Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 69, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 March 1912 — Milk and Cream Testing [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Milk and Cream Testing

By H. C. MILLS, Dairy Field Man, Purdue Experiment Station Purdue Univeraity Agricultural Extenrion

For many yeara before the invention of the Babcock method of determining the amount of butterfat in milk, cream, skimmilk and buttermilk, the need of a practical and accurate method was felt. It was noticed that the milk or cream from one farm would not make or churn out as much butter as the mtik or cream from another farm and' that the product therefore had different values for buttermaking purposes. After a number of other methods had been tried, the Babcock method was invented in 1893 by Dr. Babcock of the Wisconsin experiment station. The value of this rapid and accurate method of determining the per cent, of fat in milk and cream to the *

dairy world, cannot be estimated.. Tftg. method has stood the test of time ana use. and with a few modifications, is the same as when first invented. Briefly, the method consists of placing a definite amount of a sample of milk , or cream into a Babcock test bottle, adding sufficient sulphuric acid to dissolve the solids not fat, and floating the fat into the neck of the test bottle which is graduated into spaces which hold fat equal to one per cent, of the amount of the sample .taken. The one per cent graduations are subdivided into smaller divisions. When the test is finished, the per cent of butterfat contained in the sample ran be read on the neck of the bottle. Butterfat does not mean butter. Butter contains on an average 83.25 per cent, of fat and 16.75 per cent of salt curd ahd moisture. Ordinarily, a pound of butterfat will make a pound and one sixth of butter. y

The Babcock test is very important in keeping records of dairy herds. Before the invention of the Babcock test, the only method of determining the amount of butter a cow was capable of producing was to keep her milk separate from the remainder of the herd and churn it separately. With the Babcock method it is only necessary to save a representative sample, measure it into the test bottle, add the acid, whirl in the machine, and read the per cent, of fat, multiply the pounds of milk produced by the per cent.'of fat, and we have the pounds of fat produced. By adding one-sixth of this amounts to it, we may know approximately the pounds of butter that could be made from this cow’s milk. The method is of especial value to the creamery man or milk buyer. Prac“ticatty all milk andcream is bought on a butterfat basis. The buyer can quickly determine the value of the product with the Babcock tester, and pay for the fat received.

Milk Scales, Sample Case and Babcock Tester Used in Herd Testing.