PAPERS ON MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH 40l 



ESSENTIALS OF A SAFE MILK SUPPLY IN 

 CITIES OF FIVE THOUSAND AND UP- 

 WARD IN ILLINOIS 



Clarence W. East, M. D., F. A. C. S., Illinois Depart- 

 ment of Public Health 



It is to be noted that the discussion does not turn upon 

 the production of an ideal milk supply. An ideal milk 

 supply would be one in which a clean milk is available 

 within a few hours to every household. An ideal milk 

 supply would involve cows scientifically cared for as to 

 the hygiene of diet, personal health, range and housing. 

 It would involve strict cleanliness of the animal and the 

 milker. The milk must be cooled promptly, stored, 

 transported, delivered and stored again so as to avoid 

 contamination or a temperature favorable to bacterial 

 growth. 



It is a pleasure to recognize that the items just men- 

 tioned are receiving much attention and to some degree 

 have become fixed in dairy practice. It is on the basis 

 of the increasing attention to healthy and clean dairy 

 animals, healthy and clean milk handlers and proper 

 home storage that even a safe milk supply can be predi- 

 cated. A safe milk supply is one which secures the 

 proper pasteurization of good milk. Pasteurization does 

 not imply the cooking of dirty and infected milk. War- 

 fare must be kept up to secure all the results of a clean 

 milk. 



But there are factors in milk production and distri- 

 bution which make necessary the proper pasteurization 

 of all milk produced in quantity for distribution to com- 

 munities of at least five thousand population and above. 

 These factors are: 



1. Continuation of sources of contamination. 



Dairy barns, milkers and milk handlers do not provide 

 for the same degree of cleanliness found in domestic 

 food handling processes in the dwelling of the dairymen. 

 The housewife has abundant facilities and a long tradi- 

 tion for the cleanly production of foods ; besides, she has 



