TESTING DAIRY PRODUCTS BY THE BABCOCK 



TEST. 

 J. M. Bartlett. 



The following pages were written with the idea of bringing 

 together, in compact form, such information as we frequently 

 have calls for within the limits of our own State. Notwith- 

 standing the fact that the Station has published several bulletins 

 on the subject, it has nothing at hand that covers all the ground. 

 Very little that is new is presented and quite a part of the mat- 

 ter has been taken from other station publications. The part 

 on testing milk is largely a reprint of Dr. Babcock's description 

 in the Report of the Wisconsin Experiment Station for 1893. 



Testing cream is given considerable attention for the reason 

 that it is of very general interest in this State. Especial atten- 

 tion is called to sampling and weighing cream received at but- 

 ter factories, and to a uniform system of paying for cream. 

 Scales for weighing cream and other dairy products that cannot 

 be accurately or readily measured for the test are suggested, 

 and their use is earnestly recommended to all butter factories. 



WHAT THE TEST SHOWS. 



The Babcock Test has been before the public so many years 

 and is so familiar to most dairymen that it seems almost super- 

 fluous to explain its object and use. Nevertheless, there are 

 those who do not have a clear idea of just what the test means or 

 shows, and it is for such that this brief explanation is given. 



Normal milk contains from 12 to 16 per cent solid matter and 

 88 to 84 per cent water. The solid matter consists of fat and 

 casein in suspension, and albumin, milk sugar and mineral salts 

 in solution. The fat, which is practically the only valuable 

 constituent for butter making, is the ingredient determined by 

 the Babcock test. The sulfuric acid used in the process dis- 



