MILK PRODUCTION 343 



even cooked or sour foods are said to have a peculiar 

 influence. Some writers go so far as to present lists 

 of feeding-stuffs in the order in which they increase the 

 volatile fatty acids, but such definite representations must 

 at present be taken "with a grain of salt." In most 

 instances, no relation is established between the effect 

 observed and the market value of the butter. In fact, it 

 is distinctly asserted by one or two experimenters that 

 there is no clear relation between the melting-point and 

 hardness. It seems quite probable that when the ration 

 includes a variety of grain foods, practically the entire 

 list of feeding-stuffs may be utilized under proper con- 

 ditions without damaging the market value of the butter 

 for local consumption. 



443. Effect of food on the flavors of milk and its 

 products. It is not possible with our present knowl- 

 edge to establish a relation between the flavors of dairy 

 products and the presence of definite compounds. What- 

 ever causes flavor in milk or butter is generally present 

 in such minute quantities that even if the nature of the 

 substance were known the determination of its amount 

 would be beyond the skill of the chemist. Milk satis- 

 factory to the critical taste and smell may be so simply 

 because bad flavors are absent, or there may be present 

 the positive influence of some constituent of the ration. 

 It is probably safe to assert that compounds in the food 

 pass into the milk as such, and the superiority of June 

 butter, if such exists, may be due to the almost impon- 

 derable volatile odors which are derived from the young 

 grasses. Nothing is more certain than that the dele- 

 terious odors of certain foods and those that pertain to 

 the stable are often absorbed by milk, as, for instance, 

 when cabbage, turnips, and onions are fed. 



