’ CIP Button

The operators know it well, that magical button we push that cleans everything as if we alone possess supernatural powers!  But in fact, do we?  It’s been my experience that we do not.  While it’s safe to say the chemicals or heat are doing much of the work, it still is dependable on several factors as to whether a system is getting cleaned properly or not.  Take for example a cultured dairy plant that wanted to run a non-cultured product through their system.  After cleaning and sanitizing their system completely, the non-cultured product over shelf life started to exhibit the same flavor, smell and texture of some of the cultured products they made. Not only that, we were able to culture out of those products their original culture organisms. Without a doubt, they had biofilms of their product cultures adhering to the surfaces within their system.  Oddly enough, this was a surprise to them.  Then again, not many cultured plants will attempt to run a non-cultured product in a cultured product plant.  Whether you’re a cultured plant or a fresh product dairy processor, it’s possible to have low level biofilms in your systems, it just tends to be more obvious in fresh product plants (no competition).

Often, plants don’t pay any attention to their CIP systems, however there are a few things that come into play that you need to think about.  The power/speed of the circulation pump is critical to give you the volume of flow required to adequately clean and sanitize an enclosed CIP loop.  Restrictions and expansions in piping can change the velocity of cleaning solutions.  When cleaning volume of flow and turbulence are important.  If you are unsure you are getting proper flow, your chemical supplier should have an instrument that they can hook up to the outside of your lines to check the actual flow during CIP.  If you have restrictions/expansions, I recommend testing the flow in several different locations within the CIP loop.  And always remember the acronym TACT, which are the four tenets of cleaning:  Temperature of the solution, Action of flow through the CIP circuit (speed/turbulence), Concentration of chemical, and Time of contact.

Do You Have A Preferred Training Provider? Increase your training efficiency and effectiveness by building a solid training provider relationship

It seems that people’s time is becoming increasingly valuable. Our team is acutely aware that the companies we serve seem to be doing more with less: less resources, less people, and with an ongoing wave of retirements, less widespread and institutional expertise. At the same time, the food industry continues to grow and develop. Food processing employees will continue to need training to generally operate, meet regulatory and audit requirements, and remain preferred places of employment.

With the above-mentioned limitations, it is more important than ever that employee training hits on the precise topics that are needed. We pride ourselves on building strong, long-term relationships with our industry partners to deliver best-in-class training to employees. Please reach out to us to create a training plan for 2023 and beyond. Below are several strategies we use to become your preferred training provider.

  • Certificate Program: Our Dairy Foods Certificate Program is rounding out its 10-year anniversary and is the cornerstone of our programming. The certificate program is a great option for general employee training regardless of the type of dairy products that are made at a facility. It is also a fantastic tool for individual employee development and advancement. Courses are offered regularly, and many can be done on-site.
  • Customized Training: While we have standard course offerings through our certificate program, some organizations need more curated content to fit their needs. We can use our existing programs as building blocks to make customized courses, or we can create something entirely new. In-person customized trainings are typically done on-site, but can also be offered on our campus. If a virtual platform is preferred, we can arrange for the content to be disseminated live, or through a self-paced virtual program. We ask that companies reach out to us with plenty of lead time for customized training so that we can develop the best content possible.
  • Online or inperson: In this day in age, there doesn’t seem to be a one-size-fits-all approach to what works best. Online training has its clear efficiencies, but the in-person human connection can’t be totally replaced. Our team is willing to work with companies to find the right balance of online or in-person training to fit the needs of their culture.
  • Onboarding training capabilities: There is plenty of literature stating that a strong onboarding system improves employee longevity and retention. While onboarding isn’t limited to food safety training, it is a key component of any food processing job. Our programs go into the “why” behind plant operations, and we have specific online programs that are ideal for required basic GMP and Food Safety Training.
  • We get to know you: As trainers, there is a true benefit to knowing your audience and the environment your audience is working in. The more our team is able to interact with an organization, the deeper our understanding is, and that helps us curate the best content for the needs of those employees.
  • The land-grant advantage: Cornell University is a land-grant institution, meaning that we are charged with advancing the lives and livelihoods of the state’s citizens through teaching, research and public service. As such, our Milk Quality Improvement Program and Food Safety Laboratory provide us with up-to-date, relevant research for industry, and our training team is able to take that knowledge and share it with industry through training. In turn, our extension team provides feedback to our researchers on the challenges that the industry is facing. This dynamic gives us and the companies we serve a key advantage. Companies are also able to take advantage of our laboratory services and consulting services, making us a one-stop shop for many of your food safety and quality needs.

Please reach out to lmf226@cornell.edu to schedule a consultation on any of your training needs.