THE MILK STANDARD.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 167, 8 April 1908, Page 2

THE MILK STANDARD.

1 THINGS THAT AFFECT THE CREAM* SOIIS INTERESTING FACTS. In view of tho discussions that are taking 1 place concerning tho 3,25' cream ..standard .fixed for New Zealand.milk, our readers will peruse with interest the following portion of a paper oil this subject, by Mr. Edric Druce, Principal of tjie Bedfordshire Agricultural Institute, at Kidgmont, before tho. Beds Chamber 'of Agriculture.. It may' bo stated .-' •: that the British cream standard-is 3.0:— - Milk being an animar product,: it.'l3'absolutely .impossible for it always to havo exactly tho same composition, but' from a very large number of analyses made iof tlio ' muk from' all. breeds • -if cows, in varying .' countries, and kept uridei 5 d great variety, or/ ' conditions, we may-tako it that the average composition is: Water 87.0, fat 3.0, albuminoids or curd 3.9, sugar 4.8, ajh 0.7, total 100. v Or, in. more ordinary, language,' it coil-; 1 tains 3.0 per cent, of fat and 9.4 per cent. . of " solids other than fat.V.''--In' looking through a . number lof analyses wo -notice that't-ho percentage of. other . than 1 .' i r y ra ?ieS' -to a. very.- limited extent,-, and that the greaf yariation is.' in the fat' ' and water. As one increases t the other :de- ■ creases, and vice-versa.';.. The difference, in M. tho. percentage-of-fat will-, vary with a num- '• ' ber of conditions, of which we may mention:— (a) The individual peculiarities of each cow; some giving ricn milk and others'--poor. This condition is-oho over which , . we' have a very limited control. We cau ' * only try to eliminate the poor, quality. cows from our herds, and rear heifer calves from the cows which not only .»• give a largo quantity- but also good quality milk. ' . \ i(b) The .intervals between the 'milk- > Jttgs.r It has been proved bv dircct experiments,. ' ..particularly those of the iorkshire Education -authorities, that tho longer the interval between.the milk;"Ss, ,tho greater will be the Quantity of the, yield arid the, poorer thei quality; or,: 111 other words; if, lve could 1 have our v ■ ' two. milkiiigs' exactly afc< labour .inter- ' ' yals, the yields, both in quantity and .* quality, would bo practically identical. it is in almost "all cases impossible ts> ; /realise this Utopian condition, bub the •' .-nearer tte'.ran approach,it. the bett«f,'. : '(c) Whether the milk is the first draivn , or the last. The first drawn is very; poor" m fat and the last drawn, or stripping!!, correspondingly rich. < ; Ii have tested this , 6n many occasions; and ono day recently. , I tried with a fairly well-bred Shorthorn; cow. She gave at a morning's milking two gallons of milk.. The first .half-pint, the stoppings, and tho whole bulk wero tosted, with the:following result: .Firsts : : drawn 0.0, per bent, 'fat;; bulk ■•3-5'' , .-per •:•-■■ • 'cettt;-' fat;- :'strippiiig»'. 7vß per'cent. lfat. > ; : : ' : (d) The length - of: timo: after c&h'iiig. v. .v • As this period progresses the Yield ' creases, but tho: percentago of'fat' in-~ ' ■>, creases. ' . (eV Feeding and climatic. ■ conditions. ' Feeding has. not so. much influence on ■ .■; tho: composition-''of milk'as is generally-',' .supposed;: . If' a cow ' naturally -'gives fairly rich milk, it is dii!Tcult'to'improve', - it -to any, ex.tent ;by .'feeding, -but it "ip■ . considerably casifer to roduce the quality■ - ..by. usniff largo quantities of poor \i ; \ ~ foods,. From certain experiments '-which - - , ,1 ha out, I,am firmly of opiW , ...ion that' it is not ( the amount' of; fat' in.';. ") .• the-.food.*whiclv affects the. percentage of *1 . s fat; in: the. milKv.'but jg the'per-' "for 'Mave; al«.t V v iways. obtained better • result I- ■' . • /have uss fc&fe rfeK% : ' 1 ' as: ootfebn-cakc" -(decorticat.ed and 'uude- 'V' , -jcorticated) J. bran, .beans} etc.■■■- -i, ■*. t ,