The Valio Quality Chain
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| Valio prides itself in maintaining the highest quality standards along the entire length of the production chain - from the farm to the final product.
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| Qualified nutrition |
While Valio's dairy cows graze outside on fresh grass during the summer months, the chief component of their diet is pure, high-quality AIV silage, whose hygiene is guaranteed during the winter months when no grass is available.
Based on the results of careful analysis of this silage in Valio's regional laboratories, each cow is also given its own individual feed diet of grain (oats and barley), protein concentrates (mainly rapeseed meal) and minerals.
In loose houses, where cattle are allowed to walk around freely, each cow's feed intake is regulated by an automatic dispenser that allows the animal to eat only as much as is stipulated its individual diet plan.
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| Healthy cows |
| An average Valio dairy farm herd is 27 cows in size. The animals live in clean, dry, well-ventilated and spacious cowsheds that are cleaned between four and six times per day. Weekly udder inspections and strict health controls ensure that the cows stay healthy.
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| Top-quality milk |
In Finland milk samples are taken from all dairy farms twice a month. These are then analysed to check whether the milk's bacteria and somatic cell counts fall within the limits set by EU legislation. The number of bacteria must be under 100,000/ml, with a count of under 50,000/ml seen as particularly favourable. Valio's target is for the bacteria count to be under 6,000/ml.
The somatic cell count should be under 250,000/ml, while the legal limit is 400,000/ml. Valio's target is for the somatic cell count to be under 130,000/ml.
The fat content, protein content and freezing point of the milk are also tested.
The milk must be cooled from 37C (its temperature during milking) to less than 4C in under two hours. This cooling takes place on the farm in an insulated, stainless steel tank.
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| Pre-transport test |
Valio's drivers collect the milk from the farms every second day. Before the milk can be loaded into a truck's tank, the driver must check both its smell and temperature. There are between 500 and 600 such drivers, all of whom take an annual 'refresher' course in order to maintain their skills.
During transportation the driver takes a small sample of the milk in the tank and performs an antibiotic test on it.
If the test result is positive (with the milk containing antibiotics) the milk is not taken into production and the supplying farm group is traced by the manufacturing plant. Valio's database contains records of the analysis results of all raw milk tested, through which Valio has built a long quality history of each farm.
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| Reception and testing |
| All milk is carefully tested for its microbiological quality, composition and other factors. Only milk that fulfills all the specifications set by Valio is used.
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| Butter production |
Butter production begins: Milk separation and pasteurisation
During the separation process, cream is separated from milk. The cream is then used in butter production and the skim milk is used to make milk powder.
Cream pasteurisation, ripening and churning:
At the production department the cream is again pasteurised before being ripened and then churned into butter.
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| Testing during production and from ready product |
The butter is tested for its fat, salt, pH and moisture levels, as well as for its non-fat dry-matter content, both during production and as a finished product. Its appearance, consistency, taste and smell are tested by sensory evaluation.
The final product is also subject to microbiological tests for contaminating yeasts, moulds and harmful microorganisms.
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| Tracing the raw material |
The origin of the raw material used to produce Valio Butter can be traced on the basis of each farmer's reference number, Valio's internal order numbers, lot/batch numbers, packing lists, production dates or invoices. In addition, Valio maintains two databases.
The first includes the milk sample test results of all milk producers, and the second includes comprehensive information on milk transportation routes (which are numbered and fixed) and all milk collected. Through all this information Valio has built up a long quality history of each farm.
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