Assessing the quality of milk of community and individual tanks in the north-arid RIOGRANDENSE
cattle, milk, production, quality, mastitis.
The object of this research was assessing and quantifying the producer's impact on CCS and determining whether there are differences between producers with high and low CCS. 21 Bovine milk cooling tanks have been selected and interviewed the producers responsible for supplying them. With questionnaires applied in the month of April and accompanied by the month of September 2016, the data was subjected to a descriptive analysis. The results obtained demonstrated that 66% of the milk processed by the cooperative come from individual tanks, which are characterized by medium and large producers. Collective tanks represent 25% of the total volume captured by the cooperative and the others come from deposit on the platform. The presence of mastitis in the flock is frequent and even with this coexistence of losses no preventative measure is taken by the lack of technical assistance. The average age of producers is above 50 years with only incomplete elementary school. Producers with larger flocks have little efficiency in their production due to the little quantity of non-lactating animals, thereby reducing the productive potential in the farm and the region.