BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY. 89 



When the work began a score of 69 represented the average sanitary 

 conditions on the farms where milk was produced. A year hiter the 

 same farms scored 76, a marked improvement in so short a time. 



During the year very careful surveys were made of a number of 

 cities in different parts of the country. A survey at St. Louis, in 

 cooperation with the Bureau of Chemistry, primarily to determine 

 the sources of contamination of the milk supply, strikingly illustrated 

 the effect of a few simple factors. Efficient sterilization of utensils 

 and proper cooling and refrigeration of the milk were found to be of 

 great importance in lowering the bacterial count and, consequently, 

 in improving the quality of milk. 



In a study of the condition of the milk supply of New England, 

 also carried on in cooperation with the Bureau of Chemistry, visits 

 were made to many farms that supplied milk to the principal cities 

 and towns. Special attention was given to those farms whose milk, 

 when examined at the shipping stations, showed more than a million 

 bacteria per cubic centimeter. Improved methods were suggested, 

 which resulted in lowering the average bacterial count from 27,000,000 

 to 750,000. Probably the most important single factor in that work 

 was cooling the milk and keeping it at a sufficiently low temperature. 

 In fact, the lowering of the temperature of the milk 8 degrees to an 

 average of 54° F. may be considered as the main cause of the im- 

 provement. 



iriLK CONTESTS. 



Milk and cream contests have proved to be a very potent influence 

 for the betterment of municipal milk supplies. In the contests sam- 

 ples of milk are submitted by dairies and dealers, and are scored 

 upon the basis of composition, flavor, odor, bacterial content, and 

 sediment. The defects are explained to the competitors at a meeting 

 and the remedies pointed out. 



In some places, particularly along the Pacific coast, the contests 

 are conducted on a slightly different plan. At irregular intervals, 

 without notice to the contestants, samples for scoring are selected 

 from the milk wagons, so that the contest is in the nature of a sur- 

 prise. Under this plan the milk from the dairies is constantly 

 graded. 



While the results accomplished are often difficult to measure, a 

 study of data from milk contests has shown that in every case the 

 samples entered by a contestant in later contests scored higher than 

 those entered by him at the first contest. 



FARM STEKILIZER CAMPAIGN. 



A nation-wide campaign to demonstrate the value of the steriliza- 

 tion of farm dairy utensils was begun in the early part of 1917. 

 Twenty outfits of the simple steam sterilizer designed by the division 

 were started over as many routes and visited 184 cities in 43 States. 

 In each place a two- weeks demonstration was held by the local health 

 officer to show producers how easily and cheaply they could improve 

 the quality of their milk by the proper sterilization of milk utensils. 



Thirty per cent of 116 demonstrators who have reported state that 

 already sterilizers are being used by producers in their communities. 

 Farmers' Bulletin 748 describing the sterilizer was issued and widely 

 distributed. 



