IJSRSET151555 | Received: 08 October 2015 | Accepted: 25 October 2015 | September-October 2015 [(1)5: 338-340] © 2015 IJSRSET | Volume 1 | Issue 5 | Print ISSN: 2395-1990 | Online ISSN : 2394-4099 Themed Section: Science and Technology 338 Comparative Analysis of Milk Quality Collected from Holstein Cows and Sicilo-Sarde Sheep Breed in Tunisia Najjar A.* 1 , S. Ben Said 2 , M. Ben Mrad 1 *1 Departement of Animal Production, Carthage University, National Institute of Agronomy, Tunisia 2 Jendouba University, High School of Agricultural of Kef, Tunisia ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to compare the quality of milk produced from Tunisian Holstein cows and Sicilo- Sarde ewes during their milking period. The experience concerned 80 Holstein (means age 5.2 years; mean weight = 530 kg) and 54 of Sicilo-Sarde ewes (mean age = 6 years; mean weight = 45 kg). The milk samples was taken from the morning and the afternoon milking and added with potassium dichromate. Refrigerated samples were used to determine milk content in fat (MG) and protein (MP) using Milkoscan 4000 after 24 hours of conservation for both cows and ewes. ANOVA was carried using SAS software (version 1997). The results showed that for cows the mean rate of fat (MG) and protein (MP) was respectively 3.3 ± 0.5 % and 3.4 ± 0.5 %. However, for ewe MG and MP were respectively 7.3 ± 0.7 % and 6.3 ± 1.1 %. We found also that the milk component in MG and MP cow’s varied during the milking period (p <0.05) compared to the milk ewe’s which present only a variation in MG component during the milking period (p <0.05). Besides, the total milk production for ewes was affected by the sex of foetus and the rank of milking (p <0.05). We conclude that the milk quality of Tunisian Sicilo-Sarde ewe contains rates of fat and protein greater than those in Tunisian Holstein cows. The chemical quality of the two kinds of milks is also affected by the stage of lactation. Moreover, milk ewe production is also affected by the sex of fœtus and the rank of milking. Keywords: Quality of Milk, Holstein Cows, Sicilo-Sarde Ewes, Fat, Protein I. INTRODUCTION Milk is the secretion result of mammary gland of the mammal animals. It is complex and possesses many chemical and physical components [1]. These later varied among species. In fact, some studies reported that cow milk contains 3.8% fat, 4.6% lactose, 3.1% proteins and 87.5% water [2]. However, milk sheep contains 6% fat, 5.2% proteins and 4.9% lactose [3]. The components of the two kinds of milks are important not only for the nourishment of young, but also for cheese processing [4]. That’s why an analysis of milk quality of the dairy cows and sheep is allowed to determine differences in rate component and which factors influencing the yield production [5]. In this context, our paper aims to compare the milk quality of two Tunisian dairy species: cows and ewes. II. METHODS AND MATERIAL Animals The study undertook on 80 Holstein cows (mean age = 5.2 years; mean heigh = 530 kg) and 54 Sicilo-Sarde ewes (mean age = 6 years; mean heigh = 45 kg) conducted respectively on intensive and semi-extensive system in the north region of Tunisia. The cows were in free stall housing. Milk Sample Collection Milk sample (20 ml) was taken during the milking periods of cows and ewes. For dairy cows, milk samples were taken twice a day, from the morning and the afternoon milking. For dairy ewes, milk samples were taken once a day, from the afternoon milking. Both kind of samples were added with potassium dichromate and refrigerated until the quality analysis.