HOW SOLVE THE PROBLEM? 155 



testing and dealers would have to exercise care in mix- 

 ing milks so that the fat percentages would correspond 

 with the markings; otherwise these would only be mis- 

 leading. 



Under the grading system the producer is paid for 

 the kind of milk that he produces, the dealer is paid 

 for the kind or kinds that he sells, and the consumer 

 pays for what he chooses to buy; and this result comes 

 about largely automatically. Natural differences will 

 be evident instead of being confused. The great mass 

 of consumers will doubtless continue to buy the cheap- 

 est milk that they can, but an increasing public recog- 

 nition of the better grades should develop when these 

 are clearly labelled and their use advocated by health 

 authorities. The system is therefore not merely puni- 

 tive as regards bad milk but is a means of developing 

 the production of good milks. 



The Public Value of Milks 



It is obvious that the availability of a given milk to 

 the consumer depends not only upon its sanitary and 

 food quality but also upon the price which he has to 

 pay. Dr. Charles E. North has sought to combine 

 the various items involved, by means of an ingenious 

 method of rating the public value of different milks. 

 Dr. North states that "the public value of milk, as- 

 suming that the average chemical composition of the 

 different grades and classes on the market is about the 

 same, depends chiefly on three fundamental charac- 

 teristics. These are safety, cleanliness, and price." 

 His method of rating, on a scale of 100, is set forth in 

 the following table: 



