NO. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 267 



milk is one of the most perfect foods, and its production and con- 

 sumption are steadily increasing. Its increased use is due chiefly 

 to four qualities: 1. Palatability; 2. Nutritive value; 3. Digestibility; 

 4. Cheapness. All these are influenced more or less by its care. 



The palatability of milk is due to its components being mixed in 

 such proportions as to produce a flavor that is relished by most 

 people. Milk, to possess good flavor, should be secreted by healthy 

 cows carefully fed with this in view. It should be as free as possi- 

 ble from animal taste or odor, and should not be permitted to take 

 up any foreign ordors, whether by absorption or by mechanical con- 

 tamination. Fresh milk when drawn under ordinary conditions con- 

 tains gases and animal odors, which may be eliminated at once by 

 cooling and aerating it in a pure, clean atmosphere. If allowed to 

 stand, there oftentimes develop in it disagreeable flavors. 



Such defects may occur at anytime^ but if the milk is handled 

 intelligently they will not be serious. They are not, as was formerly 

 thought, due to the chemical condition of the food, the illness of the 

 animal^ etc., but for the most part are associated with the growth of 

 bacteria, molds, etc. Milk being intended by nature for the nourish- 

 ment of the young and containing all the elements of nutrition, affords 

 a fertile field for the growth of nearly all kinds of low organisms. 



Milk should be cooled to 50 degrees F., which temperature will 

 check fermentation and preserve its good flavor for about 48 hours, 

 provided, the utensils and surroundings are perfectly clean. If not 

 so treated, milk will go off in flavor, and even at this low temperature 

 will lose its palatability. The most common change is the transfor- 

 mation of milk sugar into lactic acid, causing the milk to become 

 sour. Souring of milk is really beneficial as it serves to give a warn- 

 ing. Slimy and bitter milk are very common; both may originate in 

 the activity of bacteria. Bitter miik may also be caused by certain 

 feeds, such as lupines, and is sometimes characteristic of milk ob- 

 tained from cows which are nearly dry. 



Milk comes the nearest to being a perfect food because it con- 

 tains the elements necessary to maintain the body. Bread made 

 from wheat flour will support life. It contains all the necessary in- 

 gredients required for nourishment, but not in proportions best 

 adapted for ordinary use. One might live on beef alone, but it would 

 be a very one-sided or unbalanced ration. Milk is in itself a bal- 

 anced ration. 



All of the food constituents in milk, except fats, are present either 

 in a state of solution or semi-solution, thus rendering them easily 

 digestible. In most other forms of food they exist in a solid or semi- 

 solid form. For children whose masticatory and digestive organs 

 are not eflBcient as those of the adult, fresh milk is an ideal food. 

 The fats in milk being present in the form of minute globules which 

 17—7—1904 



