Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024
Section 61-19-3 - Minimum quality standards3.1. No person may produce, provide, manufacture, sell, offer for sale, or store in the State of West Virginia, or bring, send, or receive into the State of West Virginia any milk for manufacturing purposes or dairy products which do not comply with the following standards:3.1.1. The milk shall be free from visible foreign matter. It shall not be curdled, ropy, bloody, or mastitic as indicated by sight or odor. It shall be free from feed odors or other objectionable odors;3.1.2. Milk for manufacturing purposes and dairy products shall be produced and processed to conform with the chemical, bacteriological, somatic cell, maximum length of time for milk storage on the farm, and temperature standards as identified in this section, and with the requirements set forth in this rule;3.1.3. The temperature of milk for manufacturing purposes shall be cooled to one of the following: 3.1.3.a. In the case of manufacture-grade milk that is stored in a bulk tank on a producer's farm, cool the milk to and store it at a temperature of fifty degrees Fahrenheit(ten degrees Celsius) or lower within two hours after completion of the milking.3.1.3.b. In the case of manufacture-grade milk that is stored in cans on a producer's farm, cool the milk to and store it at a temperature of sixty degrees Fahrenheit(sixteen degrees Celsius) or lower within two hours after completion of the milking. Manufacture-grade milk stored in accordance with this paragraph shall be used exclusively in the manufacture of cheese.3.1.3.c. This rule does not apply to raw milk that is delivered to a manufacture milk plant not later than two hours after completion of milking.3.1.4. The bacteria count of milk for manufacturing purposes shall not exceed 500,000 bacteria per milliliter prior to commingling with any other milk, and the bacteria count of milk that is commingled shall not exceed 1,000,000 bacteria per milliliter prior to pasteurization.3.1.4.a. Milk shipped from the farm in cans shall not have a raw milk bacteria count of more than one million bacteria per mL.3.2. Milk for manufacturing purposes shall freeze at or below -0.530° Hortvet. 3.2.1. Milk for manufacturing purposes shall test negative for animal drug residues by any method evaluated by the FDA and found acceptable for detecting drug residues in raw milk at current safe or tolerance levels.3.2.2. The somatic cell count of unpasteurized cow's milk, sheep's milk, water buffalo's milk, or the milk from other mammals intended for human consumption, except goat's milk, shall not exceed 750,000 somatic cells per milliliter. The somatic cell count of raw goat's milk shall not exceed 1,000,000 somatic cells per milliliter.3.3. Milk should not have more than 1.5 mg of sediment as determined by the Standard Methods for the Examination of Dairy Products.3.4. No inhibitory substances are permitted in milk.3.5. The maximum length of time any milk for manufacturing purposes may be stored on the farm prior to processing or pickup for delivery to a processing plant shall not exceed 72 hours from the end of the first milking to the time of pickup or the start of processing. Milk for manufacturing purposes that is older than 72 hours shall be deemed to be a public health hazard and shall not be offered for sale or sold.