THE PREPARATION AND USE OF LIME AS A NEUTRALIZER 199 



A careful determination of the acidity of the cream should 

 always be made both before adding the neutralizer and after it is 

 pasteurized and cooled. It may be found necessary to reduce the 

 acidity of the cream a little more, or on the other hand it may be 

 found that the acidity of the cream is being reduced too 

 much. This determination will thus act as a guide for future 

 work. 



If the cream is to be ripened again the acidity is usually 

 reduced to 0.15 per cent to .22 per cent (9 to 12 Mann's) and 

 then ripened to the desired acidity. 



Some prefer the use of slaked or hydra ted lime. While hot 

 water must be used in the preparation of the quicklime mixture, 

 the hydrated lime should always be mixed with cold water. 



OTHER NEUTRALIZERS 



Some creameries use carbonate and bicarbonate of soda 

 commonly spoken of as soda ash as neutralizers. The soda 

 ash is very soluble in water and forms a clear liquid solution. 

 This is more easily made and added to the cream than is the lime 

 mixture, and doubtless this is the main reason for its use. 



What has already been said indicates the authors' preference 

 for the use of lime as a neutralizer and the reasons for this 

 preference. The following points may therefore be treated 

 briefly: 



Lime is something that is well known and generally regarded 

 as clean and wholesome, and the use of it in the neutralization of 

 cream will not offend, in the slightest degree, the susceptibilities 

 of the most fastidious. 



Attention is frequently drawn, by physiologists, physicians 

 and students of die ti tics, to the necessity for a liberal supply of 

 lime in the diet of children and adults, and to the fact that in 

 many foods there is a shortage of this constituent. 



Limewater is commonly used as an accessory to and a cor- 

 rective of the foods of hospital patients and of children and 

 infants. 



While it is true, as has already been pointed out, that the 



