QUALITY IN BUTTER.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXIX, Issue 3676, 28 February 1899, Page 2

QUALITY IN BUTTER.

HOW TO GET A UNIFORM AND HIGH STANDARD. Now that such excellent samples of butter are. shipped by our foreign suppliers, writes the “ Farmer and Stockbreeder,” and that consequently the consumer has the choice of so many different and equally choice ’brands of butter, it behoves us to do all in empower to so improve the quality and appearance of the butter we produce as to take the lead in the market, instead of risking the push to one side which it so often receives, and, if the truth must be told, often deserves. The methods of obtaining cream, the most correct ways of preparing it foi the churn, the churning, and other primary matters connected with the buttermaker’s art up to this point, have been so often treated with and put before the reader in these columns, that the present paper will take up the theme as the butter finally arrives in the granulai form in the churn. • ' The chemical 1 composition of butter at this stage is quoted by Mr McConnell in his “Agricultural Note-book” as follows :

! Water 10 0 parts in ICO Butter fats .. 7.. 87.8 ~ Albuminoids ... 1-0 ~ Milk sugar ... ; 7...’ 0 3 „ Ash ... - ••• •’ i By the time, however, that this has been washed, salted, and made ready for sale, the comparative, amounts of the several constituents will be .alterec. somewhat, the chief alterations being that the aHi will have’ increased to perhaps 4 per {cent., the water to 12 per cent., andJF corresponding decrease m the peaefetatn^fii.. of butter fats will bo jjoted. -J - WASHING BUTTER.1 The butter grains inYhe churn having reached’ the required’ size, and the butter-milk withdrawn, repeated wash•ibgs are: given’ with‘.water cold enodgh ijo toughen and ■ individualise ■ the granular particles of butter, the exact temperature being determined by the conditions under which ( the - butter has beenproduced, and ■ the ■ temperature of Aie butter at this timei As a general rule, the washing' water ■ may be about 2deg. below the temperature of. the butter, _n this is between 56deg. and 58deg. .1,. while if the butter exceeds 68deg. I* . Qi? washing water may be. even as low Us 52deg; F. , • . , 1 Many dairy people dispense with-wash-ing the - butter in the grain altogether, but they are mistaken in alleging as dome of them do, that unwashed buttei Seeps better thqn [ the washed article. Butter which is judiciously washed at this Stage of its manufacture! has the casein or curdy matferj removed,, and, in’ consequence. keeps betterband longer, iwq washings .ought itp-be sufficient, to clear. away all the curdy matter and.mukness Entangled in the ‘grains of; .butter, Ifeave it in, a bright, firm, shooty. condition, but if the experience’ of the maker decides so, three washings -may be. indulged in. This.,needs, a certain" amount’ df careful practical consideration, 'as when conditions. dp not justify such a . course, loss of flavour and- aroma in the finished butter will probably be the result.

I . ADDING THE SALT. ’ i Now comes the brining or salting, and this, it must be observed, is really a very important point ;■ we have known excellent samples of butter condemned liy the customer because the salting had been done carelessly or incompetently, and left its indelible marks in the butter, although in every other respect the sample was adjudged first-class. ; Brining is distinctly the best ( way to overcome this difficulty, but it is comparatively expensive, and because ol tins failing is not to bo recommended, excepting in* winter, and at that tune of the year brining is the only safe, and satisfactory method of adding salt to the ,butter, which operation is so desirable fpr the purpose of bringing: into prominence the flavour of the flutter, and of adding to its keeping qualities; and to b'ring -about rlns result in me winter, with due regard to the appetising appearance of o finished product, brining must be resorted to, for no mattei how fine and dry the salt, and no matter How careful the worker may be in his manipulations,-, it is next to a practical impossibility -to 'turn out a sample of butter in. .which, the .traces, of salt; may pot be readily recongnised; if .drysalting •has been undertaken'; - and in too many cases where careless work'has been done the appearance' of the butter, with its ornamental (f) ; streaking, .is anything but appetising. . , ! , I SEINING. ■

I Brining, then, means that in every six quarts of ] water it is considered necessary to-use—"which will be judged according to the capacity of the churn and the amount of butter contained in it—11b of dairy salt., will , bo, disolved and strained into the “ churn; after taking a fow revolutions. of the churn, the butter may. be deft standing. in the brine for . 15 minutes, when it is removed _ to the draining trough • or table, ■ covering with A- cloth " until it is sufficiently dryto work Up;’ ’Bear in mind that the correct and best way to'remove the .butter from the churn is to dip it up from the surface of the brine (of' Water, as the Case may be ;; do not remove, the liquid and beat the buttdr: up ima-dry churn, qs there is greaterisk in -so-doing of-des--troying to some extent the granular texture; > . i In a large dairy it will be found very convenient to have a butter-dryer in which to revolve the butter in the granular stage after removal from .*ie churn, and in this way to get rid of tue surplus moisture attaching to the grams, (pure butter contains, as quoted, abo—t 12 per cent, of water, but by indifferent ihaking land working, i of by intent, butter inay have water incorporated With it to’ the extent, of 1<? per. cent., and in extreme cases even upjto 30,per cent. For instance, high temperature churn ing, washing, and brining, _ tend to the presence’to a'large quantity of Water in the finished butter, and there are certain fraudulent means of so treatithe butter in the chum as to cause the thorough, unnoticeable incorporation of d very high percentage of water, but as these methods and dodges certainly do not tend to any' improvement in the quality of the sample, it is rather out of -face to treat them at any length ■here. , working the butter. The working of the butter has now to be considered, and by working we imply the pressing of the loosely- adhering grains of butter into one solid mass by judicious manipulation. Here we may state, in some modification of the advice just given, that only in the case of the dairy being without a butter-work-ing table is it allowable to beat the butter up in a dry chum, and if done at all it should he done very' gently, and carefully, for the reason already given. A butter-working table is, without doubt, a great acquisition where anything like a first-class result is desired. The fluted roller which is passed over the mass of butter and back again will press the butter into the solid consistency required, and at the same time preserve the individual particles in their relation to 'each other ,so that the thumping, smashing effect of the oldfashioned worker is avoided. - DHYSAMTNG. Assuming that the butter , has not been brined, the salt will be added at the time of working. The salt, which must be quite dry and finely divided, should be sprinkled in small quantities over the mass of butter between each working

from‘a-pepper-castor or similar utensil, and may be applied at the rate of Jo;, of salt. to each pound of butter ir for ini mediate consumption, while with butte; intended to keep the pound-is not too much. '■ making up. . _ The butter may now be weighed up into the quantities required by the customer" and carefully made 1 up into either rolls, bricks, or pats, according to the knowledge of the worker or the demand of the market. In dealing with large quantities, rolling will be found to be the most expeditious method; ths great thing, however, is -to make the, butter attractive to the consumer, land the art of making up butter quickly ant neatly is well worth cultivation by the dairymaid. , FLAVOUR AND AROMA. Flavour cannot be controlled altogether in the dairy itself, as so much depends on the feed of the cow. and othei outside considerations. The actual flavour and aroma of butter is really dut to the presence of certain fatty acid.-, in its consumption. Good grass ant hay will not affect the butter flavou: uncomfortably, but foods such as roots, cabbage, silage, etc., given in excessive quantities, are injurious in this respect The safest additional foods to grass ant hay for dairy cows are such as bran cotton-cake, oats, pea and bean meal. - The thorough and even ripening ol the cream controls the flavour of the butter to a considerable extent, It,, is well known that in a good dairy crcan. obtained by the shallow-method is the best in this respect, the large surface exposed to the action of the atmosphen serving to thoroughly aerate the cream and favour the fermenting action goiiif, on. in the cream leading to this end. Tue true flavour of butter does not fully do velop, however, till from two to three days after making. COLOURING THE BUTTER. At certain times of the year it is verj desirable, that a little artificial colouring be added to the cream before churning, as the resulting butter, is very pale ir. colour without it• The quantity it is necessary to add will, of course, varj considerably at times, and must be lofalmost entirely to the discretion of tlr. maker. .The quantity present in ini f , ported‘■foreign butter has been found tc " average about one part in a thousand by weight. From the use of a good but ter-colour no harm can result, although some people cry but against the practice as being deceiving. If it is in the powo; of the dairyman to make his goods loot tasty and appetising without in any way harming the consumer, either in body. or pocket, why should he not do so ? In earlier times butter colours wore made from any substance, among them being extracts of saffron, logwood, turmeric, carrot juice, etc., and these ex : tracts were kneaded into the manufac- . tured buter. ■ i I Almost all butter colours now in use, without exception, consist of solutions, of the fresh fruit of annatto, dissolved in hemp or sesame oil, and this eoncoc- ’ tion is mixed with the cream before churning. ; ■ The following qualities are necessary i|i a good butter colour: ; ,1. That it should impart to the butte; the requisite-tint, without any foreign taste of smell., i • i 2. Appetising in appearance, 1 and not in any way injurious. 3. Its price to be in proportion to its ti-ue strength and value.