Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1915-11-24
Officers of Various Creameries of the
County Held Important Meeting
at Calmar Last Saturday.
HIGHER TESTING CREAM
WILL BE DEMANDED
More Attention Should be Paid to
the SeparatOrs to Insure Higher
Testing Cream, Which
Should Average 25
to 80 per cent.

/ WlnneShlek county creamerieS
have come out for a better quality
of cream, and took the initiative
towards this idea at meeting held
at Calmar last Saturday, where Off
GERS of the Decorah, Ridgeway,
Nordness, Ossian, Festina and Cal
mar creameries met
The Calmar creamery is an excel
lent one, and the officials have de-
sired for some time richer grade of
cream, and consequently had the
matter taken up with State Inspector
Forrestor, and the latter called the
directors of each creamery together
for the meeting.
Mr. Forrestor has urged the
creameries, in order to get higher
testing cream. to pay less for low
testing cream. The way the situation
stands now it looks as if the cream
cries will be compelled to pasturize
all cream before making it into but
ter, which of course would be hard
task, with so much low testing cream
and would mean putting them to big
expense and labor.
Good cream should test at least 25
to 80 per cent. At the meeting of
these creamery men Saturday they
came to the conclusion that they
Twoaid pay for cream, according 70
test. For example, they will pay one
cent less per pound of butter fat for
all cream testing below % per cent
that is from 20 to 25 per cent, and
two cents per pound less for cream
testing lower than 20 per cent. The
foregoing prices will be put into eff
feet the first payment after the new
year. AS stated before the reason
of doing this is to get richer cream,
and prevent the idea of having TO
pasturize the cream.
1t will be good step towards
better quality of cream, and also u
more economical way of manufactur-
ing butter. Besides, there is anoth-
er big item to be considered, and
that is that much more skinned milk
would be left on the farms. AS it is
barrel after barrel of buttermilk is
disposed of at the creameries every
year, and sold for the small sum OF
10 cents. A big proportion of this
could just as well stay on the farms
in the first place.
As we understand it the way the
cream separators are handled has
great deal to do with the quality of
cream, and it is we'll for all patrons
to adjust their separators to pro-
duce cream that will test 25 to 80
per cent.
1t was suggested at the meeting
Saturday to refuse cream which test
ed below / 6 per cent, but the sugges-
tion was left for each creamery to do
as it thought best in the matter, as
there was a division of opinion on
the proposition.
When the Decorah Farmers
creamery was started in Decorah, the
cream tested only 10 per cent on the
average. But now a noticeable i'm
lprovement has been made in that re-
spect, as Manager BeRdickson has
got it up to % per cent, or better,
but still the test should be higher
The secret lies in the separation, and
it is well for every farmer to study
his separator and learn all about the
fine points of working it. The tenn
perature of the milk has to be look
ed after. AS soon as the milk is
taken, from the cows is the proper
time to separate it, and if the separ-
ator is not kept perfectly clean, 1t
reduces the efficiency.
The creamery officers and butter
makers of this county have taken a
step towards forming an association
for the betterment of creamery work
and dairying, In the near future they
will hold meeting for this purpose.
/ --O------