304 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



A great deal of good work could l)e accomplished by our creamery 

 manufacturers and butter-makers, l)y testing the. individual herds of the 

 patrons monthlj^, during the milking period. Some cows are like ^ome 

 lazy men, they make a big spurt for a short time, — 'that is, they will 

 give a big flow of milk for a short period. The owner frequently only 

 thinks of them when at their best. The only true test is the amount 

 of fat given during the milking period. We are in hopes that the school 

 will be able to take up this extension work in the near future, if we 

 can get the necessary funds. T.he manufacturing side we find is much 

 in advance of the producing side, as many changes have taken place In 

 recent years in the manufacture of both butter and cheese. Some of 

 these changes have possibly not been for the best, regarding quality. 

 Especially is this true in regard to the hand separator. 



INIuch more will be expected of the butter-maker of the future than 

 has been required in the past, as the advancements made along the 

 different lines reouire additional skill. In fact, the butter-maker of 

 the future should be a sort of encyclopedia, not only up to date in 

 handling all kinds of modern machinery, but should also understand 

 the latest methods of handling the milk, cream and butter in the best 

 sanitary manner, and should also be able to give information to patrons 

 concerning the feeding and breeding and milk production in the most 

 economical manner. This will be the case, no doubt, as many of our best 

 men in the four-year-course are specializing along these lines, expecting 

 to make dairying a life profession. 



The same is true in other states. In the past five or six years possi- 

 bly the question of butter flavors and the use of starters have received 

 more attention than anything in connection with the dairy busi- 

 ness, both from our butter-makers and the experiment stations in gen- 

 eral. While good flavor is very essential in butter, as it is this factor 

 that largely gives it its selling value, at the same time there are other 

 factors in connection with the butter business that are very im.portant 

 both to the producer and the manufacturer. I refer to the quantity as 

 well as the quality. During the past few years we have heard consid- 

 erable contention through the dairy press, owing to one creamery pay- 

 ing a greater price than a neighboring creamery. Various reasons have 

 been set forth for this, but the most common is that the creamery payin.g 

 the high price has either cut in the test or had cut weights in weighing, 

 or, in orther words, has used dishonest methods. 



During the past few. years we have been conducting experiments on. 

 the question of overrun. We have also been carrying on an educational 

 scoring contest, making complete analysis of each sample of butter sent 

 in each months. These analyses have revealed to us some startling facts 

 on the reason why one creamery is able to pay more than another. I"i 

 some of these analyses we find a difference of 15 per cent, or. in other 

 words, we find that one creamery makes fifteen pounds more butter from 

 one hundred pounds of butter fat than another. W^e have makers exhibit- 

 ing in this contest who have a reputation of paying extreme prices for 

 butterfat. and their butterfat has invariably shown three or four per 

 cent increase over the average. While we have not completed our con- 



