The Bemidji pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Beltrami County, Minn.) 1896-1917, 1901-09-05
Horticulture.
Making Butter on the Farm---Care
.55 of the Cream.

OF the cream.
The greater portion Of Northeast
Minnesota, is not represented BY
creameries at present, and until
the time comes when conditions
will warrant their establishment
in each locality, the making q
butter on the farm will be an i'm.
portant industry. As the margin
of profit in sale of butter is small,
a few cents more on the selling
price means much to the farmer.
First class butter commands bet
ter prices than poor butter. when
once customers are found who
know they can depend on 9 good
article. In many cases the farmer
can deal directly with the con-
sumer, and in any case, q repnta--
ton for producing good butter
once established, is easily main
tanned. and will usually add several
cents to the price received. The
reason that creamery butter brings
uniformly better prices than dairy
butter, is that the product Of its
creameries can be depended on as
uniformly good, while that Of the
farmer cannot. Home made but
ter can be and often is as good,
but not always, and this uncer-
tainty lowers the general price.
Hence the Importance of establish
ing an individual reputation for q
good grade Of butter. Good but
ter is not the result of chance, but
Of method. Cleanliness is the first
consideration. If the barn can
not be kept free from vile odors,
the milk should at least be re-
moved from it as soon as possible
and strained. In herd Of 10 o:
more cows, a cream separator, i
one can afford the original cost.
which will be rather high, is 9
great advantage. The cream is al
once removed from the milk, which
lis warm and sweet to feed The
calves. There is almost no loss
of cream in the skim milk by this
method, and the cream will keer
longer sweet. Where the cream il
raised in cans, the cooler the mill
can be kept. the more rapid ant
complete will be the separation q
the cream. Ia the summer deer
cans that may be set in a tank q
water will be found the most gen
orally useful method. The tank
should be as large as reasonably
possible, so that the bulk Of cool
ing water may be many times
greater than that Of the milk to
he cooled. Patent double cans to
be stuffed with cracked ice, in
genious devices for watering milk
and other short cuts for raising
cream, may usually be condemned
without trial. If the cream is
kept coolin place free from odors,
especially if it is obtained from
the fresh milk by a separator, five
to seven days may elapse between
chnrnings. The warm cream from
the separator should not be added
to the rest until it has been cooled
to the same temperature.
If the cream has been kept per-
fectly sweet, it should be soured
sufficiently before cleansing to inn
part an acid or nutty flavor. This
improves the favor Of the butter
and renders the separation Of the
butter fat more complete, besides
reducing the time Of churning. To
sour the cream, it should be heated
to a temperature Of 10 degrees for
"a hours. It may sometimes be
necessary in cool weather to add a
small quantity Of sour milk at the
time Of heating. This starter
should be from freshly soured and
free from bad odors.
HERMAN lei. CHAPMAN.