MARKETING CREAMERY BUTTER. 3 



ment of an inspector-instructor by various groups of country cream- 

 eries in order to standardize the quality of their product would seem 

 to be a move in the right direction and could be followed by stand- 

 ardization in methods of marketing and by the inspection of the 

 butter and by branding it according to official grades. Greater uni- 

 formity in quality of butter is of primary importance to successful 

 marketing, and creamery butter makers should give this phase of 

 the subject most careful consideration. 



COMMON FAULTS IN BUTTER. 



The more common faults observed in the markets in the quality 

 of butter are : Soft, leaky, open body ; too much or not enough salt ; 

 too high or too light color ; metallic flavors ; high acid, unclean, and 

 old cream flavors; streaks and mottles; mold on butter, also moldy 

 and dirty packages. Butter possessing such faults, although not 

 always classed as " undergrades," is often discriminated against by 

 the crftical buyer. During those seasons when the market receipts 

 are heavy and the market is weak such butter can be moved only at 

 low prices, and often sells at 6 to 8 cents below the better grades. 



PACKAGES FOR BULK BUTTER. 



The two styles of packages used for bulk butter are the " tub " 

 and the " cube." In the Middle West the creameries use the 63- 

 pound ash tub very generally, while in the New England States a 

 preference is shown for butter put up in spruce tubs, of 10, 20, 30, 50, 

 and 60 pounds capacity. When the local production in New Eng- 

 land is insufficient to supply the demand, spruce tubs often are 

 shipped to creameries in Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Ne- 

 braska, and other western dairy States, as a premium of approxi- 

 mately half a cent per pound is usually paid by the New England 

 buyers for butter packed in these tubs. 



The use of the "cube" is confined almost wholly to the creameries 

 located in the Pacific Coast States. (See fig. 1.) This container 

 for bulk butter is made of fir and spruce. The shooks used for 

 making the cubes are usually surfaced only on one side, which is 

 placed toward the butter. The outside of the cube is therefore very 

 rough and does not present an attractive appearance. Foreign mar- 

 kets to which considerable butter has been shipped from the Pacific 

 coast have commented upon the rough surface of the cube and upon 

 the lack of uniformity in size and net weight of the packages. The 

 cube is a crude package in contrast to the containers used in New 

 Zealand, which are neat, attractive, rectangular boxes, holding ex- 

 actly 56 pounds, and are branded with the name of the creamery, 

 export brand, and net weight on each end. 



