Dairy Processing Yield Sankey Diagram: Template
Follow raw milk through pasteurisation into bottled milk, cream and cheese, with line losses, rejects and whey drawn as their own flows. Replace the example volumes.
A processing yield Sankey for dairy follows litres of milk from intake through each product line, including the by-product whey and what becomes of it.
10,000 litres of raw milk are received. A small part is lost in the line, the rest is split between bottled milk, cream and cheese, and cheese-making produces a large volume of whey.
Volumes are expressed as litres of milk used, so that every stage is in one unit. Real plants measure fat and solids too; this chart shows only volume.
How to read this diagram
- 9,800 of 10,000 litres (98%) pass pasteurisation; 200 litres are lost in the line.
- 7,200 litres leave as sold product: 5,500 bottled milk, 1,400 cream and 300 cheese.
- Whey is 2,500 litres, a quarter of the intake; 2,000 are sold as feed and 500 are disposed of.
- Disposed whey and line losses together are the volume that earns nothing, 700 litres.
The data behind it
Invented figures for illustration. Not data about any real business. Volume only.
| From | To | Amount (litres of milk) |
|---|---|---|
| Raw milk | Pasteurised milk | 9800 |
| Raw milk | Lost in line and cleaning | 200 |
| Pasteurised milk | Bottled milk | 5600 |
| Pasteurised milk | Cream | 1400 |
| Pasteurised milk | Milk for cheese | 2800 |
| Bottled milk | Sold as product | 5500 |
| Bottled milk | Rejected at quality check | 100 |
| Cream | Sold as product | 1400 |
| Milk for cheese | Cheese | 300 |
| Milk for cheese | Whey | 2500 |
| Cheese | Sold as product | 300 |
| Whey | Sold as animal feed | 2000 |
| Whey | Disposed | 500 |
The same data as CSV
source,target,value
Raw milk,Pasteurised milk,9800
Raw milk,Lost in line and cleaning,200
Pasteurised milk,Bottled milk,5600
Pasteurised milk,Cream,1400
Pasteurised milk,Milk for cheese,2800
Bottled milk,Sold as product,5500
Bottled milk,Rejected at quality check,100
Cream,Sold as product,1400
Milk for cheese,Cheese,300
Milk for cheese,Whey,2500
Cheese,Sold as product,300
Whey,Sold as animal feed,2000
Whey,Disposed,500How it works
Measure intake and each product line
Use litres of milk used by each line, over one period.
Record losses and rejects where they arise
Line loss, quality rejects and by-products each get a node.
Follow by-products to their use
Whey to feed or disposal, for example.
Check the balance
Every node should send on exactly what it received.
Frequently asked questions
Why is cheese so small compared to whey?
Cheese concentrates milk solids into a small volume. In litres of milk used, whey is the larger flow.
Can I use kilograms of solids instead?
Yes, if you measure it. Use one unit throughout and change the unit label.
Edit this dairy Sankey
Open the example as your own chart and enter your volumes.