Food and Nutrition

Introduction
On the 19th April, 2012, the Grade 10 Food and Nutrition students of the Montego Bay High School for girls went on a field trip where we visited Edwards Dairy and Colorn Meat Processors. This trip was put in place by our teachers in order to reinforce our previously gained knowledge on the topics; meat and milk. From this field study I was able to utilize my previous knowledge on these two subject matters and to learn more about them and in more detail. I was also able to pick up information on the topic of water bottling. It is my wish that you the reader will find this report to be both interesting and informative.

Edward’s dairy
Milk
Milk is a nutritious white fluid, rich in protein, fats, lactose, and vitamins, which female mammals produce to feed their young immediately after birth. It is used by human beings as a drink, in cooking, and to make products such as butter and cheese.
Picture Showing Milk and Dairy Products
Picture Showing Milk and Dairy Products

Picture Showing Jamaica Hope calves.

Picture Showing Jamaica Hope calves.

Edward’s Dairy has been in operation since 1977 and the milk they process come from cows of the Jamaica Hope breed of cattle, engineered by Dr. Thomas P. Lecky, a famous Jamaican agricultural scientist and chemist. At the Dairy we learnt that cattle consist of bulls (the males), cows (the females), steers (Castrated bulls) and heifers (cows without offspring).

After giving birth, milk builds up in the udder of the cow. The cow is given five days to suckle its calf, then it is milked for eleven months until the next time it is pregnant. During the milking process, machine suckers are attached to the teat of the udders.
An average cow gives nine litres of milk per day; five litres in the morning and four litres in the evening. At Edward’s Dairy they are able to accumulate between twelve and thirteen thousand litres of milk per day.
Picture Showing Milking Machine Suckers held up by Edward’s Dairy Staff
Picture Showing Milking Machine Suckers held up by Edward’s Dairy Staff
The amount and quality of milk produce by the cows depend on the grain they eat. The grain should contain corn, wheat and other such products. After being obtained from the cow, the milk is treated by pasteurization. The pasteurizer kills ninety-nine per cent of the bacteria present in the milk and then passes the milk to the homogenizer. The Homogenizer sprays milk onto a flat surface through two holes. This removes cream. The milk then goes to a holding tank on the top of the roof, from where it passes to the filling machine.

Picture Showing Pasteurizer
Picture Showing Pasteurizer
Picture Showing Homogenizer
Picture Showing Homogenizer

Picture Showing Filling Machine
Picture Showing Filling Machine
At the dairy there are also certain hygiene practices that the milk producers have to abide by. Premises where milking is performed or milk is stored, handled or cooled must be constructed as to avoid all risk of contamination of the milk. All efforts must be made to ensure proper cleanliness and ventilation in the animal premises with proper sunlight. There should be sufficient drainage so as to avoid accumulation of filth. Animal premises should be free from flies.

The milking of the animals should be carried out in a clean and as per as possible dry environment. Where milk producing animals are kept untethered in the open, the holding must also have a milking area adequately separated from the housing area. Mastitis is the inflammation of the udder caused by bacteria entering the teat, or improper milking. Milk taken from a cow with mastitis must be discarded and the animal separated from the herd and treated.
Picture Showing Crates Ready to be transported to Chill Room
Picture Showing Crates Ready to be transported to Chill Room
The equipment and containers are sterilized with acid, base and alkali-based chemicals for forty-five minutes. After treatment milk is bottled, crated and stored in a storeroom (chill room) at four degrees Celsius.

Water Bottling

Colorn Meat Processors
Meats are the flesh of animals, for example the cow, sheep, goat and pig that are eaten. They are used as the main dish or the focal point of our meals, particularly the main meal of the day.
Picture showing some Cattle at Colorn Meat Processors
Picture showing some Cattle at Colorn Meat Processors
Colorn Meat Processors has been in operation since 1992(about 20 years). On the farm they raise cattle and pigs. During this part of the trip we were inconvenienced by inclement weather, however we were still able to garner some information.
In preparation for slaughter, cattle were knocked out, while pigs were hung upside- down, stunned in the head (near the brain) with a stun gun and stabbed in the jugular vein. As a method of slaughter, you ‘stick’ the pig and ‘pole’ the cow.
After the pig bleeds to death, it is placed in hot water and a knife is used to remove its hairs. It is then placed on its back and cut down the middle; all internal organs are removed.
Picture Showing Hanging Meat
Picture Showing Hanging Meat
Rigamortis is the stiffening of muscles after an animal has been slaughtered. A hanging period of at least twenty-four hours is therefore implemented after slaughtering for the animal to drain so that the muscles can relax. This is also done to prepare the meat for freezing. Meat is stored in a storeroom (chill room) where it is frozen. It is then transferred to a preparation room where it is cut, using sharp knives and machinery, into the various parts which the consumers receive. The preparation room is also kept at a low temperature in order to prevent growth of harmful bacteria.