10 June, 1919.] Rich Milk in Cheese-making. 375 



in the cheeses for each pound of solids in the whey varied from 0.9 lbs. in 

 April to slightly more than 1 lb. in September, there being a gradual in- 

 crease from month to month. 



In every case, the weight of the solids in the cheese rose from 0.93 lbs. 

 in April to 1-16 lbs. in October, an increase practically made throughout 

 the whole period. In all the most important cheese-making districts the 

 fat is skimmed from the whey and converted into butter. This is especi- 

 ally the case in Cheshire, and whoever the cheese-maker may be, it is 

 practically impossible to prevent the occurrence of this loss. Under the 

 best conditions the weight of fat lost in the whey per 100 lbs. of milk 

 employed varies from 0.35 to 0.4 in April, rising and falling as the 

 months proceed, the loss of fat being smallest in the month of June. On 

 the other hand, the weight of casein which passes into the whey gradu- 

 ally increases from the beginning of the cheese-making season until the 

 end. In one instance, the loss in April was 0.64 lbs., and in October 

 0,85 lbs., although in this case there was no systematic increase. The 

 actual quantity of the solid matter of the milk which is recovered reach- 

 ing 50 per cent., and of casein 75 per cent. 



It may be well to compare the results obtained by the employment 

 of milk of varied quality. When the milk contains from 3 to 3.5 

 per cent, of fat, the percentage lost in the whey reaches 9.5, 

 while the weight of the, cheese made per 100 lbs. ,of milk 

 slightly exceeds 9 lbs. "When the fat reaches 3.5 to 4 per cent., 

 the loss of fat falls to 8.3 per cent., while the cheese made per 100 lbs., 

 or 10 gallons of milk, reaches 10 lbs. "With each step forward in the 

 richness of the milk there is an unvarying diminution in the loss of fat 

 and an increase in the weight of the cheese. Thus, when the milk con- 

 tained 5 per cent, of fat, the loss of fat in the whey was reduced to 6 per 

 cent., while the weight of the cheese reached 13^ lbs. per 100 lbs. of milk, 

 showing practically an increase of 50 per cent. On this basis, it is 

 surely worth the while of cheese-makers to employ rich milkers, inasmuch 

 as they make gains from two sources; the loss of fat is smaller, and the 

 weight of the cheese is larger, while we may add a third reason which 

 we have found in the increased quality of the cheese, both from the point 

 of view of flavour and mellowness or creamy consistency. It is only to 

 add that where cheese is made upon a farm by a skilled maker, where 

 control of the whole process is perfect, there may be, and, indeed, there 

 should be, a diminution in the loss of fat from poor milk, and conse- 

 quently a slight increase in the weight of cheese produced. 



The greatest loss occurs where cheese is factory made, and where, in 

 spite of a fair quality of the milk, the process of manufacture is under 

 less control than in the case of a private dairy. It is usual in good 'dairies 

 to weigh the curd before it is placed in the cheese vat for the press. An 

 indication of the actual weight of the ripe cheeses may be obtained by 

 deducting 9 per cent, from the weight of the curd. In comparing the loss 

 of fat which occurred in tlie manufacture of Cheddar cheese at different 

 places, it was found that the percentage of loss varied from 6.3 where rich 

 milk was used, to 10 where the milk was of average quality, containing 

 12.6 per cent, of solids, "Where the weight of fat per lb. of casein in 

 the milk was greatest, there was the least loss of fat, but in all cases the 

 loss of solids in the whey was approximately close. 



