In the dairy industry integrated food chain management is internationally recognised as the foundation for both food safety and quality control. Similar to meat hygiene, the dairy food chain can be divided into pre-harvest, harvest and post-harvest phases. The pre-harvest phase is on the farm and all commercial dairy producers must be registered in line with the Health Act provisions for milking parlours. This function usually falls under local municipalities and is done by environmental health professionals. The role of the veterinarian is to ensure herd health, but while private practitioners concentrate mainly on production diseases, such as mastitis and fertility, the state veterinary services are focused more on the control of notifiable diseases such as brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis. Herd or farm status accreditation is important but may be given at different levels by different stakeholders, including retailers. Good agricultural practice (GAP) is closely linked to good hygiene practice on dairy farms. Milk and milk products produced and processed by the informal sector usually may not enter the formal food chain.