COMPOSITION OP MILK 17 



Friesian cows have the smallest; the Shorthorn 

 ranking between the Jersey and Ayrshire, 

 although certain strains of Shorthorn cows pro- 

 duce milk with very large fat globules. It may 

 be interesting to note that the largest fat globules 

 on record were found in Shorthorn milk. 



Milk serum. The serum is composed of water 

 and solids (usually designated as solids not fat). 

 These embrace such solids as casein, albumen, 

 sugar and ash, varying in amounts with different 

 individual cows. With the fat these comprise 

 what are known as total solids. Below is a table 

 showing the average composition of milk: 



Water 87.4 per cent. 



Fat 3.7 per cent. 



Albumen 5 per cent. 



Casein 2.7 per cent. 



Milk Sugar 5.0 per cent. 



Ash 7 per cent. 



100.0 



Fat varies with the breeds. The most variable 

 of these constituents is the fat; the casein also 

 varies- but not quite so much as the fat ; albumen, 

 sugar, and ash being quite constant. The fat con- 

 tent varies a great deal according to the breed. 

 It is well known that the milks of Jersey and 

 Guernsey breeds are rich in fat. To show these 

 breed variations we append the following table 

 compiled by the agricultural experiment stations 

 of America: 



