Abstract
Practical applications
The number of bacteria in raw milk is an important indicator for hygienic quality and milk grading system which consequently reflects a milk price. The proposed method allows satisfied performance for TBC determination in raw milk in 90 min as compared to the 48 hr required using the plate count method. The NIR method developed in this study seems to be an effective tool for a rapid evaluation of bacterial contamination in raw milk. An integration between determination of milk hygienic quality and chemical compositional quality using NIR spectroscopy will facilitate a rapid and multicomponents analysis and become a powerful tool for a practical use in the competitive dairy industry.
