The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-15

The dairy farmers in the country around New York are going to have an opportunity to work with the farmers in the city in organizing model milk company. The idea of the new company is to provide means for extending the babies milk depots in New York and to try out method of milk production that will enable the ordinary farmer to supply good, clean milk at a price that the poor of the city can afford.
 Up to the present time, the New York milk committee believes that reformers have approached the problem of improv- ing the milk supply entirely too much from the city standpoint. and have con- cerned themselves with milk production mainly through ordinances. legislation and the expansive operation of making certified milk. Out of the 100000 quarts of milk which come to. New York daily. however, only about 15.Ooo quarts arc cer- tified The price of this milk, however. is prohibitive for all but Tell-to-do. In seeking to improve the rest of the supply two remedies have been offered:
 1. wholesale pasteurization. which has been opposed by many on the ground that it would put the producer of dirty milk on an equal footing with the pro- ducer of clean milk and thereby postpone the institution of desired sanitary re- forms.
 g. Inspection at the source of supply, which is approved by all. Hut is felt to be inadequate, owing to the prevalence of tuberculosis among dairy herds, ana the magnitude of supervising the production of milk at 5000 farms, With a limited force of inspectors.
 As stated in letter written to MT. Nathan Straus on Octohtr 15, 1908, the milk committee believes that the solu- ton of the milk problem is to be found neither in one of these exhedients nor the other, but in both of them. It also be- lieves that clean milk, even under inn- proved conditions can be produced at a much lower cost than the fancy articles which now comes from few herds This belief is based upon careful experi- ments carried out by pr. Charles B. North and Dr. A. H. Stewart. bacteriol- ogist of the department of health in Phil adeiphia, which demonstrates two facts
 First, that the wide open-mouthed milk pail used by the ordinary farmer is veritable depository for bacteria of the worst description, dropping from the dirty, manure-coated udders, bellies and Hanks of mf1ch cows.
 Second, that taking such important san itary operations as washing and steril- ixing milk pails, cans and other recepta- cles out of the farmers hands, and hav- ing them performed with surgical accu- racy at some central place like a cream cry. at once eliminates the many sources of milk infection on dairy farms, such as infected water supplies, imperfect drainage, privies, kitchens, etc., etc. Milk drawn from the same COW into the farmers own broad-mouthed pail, washed after his own method. contained from an average of 10000 to 10000 bacteria, while milk drawn into a narrow-mouthed pail abeolutely sterilixod at a central cream cry and covered with clean strainer oloth. contained from 150 to 49OO bacteria per O. G.
 The conclusion that Dr. North reached was, that if the farmer could be per suaded to use a narrow-mouthed milk pail. the sterilixtng of which, together with other important sanitary operations, could he done at a central creamery, milk averaging less than 10000 bacteria. that is to say equal in It's bacterioiog1cal content to certified milk. could be drawn from the ordinary COW with little or no change from established conoitions.
 Tho Model MILK company, which the milk committee is organising. proposes 10 purchase a creamery where all pals and vessels used by farmers will be thoroughly sterilized and will be given out to them tightly covered, when they bring in the milk for shipment Options on several creameries have already been secured at prices ranging from $16oo to $500
 Inasmuch as the adoption of sanitary measures and the testing of cattle for tuberculosis are matters of cost, tho company will offer one advance in price for the observance of simple sanitary measures, and another advance in price for the tuberculin testing of herds for tuberculosis and the removal of tuber-