Designers of processing equipment recognize some of the economic realities of today. Energy is expensive, so equipment is more efficient. Real estate is expensive, so equipment takes up less space. Labor is expensive, so equipment runs more efficiently and reliably.

Sales of milk continue to decline, and traditional grocery stores are losing market share. Consumers increasingly are buying milk at club stores and dollar stores, according to an analysis by Prime Consulting Group, Bannockburn, Ill., for Milk Processor Education Program, or MilkPEP, Washington, D.C.

Heat exchangers are key components in a dairy processing plant that can directly affect food product quality, a supplier tells Dairy Foods. Other suppliers tell us that pasteurizers are not all alike. To learn more about processing milk and the equipment that is used, we convened a “virtual roundtable” of equipment manufacturers. What follows are edited remarks received via e-mail.

Anthony Escobar, business manager of Super Store Industries, Lathrop, Calif., is the grand prize winner in MilkPEP’s annual awards program. Escobar demonstrated strong and effective efforts to increase awareness and grow milk sales using MilkPEP programs and resources. His entries showcased multi-faceted programs supported by well-rounded marketing efforts that creatively customized MilkPEP tools to reinforce Super Store Industries’ brand.

Milk has the distinction of being nature’s most perfect food and is also the most widely tested food on the dinner table. This nutrient-packed and perishable food requires substantial controls and testing to assure the consumer of enjoying a safe and highly nutritious food.

Milk consumption by low-income consumers in developing markets is forecast to increase 10 billion liters by 2014. As their wages increase, so will their spending on dairy beverages and other foods.

The OUSAF11 Optical Absorbance Sensor from Endress+Hauser emits light in both visible (VIS) and Near-Infrared (NIR) wavelengths, and measures the resulting absorption by a liquid media.

Fluid milk processing facilities are generally the same. They all have rooms for milk intake, separating, homogenizing and filling. Broadacre Dairy has one building on the edge of its property that makes it unique among dairy processors: a log cabin where the owner was born.