Center for Dairy Research logo

The Center for Dairy Research offers a number of outreach services to assist your company in your safety and quality efforts. These services include third party audits including GFSI, assistance with troubleshooting, crisis management, reviews of GMP, quality assurance and quality control programs as well as assistance through regulator liaison roles.

In addition to the basic outreach efforts, the program can also provide assistance to your company in regards to grading, analyzing defects in cheese and butter as well as assistance in butter manufacturing practices. Safety and Quality Program Coordinator, Alex O'Brien, primarily works with Wisconsin-based companies but can work out of state upon request.

Check out the new Food Safety short video collection

Subscribe on YouTube!

Toolbox Talk Video Playlist

Check out the new Dairy Recall Tracker

Dairy Recall Tracker

Training - Safety & Quality Short Courses

NEW! Advanced Sanitation
Dive deeper into the why's and how's of sanitation. Explore in depth what Biofilms are, what they look like and how to remove them, how to conduct sanitation validations, and examine what the process of passivation is and how it is affects proper sanitation. Experience a hands-on evaluation of equipment for sanitary design and tear apart inspection of equipment.

NEW! Environmental Monitoring
A comprehensive review of what pathogens and microbes to look for in the environment, Whole Genome Sequencing, Environmental Monitoring Plan development, Regulatory expectations, and LIVE, HANDS ON mock environmental contamination investigation inside of the Center for Dairy Research licensed dairy plant.

Food Safety Workshop (HACCP)
Food Safety (HACCP) is a one-day hands-on workshop designed to cover an introduction to HACCP in a plant setting.

Dairy Food Fraud Workshop
This course is designed to introduce dairy manufacturers and dairy industry-adjacent manufacturers to the concept of food fraud.

Advanced Preventive Controls
This course is meant for Preventive Controls Qualified Individuals looking for more explanation and detail on the 4 Major Preventive Controls of Process, Allergen, Supply-Chain and Sanitation.

Safety & Quality Services

3rd Party Audits
Approved Whole Foods auditor, Certified Food Safety and Quality Auditor through ASQ

Customized Food Safety Training
HACCP, PCQI, Sanitation

HACCP/Food Safety Plan Validations

For more information, contact Alex O'Brien.

Dairy Food Safety Alliance

The Dairy Food Safety Alliance provides information and resources such as safety templates. For more information, visit the Dairy Food Safety Alliance website.

Resources, Articles, Videos and Helpful Tools

Foreign Material Prevention

CDR Safety & Quality Coordinator Alex O'Brien covers important topics like detecting and separating equipment. Read Article (PDF)

Also, check out the webinar given by the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. Foreign Material Control Webinar

Controlling the Risk of Allergens in Dairy Processing

CDR Safety & Quality Coordinator Alex O'Brien writes about tips and strategies to control allergens in the dairy plant. Read Article (PDF)

Wisconsin Pasteurizer Broken Seal Process

This article includes links to key documents and contacts to assist with the process of properly reporting a pasteurizer broken seal. Read Article (PDF)

Dairy Food Safety Recalls in the United States and Canada: 2022 in Review

This article reviews the top reasons for recalls in the dairy industry in the U.S. and Canada in 2022, and discusses the suggested areas of improvement to reduce the instance of these recalls. Read Article (PDF) Dairy Food Safety Recalls in the US and Canada 2022 in Review

Dairy Food Fraud Primer

Food Fraud has been around for centuries. Not only is a prudent, it is a legal and GFSI requirement to conduct a Food Fraud Assessment of your ingredients coming into your food manufacturing facility. This article goes over food fraud basics, potential risks and countermeasures for each part of a cheesemaking process. Read article (PDF) Dairy Food Fraud Primer

Cheese Thermization App

Developed by the Food Research Institute, the Cheese Thermization App allows the user to determine the milk hold time and temperature necessary for log-reductions of 2 foodborne pathogens pertinent to cheeses made with unpasteurized bovine milk. View the Cheese Thermization App.

The Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy®

Dairy's Focus on Food Safety Website

Food Safety Video Resources

Training is key!

Check out a food safety toolbox talk video below, and click the button below for the full Food Safety Video Library.

Food Safety Video Library

Videos and Short Informational Clips

Food Manufacturing and Pest Control

Templates for signs that can be displayed throughout your facility.

Dairy Plant Food Safety Signage Resources

Easily display food safety expectations for your employees, here is a list below:

Safety & Quality Program Contact

Safety/Quality

Alex O'Brien

Dairy Safety & Quality Coordinator

608-598-9977