Grade A milk programme certifications (PMO / NCIMS)

USA · U.S. FDA with state regulatory agencies · professional · unverified source

38practice questions written to this syllabus
7subjects

Format

Unverified.

Over the years

Under the Grade A Pasteurized Milk Ordinance and the National Conference on Interstate Milk Shipments, FDA trains and certifies state milk rating officers and sampling surveillance officers, and states license bulk milk hauler-samplers, pasteuriser operators and plant personnel in different ways. These are on-the-job certifications rather than one national exam; requirements were not verified for this track.

Official source: https://www.fda.gov/

Subjects this exam draws on

Dairy Industry & Milk Production Systems3 questionsDairy Animal Science5 questionsDairy Colloids: Emulsions, Foams & Gels1 questionsInstrumentation, Process Control & Automation11 questionsDairy Food Safety Management Systems7 questionsDairy Standards & Law Worldwide10 questionsQuality Assurance, Statistical Quality Control & Laboratory Management1 questions

Five practice questions, worked

Original questions written to this exam's published syllabus and pattern. Not past papers.

1. Before pumping milk from a farm bulk tank, which check should the tanker driver make first?

  1. Pump the milk into the tanker first and agitate and sample it later at the plant
  2. Record the tank temperature and check the milk's smell and appearance
  3. Skip sampling if the farm has passed previous tests
  4. Add a preservative to the tank to protect the sample
Answer and working

B. Record the tank temperature and check the milk's smell and appearance

Drivers check and record temperature and sensory quality, measure volume, agitate and sample before pumping; milk failing these checks is rejected. Preservatives are not added to the bulk milk.

Dairy Industry & Milk Production Systems · Milk collection: village collection centres, bulk milk coolers and farm tanks

2. What is the main barrier against bacteria entering the udder?

  1. The streak canal with its sphincter and keratin
  2. The median suspensory ligament holding the udder up
  3. The gland cistern filled with stored milk
  4. The milk vein running along the abdomen
Answer and working

A. The streak canal with its sphincter and keratin

The canal is closed by a sphincter and keratin plug between milkings.

Dairy Animal Science · Anatomy of the mammary gland

3. Under the United States milk ordinance, how is adequate homogenisation of milk defined?

  1. Mean globule size measured by microscope is below exactly 0.1 µm
  2. Top 100 mL fat after 48 h differs by no more than 10% from the remainder
  3. No visible cream layer forms after 10 minutes at room temperature
  4. Fat in the top 100 mL after 2 h differs by no more than 50% from the rest
Answer and working

B. Top 100 mL fat after 48 h differs by no more than 10% from the remainder

The ordinance definition compares the fat content of the top 100 mL of a quart after 48 h storage with the remainder; a difference of no more than 10% is required.

Dairy Colloids: Emulsions, Foams & Gels · Emulsion formation, homogenisation and stability

4. On an HTST pasteuriser, which instrument provides the continuous legal record that each batch was held at pasteurising temperature?

  1. The heating-medium controller's set-point display
  2. The indicating thermometer on the cooling section
  3. The thermometer on the raw-milk balance tank
  4. The recording thermometer at the holding-tube outlet
Answer and working

D. The recording thermometer at the holding-tube outlet

The recording thermometer (with its controller linked to the flow diversion valve) traces holding-tube outlet temperature and valve position as the legal record. The indicating thermometer is the reference; the other instruments do not record product at the holding-tube exit.

Instrumentation, Process Control & Automation · Temperature measurement: thermocouples, RTDs and recorders

5. In an HTST pasteuriser, which device returns milk that has not reached the set holding temperature to the balance tank?

  1. The regenerator section
  2. The flow diversion valve
  3. The timing pump
  4. The homogeniser
Answer and working

B. The flow diversion valve

The flow diversion valve diverts sub-temperature milk. The timing pump fixes maximum flow and so minimum holding time; the homogeniser reduces fat globule size; the regenerator exchanges heat between raw and pasteurised milk.

Dairy Food Safety Management Systems · HACCP plans for pasteurised milk, cheese, powder and ice cream

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