Milk quality verified at the farm gate · Três de Maio, Brazil

Milk is verified before it enters the load.

LactiGuard is a pocket laboratory for the milk collection truck. At every farm, the sample goes through objective sensors and a decision engine says, within minutes, whether that milk can enter the tank without condemning the load of the other 30 producers on the route. No visual tests, no opinions, a complete audit trail.

Open the app demo Try the load simulator See the three tiers
Route 07 · morning5 producers · 12,400 L
P12,100 LACCEPTED
P23,400 LACCEPTED
P31,900 LANTIBIOTIC
P42,600 LHIGH SCC
P52,400 LACCEPTED
Load preserved: 10,500 LLoss avoided: ≈ R$ 31,000 [3]
≤ 3 min
of blocking steps per producer; the antibiotic test runs in parallel while the driver connects the hose and agitates the tank
28
indicators mapped to sensors; 26 measured in the field with four hardware boxes, 2 stay in the laboratory
R$ 12–50
of disposables per producer tested (antibiotic strip ≈ R$ 11 [7]; the Route tier adds a SCC cassette ≈ R$ 28 [9]), against ≈ R$ 31,000 for a condemned 12,400 L load [3]
The problem

Today quality is decided days later, when the milk can no longer be separated.

How it is

The driver runs the alizarol test by eye, checks the thermometer and fills a bottle that goes to the laboratory. Bacterial count, somatic cells and antibiotic results arrive days later, about a load that has already been mixed and processed. A single producer with antibiotic residue condemns the other 30 on the route, and the dairy finds out at unloading.

With LactiGuard

Before the hose is connected, the sample goes through an ultrasonic analyzer, a cell counter, an antibiotic strip and an optical chamber that turns colorimetric tests into numbers. The driver only executes; the decision to accept, accept with a warning or reject belongs to the software, based on Brazil's raw milk regulations (MAPA Normative Instructions 76 and 77/2018, see below) and on the producer's history.

What are IN 76 and IN 77? They are the two Normative Instructions of Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA), from November 2018, that regulate raw milk. IN 76 sets the quality standards for refrigerated raw milk: limits for bacteria (TBC ≤ 300,000 CFU/mL), somatic cells (SCC ≤ 500,000 cells/mL), fat, protein, solids, density, acidity, freezing point and alcohol (alizarol) stability [1]. IN 77 defines how to produce, collect and transport: temperature at collection, sampling, mandatory tests on the truck and at the plant, and antibiotic screening [2]. LactiGuard uses exactly these limits as its decision rules.
How it works

Four steps at the farm gate, one verdict before pumping.

The order is a real sequence: no step starts before the previous one is done, and the app blocks skipping.

STEP 1

Identify and agitate

QR or NFC tag on the producer's bulk tank. The app logs time, GPS and tank temperature and starts a mandatory agitation timer.

5 min · temperature probe
STEP 2

Sample and measure

20 mL into the ultrasonic analyzer, one drop on the antibiotic strip, a cassette into the cell counter. All in parallel.

60–90 s · Milkotester / Lactoscan · DCC
STEP 3

Read in the optical chamber

Alcohol tube, strip and adulteration kits go into a closed box with standardized light. The camera measures color and turbidity; nothing is read by eye.

1–3 min · camera + computer vision
STEP 4

Decide and record

The rules engine crosses the legal limits, the producer's history and the load already on board. Verdict on screen, receipt for the producer, sync when there is signal.

instant · Raspberry Pi
Load simulator

Can this producer enter the load?

It is the question nobody can answer at the farm gate today. LactiGuard computes the volume-weighted mix and applies the IN 76 limits [1] before pumping. Move the controls.

4,500 L
320k
1,200 L
1,100k
4.0 °C
ACCEPT
Three investment tiers

The same software, three hardware kits.

The decision engine, the driver app and the dairy dashboard are identical across the three tiers. What changes is how much of the diagnosis is measured directly and how much is estimated. Prices per truck, including the Raspberry Pi hub. Ranges are based on public supplier prices listed in the references at the end of the page; items without a public price are estimates to be confirmed by quotation. All prices in Brazilian reais (R$).

LactiGuard Essential
R$ 9–14kper truck · disposables ≈ R$ 12–15 per producer tested (antibiotic strip + reagents) [7]
For cooperatives and small dairies that need to stop the obvious: antibiotics, acidity, added water and adulteration.
  • Entry-level ultrasonic analyzer (Lactoscan Farm Eco, Cap-Lab SP or Milkotester Lite): fat, protein, lactose, solids, density, calculated freezing point, added water
  • ESP32 node with temperature, pH, conductivity, turbidity and color probes
  • Optical chamber with camera: alcohol test, antibiotic strips, adulteration kits, blood, CMT
  • 12 V strip incubator
  • Raspberry Pi hub with 7" touch screen
23 of 28 indicators measured directly; SCC and TBC estimated by proxy
Recommended
LactiGuard Route
R$ 40–52kper truck · disposables ≈ R$ 40 per producer tested (strip R$ 11 + SCC cassette R$ 28) [7][9]
For dairies with quality-based payment, which need real SCC on the spot and certified antibiotic reading.
  • Everything in Essential, with a full Lactoscan SP or SLP (Bluetooth, documented protocol, conductivity and pH built in)
  • DeLaval DCC: direct somatic cell count in 45 s
  • Incubator and Unisensor or Charm strip reader with exportable report
  • 4G + GPS module and thermal receipt printer
24 of 28 indicators measured directly; TBC by calibrated proxy
LactiGuard Total
R$ 55–80kper truck · disposables ≈ R$ 50 per producer tested (Route + periodic aflatoxin strip)
For exporters, audited operations and anyone who wants legally valid field measurements and continuous tank monitoring.
  • Everything in Route, plus a portable cryoscope with legally valid freezing point
  • Temperature and agitation datalogger at the producers' bulk tanks
  • Aflatoxin M1 strips on the same reader
  • ATP luminometer for microbial load screening
26 of 28 indicators measured directly; only official TBC and exotic residues stay in the laboratory

What "disposables per producer tested" means: every antibiotic test uses one strip (≈ R$ 11) and every cell count uses one cassette (≈ R$ 28); the ultrasonic analyzer, pH, conductivity and the optical chamber use nothing but rinse water. With risk-based testing, only part of the producers get the full test at each collection. Software is a monthly subscription per truck, the same across tiers. Every field sample still produces the official sealed bottle for the accredited laboratory; when the report comes back, LactiGuard matches it against the field readings and recalibrates the SCC and TBC models, which get more accurate every month.

Financial viability and ROI

The math with real numbers from Três de Maio, Brazil.

Based on the Três de Maio Dairy Chain Diagnosis (Apr/2026), Emater/RS-Ascar 2025 data and the Conseleite/RS milk reference price [3]. Move the controls to test other scenarios.

30.3M L
annual production of the municipality ≈ 83,000 L/day ≈ 7 trucks of 12,000 L per day
224
formal producers at 371 L/day: one truck visits 25–35 farms
R$ 2.48/L
Conseleite/RS reference, Aug/2026; local range paid to producers R$ 2.16–2.59
59.2%
of the volume goes to the 4 largest buyers: LactiGuard's customers are a few large dairies
4
12,000 L
R$ 2.48
30
25%
80%
—
payback of the investment
—
net result in year 1
Annual loss today (loads × volume × price + R$ 2,000 disposal per load)—
Loss avoided per year—
Hardware (one-time)—
Software (R$ 800/month subscription, assumption)—
Disposables per year (26 days/month)—
Net result from year 2 onwards—
—

Loads preserved per year in the municipality

7 trucks in the scenario above. Each load is milk from the 25–35 producers on the route who did everything right.

—

Liters that are no longer discarded

As a share of the municipality's annual production of 30.3 million liters: —.

—

Value preserved per year

Against a gross production value of R$ 78.5 million. In the AMUFRON basin (392 million liters) the same reasoning multiplies by 13.

What we deliver and what is new

Proven quality, fewer losses, traceability and trust, item by item.

The question we answer

How do you guarantee that milk reaches the dairy with proven quality, reducing losses, increasing traceability and building trust between producers, haulers and processors?

Every item on the right is measured, not promised.
  • MEASURABLE LOSS REDUCTIONLoad preserved in liters and reais, counted at the moment of the block and confirmed by the laboratory.
  • ECONOMICALLY VIABLEThree tiers and risk-based testing: disposables fit inside the value of the avoided load; payback computed above.
  • CONNECTS THE ACTORSThe same report for producer, driver and dairy, at the same moment, under a public rule.
  • DATA INTO DECISIONSAccept, warn or reject before pumping; daily quality-based payment; mastitis alerts per route.
How it is todayAlcohol test read by eye, a thermometer, a bottle for the laboratory. Results in days, about the mixed load. Who was at fault is an argument.
What is new in LactiGuardThe quality gate changes place (from the laboratory to the farm gate) and nature (from perception to measurement). The mix simulator is a decision nobody can make today. The optical chamber turns R$ 1 reagents into objective sensors.
What already exists and we useUltrasonic analyzers, cell counters, antibiotic strips, route tracking. We do not reinvent sensors.
Where the moat isIn the dataset: every collection produces a field × laboratory pair that recalibrates the models. The more routes, the better the verdict. That cannot be bought off the shelf.
Technical details

Everything that is measured, with which sensor, and in which tier.

Tier:
IndicatorWhat it revealsSensor / deviceField?TimeMinimum tierPriority
ESSENTIAL measured in the basic tier ROUTE requires DCC or strip reader TOTAL requires cryoscope or extra kits LAB proxy only in the field
Traceability and trust

One report, three actors, at the same moment.

The collection conflict is always the same: the load arrived bad and nobody knows whose fault it was. LactiGuard solves that not with one more opinion, but with a record that producer, hauler and dairy receive at the same time.

PRODUCER

Receives, does not measure

The equipment is on the truck; the producer needs nothing but a phone (or paper). At the end of the collection they receive, by app, WhatsApp or printed receipt, the result of every indicator, the legal limit and the verdict. If they disagree, they request the counter-sample.

free · phone or paper
HAULER

Proof of every collection

Time, GPS, chamber photo and device serial on every reading, recorded so they cannot be altered later. The driver no longer answers alone for a condemned load.

immutable record per load
DAIRY

A load with history

Before unloading, the dairy already knows what came in, from whom and in what condition. Quality-based payment with daily data, documentary defense during inspections.

dashboard + ERP integration
COUNTER-SAMPLE

The sealed bottle still goes to the lab

Every collection produces the official sealed, barcoded sample required by IN 77. It is the producer's guarantee: if the field reading is disputed, the accredited laboratory analyzes the same milk, and the result recalibrates the system.

accredited lab · official sample
ROUTE

Integrates existing tracking

GPS and temperature tracking systems already piloted in the region become a data source: they say where and at what temperature; LactiGuard says what was inside.

open API
Data integration

Nothing is typed. Every device delivers its reading straight to the hub.

A Raspberry Pi fixed in the cab receives the readings through three paths, records everything with device serial, time, GPS and photo, decides locally and syncs to the cloud when there is signal. CSV exists only as an export for the dairy.

Devices

  • Milkotester / Lactoscan
  • DeLaval DCC
  • Strip reader
  • ESP32 node
  • Optical chamber
  • GPS · NFC · QR
→

Raspberry Pi hub

  • Per-port reading services
  • Local MQTT bus
  • IN 76/77 rules engine
  • Offline SQLite database
  • Driver app (touch screen)
  • Receipt printer
→

Cloud and dairy

  • 4G sync
  • Dairy dashboard
  • Producer app
  • Import of lab reports
  • Model recalibration
  • CSV / ERP export

1 · Cable

The analyzers and the DCC have an RS232 serial port. A R$ 40 USB-serial cable connects to the Pi; a Python service listens to the port and captures the result line the device emits when the measurement ends. It is the most reliable path and the default of the solution.

Milkotester · Lactoscan · DCC · ESP32

2 · Wireless

Lactoscan over Bluetooth and the ESP32 node over Wi-Fi talk to the Pi via MQTT, which allows the sensors to stay in the sample compartment, away from the cab. Used when the cable gets in the way.

Lactoscan BT · ESP32 Wi-Fi · strip reader

3 · Camera

The optical chamber photographs tubes, strips and paddles and the Pi measures color and turbidity with computer vision. The same camera reads the tank QR and, as plan B, runs OCR on the display of any device without a port.

Alcohol test · CMT · adulteration · blood · strips
Before buying the analyzer, ask the supplier for the serial protocol specification. It is the only point of the integration that can turn into rework; everything else is standard hardware and software.
Contact

Want to run the pilot on your truck?

We are looking for a dairy or cooperative for a 90-day pilot in the Essential tier, a partner laboratory for the paired samples, and route-tracking integrators. Write to us.

Talk to the founder

We reply within one business day. If you prefer, email directly with the name of your dairy and how many collection trucks you operate.

matheus@boesing.com.br
Matheus Boesing · founder of LactiGuard · Três de Maio, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Opens your email app with the message filled in for matheus@boesing.com.br.
References

Where the numbers on this page come from.

Legal limits, public prices and quotations used as the basis. Consulted in September 2026. Prices in Brazilian reais.

  1. [1]
    IN 76/2018 MAPA — Technical regulation for refrigerated raw milkLimits for TBC (300,000 CFU/mL), SCC (500,000 cells/mL), fat, protein, solids-not-fat, density, acidity, freezing point and alcohol stability. in.gov.br · PDF (SDA/MAPA)
  2. [2]
    IN 77/2018 MAPA — Production, collection and transport criteriaTemperature at collection, sampling, mandatory tests on the truck and at the plant, antibiotic residue screening. PDF (SDA/MAPA) · in.gov.br
  3. [3]
    Milk price paid to producers — Conseleite/RSProjected reference value of R$ 2.4754/L for August 2026. Basis of the "loss avoided": 12,400 L × R$ 2.4754 ≈ R$ 30,700. feedfood.com.br · Cepea via Notícias Agrícolas
  4. [4]
    Lactoscan Farm Eco — R$ 3,960.00 cash priceUltrasonic analyzer: fat, SNF, density, protein, lactose, added water, freezing point, salts; 60 analyses/h. marte.com.br
  5. [5]
    Cap-Lab SP — R$ 5,012.75Ultrasonic analyzer with the same parameters, 60 s measurement, laboratory or field use. cheeselab.com.br
  6. [6]
    Lactoscan SP / SLP / SA — Brazilian distributorsModels with conductivity, pH and Bluetooth; price on quotation. The range on this page is an estimate from the entry-level models. instrulab.com.br · entelbra.com.br
  7. [7]
    Twinsensor BT (Unisensor) — R$ 1,090.00 for 96 tests ≈ R$ 11.37/testLateral-flow strip for beta-lactams and tetracyclines; basis of the antibiotic disposable. cheeselab.com.br · cap-lab.com.br
  8. [8]
    DeLaval DCC — full kit £2,955 (with 72 cassettes)Converted to ≈ R$ 21,000 at the reference exchange rate below. daws-stores.co.uk · delaval.com
  9. [9]
    DeLaval DCC cassettes — US$ 374.80 for 72 ≈ US$ 5.21 (≈ R$ 28) per cassettedfafarmsupplies.com
  10. [10]
    Raspberry Pi 5 4 GB — R$ 1,496.15robocore.net
  11. [11]
    7" HDMI touch display — R$ 512.90robocore.net
  12. [12]
    Probes for the ESP32 nodeAtlas Scientific EZO-pH and DFRobot Gravity pH/EC; the R$ 500–1,500 range is estimated from international prices plus import costs. digikey.com · dfrobot.com
  13. [13]
    ITR MK 540 Flex II portable cryoscopeNo public price; the range on this page is an estimate. proleitebrasil.com.br · kcen.com.br
  14. [14]
    Milkotester Lite — manufacturerSpecifications (60 s, optional pH, 100–260 V); price on quotation. milkotester.com
  15. [15]
    Charm ROSA — antibiotic strips and readerAlternative to Unisensor, with the EZ Reader. charm.com
  16. [16]
    Reagent strips for neutralizers, H₂O₂ and urea — Cap-LabBasis of the adulteration tests read in the optical chamber. cap-lab.com.br

Assumptions. Conversions at a reference exchange rate of R$ 5.40/US$ and R$ 7.00/£, to be updated on the quotation date. Incubator, strip reader, ATP luminometer, dataloggers and the optical chamber have no public list price; their ranges are market estimates. E-commerce prices vary and some items were out of stock when consulted.