How Do Milk Separators Work?

Many dairy product producers are always thinking about how to take the next step in their business.  This can be done by diversifying product offerings.  Instead of simply selling milk and other milk products, producing cream can be a gateway into a whole new range of products.  However, making cream requires specialty equipment called a milk separator.  So, how do milk separators work?

Raw cow’s milk essentially is made up of cream and skim milk.  Each of these components has a different density, so they can be separated.  Cream certainly can be made by leaving raw milk sitting out, but this process needs to be sped up to produce new products at a rapid rate.  This is where the milk separator comes in.

Milk separators rely on centrifugal force and are essentially made up of a motor, disks, and a drum that all serve different functions.  The motor spins the disks at very high rates of speed – up to 10,000 revolutions per minute!  Milk is poured into the drum and the centrifugal force drives the milk through the disks.  The heavier liquid, the skim milk, is forced to the outside of the drum while the lighter liquid, the creamy milk fat, is left in the center of the drum.  The cream can then be extracted after it has been separated. 

Using a milk separator instead of letting the milk sit in a jar will drastically speed up the cream production process, allowing you to get more of your delicious products on the market.

If you have any further questions or would like to order a milk separator, give us a call at 918-321-3151.