Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVI, Issue 1
Written by Adrian BOTA, Livia VIDU, Remus CHIOREAN, Mădălina MOLDOVAN, Gheorghe Emil MĂRGINEAN
Currently, approximately 20,000 buffaloes are raised in Romania, of which 11% are found in the Făgăraș area. The present study was conducted to observe the effect of season on the components of raw milk obtained from buffaloes cows reared in this region. 320 milk samples were collected during the morning milking, during the grazing and stalling seasons, from 80 buffaloes cows in different stages of lactation. The fat, protein, lactose, non-fat dry matter (NFS), density and pH content were determined from the collected samples. Microbiological determinations mainly considered somatic cell count (NSC) and total germ count (NTG). The individual analysis of milk samples from buffaloes revealed significant differences in terms of the variation of these parameters, the researches carried out highlighted differences determined by the breeding system of the animals involved in the study, the feeding regime, as well as the reference season. Therefore, the results of the present research indicated that the season and stage of lactation influence the physicochemical and microbiological parameters of milk and could be minimized by better management practices.
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