Milk is transported from the farm to the processor in special stainless steel insulated tankers (big trucks). We’ve come a long way from the original milk trucks.
The person who operates the truck isn’t just a driver. They have a very important job of being the first check to making sure the milk is of the highest standard before they pick it up. They have to be a certified milk grader and will not pick up milk that doesn’t meet our high standards. Once they give the milk the thumbs up, they go into the barn and secure a hose to the tank where the milk is kept and pump it into the truck. All milk in Alberta is pooled. That means one truck will have a few farms worth of milk!
When the truck is full, the grader delivers the raw milk to the closest processing plant, then the milk continues on to your local grocery store. Did you know this all happens in about a week? Then, 2 days later, the truck starts his route over again.
So keep an eye out for milk trucks travelling across the province! They travel 8,700,000 kms a year. They are easily identified by the bright blue logos that are on the side and back of the trailers.
Did you know that if you tried to fill a trailer with 4L jugs of milk that it would take you almost 6,600 jugs? That’s a lot of delicious milk!
