20 BULLETIN 356, V. S. DEPAETMEKT OP AGEICULTUEE. 



the cow's body. All utensils, such as pails, strainers, bottles, dippers, 

 etc., which come into contact with the milk, should be sterilized with 

 either live steam or boiling water. Many dairymen make the mis- 

 take of thoroughly washing the bottles and then rinsing them with 

 water which is only warm. This does not kill the bacteria which 

 may be on the surface of the utensils, and considerable contamination 

 ensues. Many competitors have been in the habit of discarding the 

 first few streams of milk that come from each teat, for it is known 

 that the first milk drawn contains a larger proportion of bacteria than 

 that which follows. Milking should be done as quickly as possible 

 and with as little agitation of the cow's udder as is possible, as such a 

 disturbance is very liable to shake bacteria from the cow's hide into 

 the milk pail. 



As milk is so easily contaminated it is necessary, as soon as drawn, 

 to take it to a clean, convenient milk house, where it can be cooled 

 immediately. The milk house should be weU protected against flies 

 and should be scrupulously clean. As bacteria grow very fast in 

 warm milk, prompt cooling is an absolute necessity. Fresh milk con- 

 taining 100 bacteria per cubic centimeter, if not cooled will in the 

 course of time contain the offspring of the original bacteria which 

 may amount to millions. In the scoring of cream it has been noticed 

 that the bacterial count has averaged higher than that of the milk 

 samples submitted. This may be attributable to the fact that clumps 

 of bacteria are broken up by the force of the separator, and hence an 

 apparently larger count is the result, or it may be caused by milk 

 passing through one more piece of apparatus, namely, the separator, 

 which is not always thoroughly cleaned and sterilized. 



The bottles into which the product is put and the caps with which 

 they are sealed should be sterilized so that no contamination can 

 ensue. In coohng the milk it is not necessary that any special form 

 of cooler be used. In fact, many of the successful competitors in 

 the past who have obtamed very low bacterial counts have beUeved 

 that the exposure of the milk to the air in passmg over a cooler was 

 not a desirable feature, and have bottled the milk warm and cooled 

 it with ice water. While this method does not cool the milk quite so 

 quickly, it saves it from any possible contammation caused by expos- 

 ing it in a thin sheet to the air. Bottles should be kept in ice or ice 

 water until ready for shipment; then they should be packed in a 

 durable shippmg case surromided with ice and forw^arded without 

 delay. 



FLAVOR AND ODOR. 



Several causes contribute to undesirable flavors and odors in milk 

 and cream. One instance is the flavor which is the result of bacterial 

 action. This may be owing to the lactic-acid bacteria which sours 



