ROPY MILK. 



31 



Cause. of ropy milk. The condition is brought about by the 

 presence of Bacillus lactis viscosus, described first by Adametz 

 (l). The individual bacteria possess enveloping masses of 



slimy viscid material, 

 which impart a similar 

 characteristic to the 

 milk when they are 

 present in sufficient 

 numbers. Fig. 6 

 shows the ropy milk 

 organisms. The cap- 

 sules of viscid sub- 

 stance are represented 

 by white areas sur- 

 rounding each cell. 



Many organisms ca- 

 pable of inducing vis- 

 cosity when grown in 

 milk, under various 

 conditions, have been 

 described . Advances 

 in methods of identi- 

 fying bacteria make it 

 impossible to say how 

 many of these organisms are 

 really identical. The more re- 

 cent studies of the occurrence 

 of ropy milk in dairies in North 

 America and Europe, point to 

 the conclusion that B. lactis 

 viscosus is very largely the cause 

 of the trouble. The ropy milk 

 organisms isolated by the writer 

 have always been of this species 

 (42) . Harrison has found some 

 different species (16). 



Fig. 5. Ropy cream lifted with a fork 



Fig. 6. Bacillus lactis viscosus, 

 from a milk culture (42). 



