SALT FACILITATES THE REMOVAL OF BUTTERMILK 275 



Each " experiment " in the first table includes samples of 

 butter from the same churning, salted at the different rates 

 indicated. 



Each pair or lot of churnings reported in the second table 

 were from the same vat of cream. 



The first table shows that salted butter keeps better than 

 unsalted butter. The second table shows that light salting is 

 just as effective for improving the keeping quality of butter as 

 heavy salting. In fact, in nearly all cases lightly salted butter 

 came out of storage, at the end of eight months, with a higher 

 score than butter that was heavily salted. This would be due 

 in part to the salt bringing out defects in flavor. 



Salt Facilitates the Removal of Buttermilk. That salt 

 facilitates the removal of buttermilk can easily be demon- 

 strated by observing the escape of buttermilk from the butter 

 immediately after the salt has been added and mixed with the 

 butter. The first effect of salt when added to the butter is to 

 precipitate the curd in the buttermilk. This precipitation is 

 greater when a large amount of salt is added than when only 

 a small amount is added. The precipitation of the casein in 

 the buttermilk sets free the remainder of the buttermilk con- 

 stituents; that is, when the casein is precipitated, the whey 

 part assumes a more fluid condition and escapes, and the butter 

 retains a portion of the curd. Owing to this action of the salt, 

 it is essential that the butter should be as completely washed as 

 possible, as otherwise it will retain an excessive amount of curd. 

 The butter acts in a manner somewhat similar to a filter in 

 removing a part of the curd from the other buttermilk con- 

 stituents. 



Salt in Relation to Water in Butter. Experiment has dem- 

 onstrated that pure fat is not a salt-dissolving substance. Owing 

 to this fact the only salt-dissolving substance in butter is water. 

 As water will hold only a certain amount of salt in solution, it 

 becomes evident that the amount of salt which can be properly 

 incorporated in butter depends upon the amount of moisture 

 present. 



The amount of salt which water will hoia in solution at 



