LOW-COST LIQUID ANIONIC SURFACTANT IN MASTITIS DETECTION FOR SMALL SCALE DAIRY BUFFALO RAISERS IN THE PHILIPPINES

Abstract

The study was conducted to evaluate the effect, consistency, as well as the economic viability of using different levels of liquid anionic surfactant in mastitis detection. A total of 42 fresh milk samples from dairy buffaloes in Central Luzon, Philippines were used in the study. The experiment was laid out following the Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications. Test showed that there was no significant difference between the different levels of liquid anionic surfactant and the commercially available mastitis test reagent. Observation during the tabulation of the test results indicates that 30%, 40% and 50% dilution levels of liquid anionic surfactant to distilled water are generally similar to commercial reagent in detecting clinical and sub-clinical mastitis in dairy buffaloes. The result of the laboratory analysis for somatic cell count confirmed the tabulated results gathered during the macroscopic evaluation. It is concluded that different levels of liquid anionic surfactant register close results to commercial reagent in terms of detecting types and grades of mastitis infection. In terms of economic viability, the cost of raw materials used, preparation and cost of return analysis result was remarkable. The use of 30% liquid anionic surfactant is economical in terms of the cost of preparation compared to other mastitis detection reagents.