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IIRC the consistency is the issue: when DST kicks in they have to shift the milking time by an hour which apparently (based on a vague memory from a news articl

by simias 8y ago

IIRC the consistency is the issue: when DST kicks in they have to shift the milking time by an hour which apparently (based on a vague memory from a news article I read years ago) breaks the routine for the cows and can create issues. The obvious solution would be not to shift the milking time with DST but then it means that the truck picking up the milk for the factory will arrive one hour later which creates issues with conserving the milk properly, so you basically have the problem at one point or an other.

reitanqild 8y ago
> but then it means that the truck picking up the milk for the factory will arrive one hour later which creates issues with conserving the milk properly, so you basically have the problem at one point or an other. Don't know where this comes from..! The milk is (was at least when I grew up) supposed to ve cooled down to 4 degrees (Celcius, that is) ASAP. As long as that is done and you follow the recommendations for washing and disinfecting everything you should be fine even with half a day delay or more Source: grew up on a dairy farm, went to farming school.
- kungtotte 8y ago
  Yeah I was going to say. You know how easy it is to hit a one hour delay when driving a truck? If milk was ruined over an hour here or there then dairy farming would be incredibly fragile!
- buckminster 8y ago
  > Don't know where this comes from..! I've heard this before. I'm pretty sure it dates back to the days before refrigeration when the milk was transported from cow to consumer every morning.
- dsr_ 8y ago
  Yup. Hence my former coworker's business, Promethean (coolectrica.com), which makes milk chillers designed for markets where there is grid power, but it's intermittent and you can't depend on it being up when you need it.
astrodust 8y ago
Clearly they need to schedule things based on solar time (sundial) or UTC time.
drjasonharrison 8y ago
Almost all dairy farms have chilled bulk tanks. Depending on the size of the dairy, number of cows, etc the tank contents may be transferred to a truck daily or every few days. An hours difference is not likely to mess things up.
- Johnny555 8y ago
  Unless the farmer is still milking and filling the tank when the milk truck comes. Which isn't permitted (at least not in my state) - the tank can't be filled while it's being pumped out, and it has to be cleaned after emptied. The larger farms probably have multiple tanks and it's not a problem, but smaller farms don't. So if the milk truck driver follows DST, then you do too (or you need to pad your schedule by an hour to allow for a smooth transition to DST, which can be hard to do when you're first on the route and he comes at 7am)

by simias 8y ago

reitanqild 8y ago

> but then it means that the truck picking up the milk for the factory will arrive one hour later which creates issues with conserving the milk properly, so you basically have the problem at one point or an other. Don't know where this comes from..! The milk is (was at least when I grew up) supposed to ve cooled down to 4 degrees (Celcius, that is) ASAP. As long as that is done and you follow the recommendations for washing and disinfecting everything you should be fine even with half a day delay or more Source: grew up on a dairy farm, went to farming school.

kungtotte 8y ago
Yeah I was going to say. You know how easy it is to hit a one hour delay when driving a truck? If milk was ruined over an hour here or there then dairy farming would be incredibly fragile!
buckminster 8y ago
> Don't know where this comes from..! I've heard this before. I'm pretty sure it dates back to the days before refrigeration when the milk was transported from cow to consumer every morning.
dsr_ 8y ago
Yup. Hence my former coworker's business, Promethean (coolectrica.com), which makes milk chillers designed for markets where there is grid power, but it's intermittent and you can't depend on it being up when you need it.

astrodust 8y ago

Clearly they need to schedule things based on solar time (sundial) or UTC time.

drjasonharrison 8y ago

Almost all dairy farms have chilled bulk tanks. Depending on the size of the dairy, number of cows, etc the tank contents may be transferred to a truck daily or every few days. An hours difference is not likely to mess things up.

Johnny555 8y ago
Unless the farmer is still milking and filling the tank when the milk truck comes. Which isn't permitted (at least not in my state) - the tank can't be filled while it's being pumped out, and it has to be cleaned after emptied. The larger farms probably have multiple tanks and it's not a problem, but smaller farms don't. So if the milk truck driver follows DST, then you do too (or you need to pad your schedule by an hour to allow for a smooth transition to DST, which can be hard to do when you're first on the route and he comes at 7am)