Milk Straining. Oil 



MILK STRAINING. 



Bij R. Crowe. 



Although every care may be taken to keep milking yards and 

 cowsheds clean, the cows groomed, the hands of the milkers and the 

 udders and teats of the cows washed, it will still be impossible to 

 prevent particles of dust, dandruif, hairs, etc., from falling into 

 the milk. 



With ordinary milk strainers only the large particles are pre- 

 vented from passing from the milking bucket into the cans. In 

 addition to the usual wire gauze, therefore, some dairymen use 

 two or four folds of butter-cloth and thus secure much better results. 

 Quite recently, cotton wool specially prepared for the purpose has 

 been introduced, and as it more nearly approaches a filter than any- 

 thing used in ordinary practice on the dairy farm, it restrains practi- 

 cally all the undissolved impurities. Bach disc is burned after use, 

 and a new one inserted for every milking, thus obviating all risk of 

 contamination through strainers not being clean and sweet. Un- 

 fortunately, there are still some persons who consider straining 

 unnecessary because the milk is only for the factory or creamery, 

 or going to be separated. They fail to realise that as some of the 

 impurities may have been dissolved l)y the time it reaches the 

 separator, it is then too late to attempt to arrest the taints imparted to 

 the milk, and all that can be done is to detain the coar.ser particles 

 which may still be undissolved. 



On receipt of particulars of this specially prepared cotton wool 

 filter, together with improved types of strainers, I asked Mr. Carroll 

 to test them at the Leongatha Labor Colony, and also requested 

 Mr. Archer to try them on one of his visits of instruction to a 

 (lippsland Cheese Factory. Mr. Carroll's report which follows indi- 

 cates that the milk strained by the improved method immediately after 

 milking, as well as the skimmed milk and cream therefrom, will keep 

 better than that treated in the ordinaiy way. Mr. Archer's experience 

 confirms Mr. Carroll's, and the accompanying photographs show 

 clearly the great advantage of careful straining immediately after 

 milking. 



Mr. Carroll's Report. 



The following is the result of experiments made with improved 

 strainer at the Leongatha Labour Colony : — The milk from 76 cows was 

 experimented on, half of which was passed through the above strainer 

 and the remainder through an ordinary strainer. Samples were taken 

 from the the whole milk, cream and skim milk of the above lots and 



