The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1895-10-04
Notes From the Pennsylvania Expert
pent Station,
Factor for Butter Tests.

tactor Tor Butter Tests.
The Babcock test for fat in milk
has come into extensive use within
the last few years for testing COWS and
herds IN place Of the more expensive
and troublesome churn test. This
has been the case especially since the
results of the Columbian Dairy Test
demonstrated the substantial agree.
ment of the two methods when proper.
ly carried out.
The Babcock test, when correctly
made, gives accurately the amount of
buttertdt contained in the milk. 1t
is often desirable, however, to express
the results OF a test in terms of butter.
1t is well known that the amount of
butter which a COW or herd produces
is not the same as the amount of but.
ter-fat, being usually larger. In the
first place, even with the most careful
work in the dairy, there is some loss
OF fat in the skim milk and butter.
milk. On the other hand, butter con-
tains several per cent. of water, salt
and other materials besides fat. The
combined results of these two factors
is that the butter usually 'overruns,' >
as the creameryman expresses it, the
results Of the fat test. Obviously, the
amount of this overrun will depend
upon the completeness of the
skimmlng and churning on the one
hand, and of the amount of material
other than fat incorporated into the
butter, on the other hand. Quite a
diversity of practice has obtained as
to what should be regarded as the but
ter equivalent of one pound OF butter
fat, with the results that tests made by
different parties have not been com
parable and, what is worse, that it
was very difficult to know whether two
tests were comparable or not. Plainly,
if one man adds one fifth to the
amount of butter-fat found while
another adds one eighth, the test by
the first man would show COW or
herd to be materially better than
would an exactly similar test by the
second man.
This subject came up for discussion
at the Ninth Annual Convention of
the Association of American Agricul-
tural Colleges and Experiment Sta
tions held in Denver, July 1919, and
the following resolution was adopted
which, at the request of the Chairman
of the Executive Committee, is here
by communicated to the press of the
State:
Resolved. That this Association
recommends to the several stations
that the results of tests of dairy COWS
or herds be expressed in terms of but
ter fat; that when desirable to express
these records in terms of approximate
equivalent in butter, such equivalent
be computed by multiplying the
amount of butter-fat by one and one.
sixth.
The reasons for adopting this factor
were stated as follows by the commit
tee having the matter in charge:
"The ninety day Columbian Dairy
Test IS the most elaborate and care
fully conducted on record. In this
test, 06.97 per cent. Of the fat in the
whole milk was saved in the butter.
This butter on the average contained
Sa.37 per cent. of butter fat; in other
words, 1873 pounds Of butter was
made from each 100 pounds of butter
fat in the whole milk. The exact con
version factor would therefore be
1873. AS this is an awkward num-
Der to use, and as one and one sixth
is SO nearly the same (the difference
in computing the record of a ID pound
COW for week by these two factors
being only .o7 of pound of butter)
it has seemed best to recommend that
the latter be used as the conversion
factor"
The annual reports and quarterly
bulletins Of the Station aoiU be sent.
free of charge, on application, and
inquiries on agricultural subjects
so tar as possible.
Address,
H. P. ARMsBY, Director,
State College,
Centre Co., Pa.
"Going into a decline" How Of
ten do we hear this expression. What
does it mean? 1t means that people
are losing flesh, growing thin, wasting.
The WAY TO correct this condition