324 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Member : Mr. Keiffer made a remark in regard to fishy flavor. 

 He said that he found almost invariably overworking was the 

 cause of fishy flavor. Butter should not be overworked in any 

 case but he has left out one other conside;-ation from which to 

 draw his conclusions, and that is in that case he mentioned there 

 was extra salt in it. I do not pretend to say that salt has a tend- 

 ency to give a fishy flavor, but if ]\Ir. Keiffer has solved that 

 problem of fishy flavor by simply putting it to a case of over- 

 working he has done something the investigators of every State 

 have failed to do, and I would like the statement substantiated or 

 in some way repeated that we may all be assured that this is the 

 cause and the only cause for fishy flavor. 



Mr. Keiffer : I only referred to the result in the instance of 

 the experiment that was conducted by Chief Webster of the 

 agricultural department at Washington. He conducted an ex- 

 periment with overworked butter, took some of the butter out of 

 the churn, put more salt in and worked it, and in every instance 

 the second lot of butter in the churn was fishy flavor. Now butter 

 on the market we are receiving has fishy flavor but not excessive 

 salt. I have seen flshy flavor where the salt was very mild. It 

 seems to get into an oily flavor and becomes fishy. I think and 

 I am quite positive that overworking will produce fishy flavor but I 

 do not say that it is wholly responsible for it, but I believe it is 

 responsible for 90 per cent of it. Ninety per cent of the fishy 

 flavor butter I think is brought about by overworking. That has 

 been my experience. 



Prof. Webster : I am after any information that will help 

 out on this problem of fishy flavor. The explanation that Mr. 

 Keiffer has given is correct in regard to the condition of the 

 butter experimented in by the Government. 



Here is another question I would like to ask ]\Ir. Keiffer, or 

 anybody else who has had any experience with country butter 

 or packing stock, which is worked to the consistency of lard and 

 I have never had a case yet where it was fishy. There seems 

 to be something too on the other side. Then on the salt question, 

 I have had a case reported to me today of unsalted butter being 

 fishy. 



Mr. Keiffer: I saw a party in New York that I thought 

 handled considerable packing stock ; I asked if they found fishy 

 flavor and they said they found a lot of it. That is where I drew 

 my conclusions that they found it in packing stock and I believe 



