The project is a partnership between the South African organised dairy industry, DSA and district municipal health authorities. The work entails monitoring and evaluation of milk and other dairy products (UHT milk, condensed and evaporated milk, cream, cheese; butter and fermented products namely cultured milk and yoghurt types), at retail level in a professional and scientific manner, to determine possible risks relating to food safety, product composition and metrology standards referred to in the acts listed in footnote [1].

The project activities are supported by sampling protocols that provide for product in packed or bulk form in the formal as well as informal retail sector.

In co-operation with metropolitan, district- and local municipal health authorities in nine provinces, an estimated five-hundred samples are taken quarterly for testing by DSA Lab Services laboratory.

The test results are conveyed to the relevant Environmental Health Practitioners (EHP’s) of the participating health authorities (each EHP is supplied with the test results of the samples taken in the area of his or her jurisdiction), and where appropriate the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD)) and the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS). The trend analysis based on the processed data obtained from milk and dairy product analyses is used to determine food safety, product compositional and metrological risks (compliance related) well as food safety risks in terms of Project 4 (Milk and other dairy product risk identification Project). Selected data indicating serious food safety, product compositional and metrology risks in terms of legal standards are further dealt with in terms of Project 6 (Communication with the authorities and other organisations).

Due to the limited shelf life of milk (other than UHT and sterilised milk) prohibition on the sale of non-conforming products requires prompt action in the retail. This implies that especially food safety non-conforming products (identified by Project 1) are followed-up effectively, to ensure appropriate action by the processors and or distributors and authorities do occur. To this effect follow-up communication with the relevant authorities, processors/distributors and where applicable the retail is separately dealt with under Project 5, Remedial programs with the processors, distributors and the retail.

A comprehensive DSA annual statistical report is compiled at the end of each year by the DSA reflecting on all the results obtained during the year. This report is communicated during the first quarter of the following year to:

a) National Department of Health;

b) Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD);

c) National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications; and

d) Milk SA.