10 
TESTING AND HANDLING OF MILK AND CREAM 
but well fed and cared for. Then as soon as the milk is drawn it 
should be taken at once to the separator room, a room apart from the 
milking barns and free from all odors that may taint the cream in the 
least. As soon as all the milking is done, the cream should be sep¬ 
arated at once and then cooled down to 50 degrees, or between 40 
degrees and 50 degrees F. if possible. All utensils used must be kept 
clean and given plenty of sunlight and air when not in use. All 
strainers, pails, separator and separator parts must be washed and 
cleaned thoroughly after using. 
Other important cream questions can be most concisely set forth 
by the following questions and answers: 
1. Q. How thick should cream be skimmed? 
A. Between 35 per cent and 40 per cent. Thick cream keeps 
better than thin cream, there is also not the waste in handling a smaller 
bulk of cream that there is in handling larger amounts, in the way of 
hauling and express charges. Moreover, the skim milk is kept on 
the farm for feeding the pigs and calves. If cream is skimmed 
thicker than 45 per cent, there is a loss in some of the cream going over 
into the skim milk, and there is also a considerable loss from the 
amount of cream that will adhere to cans and utensils. 
2. Q. How can cream be skimmed near the same thickness 
each time? 
A. (a) By using the same amount of water to flush the bowl 
of the separator each time. 
(b) By keeping the cream screw the same. 
(c) By running the separator at the same and a uniform speed. 
It is best to have the same person turn the separator at each skimming, 
if possible. By this means a more uniform speed will be obtained. 
(d) By having the temperature of the milk the same. 
(e) By keeping a uniform inflow to the bowl. 
(f) By washing the separator thoroughly after each time it is used. 
3. Q. How cool must cream be before it is mixed with other 
cream of previous skimmings? 
A. Always cool cream down to between 40 degrees and 50 degrees 
F. before mixing with other cream and stir all cream thoroughly every 
time new cream is added. 
Warm cream should never be mixed with previous skimmings. 
4. Q. Under what condition should cream be kept? 
A. Cream should be kept in a cool sanitary place, the temperature 
should be below 50 degrees F. Odors of vegetables, oils, etc., must 
not be present. A spring house or a building provided with cold, 
running water is best. A cellar or cave is not a good place to keep 
