Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1916-11-15
Shall the Farmers Sell Milk or
Cream?

The problem that has faced the
farmers of Orleans county during the
past few weeks has been the milk sit
uation and many of those who have
been shipping milk discontinued dur
ing the withhold of milk in an at
tempt to secure better price. Many
who started their cream separators
for the first time in several months
continued to do so after the so-called
strike had been called off. Some are
doing so because they believe that to
sell the cream and keep the skim milk
at home is fully as profitable as to
sell the milk, furthermore, some are
are not satisfied with the way in
which the Hood company are appar-
emily evading their agreement with
Mr.. Sevey, editor of the New England
Homestead, and the officers of the N.
E. M. P. A. The sum and substance
of this agreement was that the Hood
company were to pay the price the
producers association asked in the
contract territory, which means the
territory 140 miles from Boston, and
were to give Vermont the same condi-
tons as their contract card indicated
for November, with the exception that
the basis of payment would be low
cred from per cent to 81 per cent,
which would make an advance of nine
cents per hundred pounds. While this
would not be all that the famers had
set out to secure, yet it would have
been substantial increase and would
have been satisfactory. It now ap-
pears that the Hood company are
apparently evading this agreement
by placing before the farmers a prop
osition whereby the test will be low
cred to 81 but the farmer will have
to pay for delivery or deliver the milk
to the station. Of course it would be
a problem of how much it would cost
to deliver the milk. The past prac-
tlce has been for the company to de-
duct ten cents per hundred pounds,
and by allowing this test to be low
cred would indicate that it would cost
10 cents for the milk to be delivered
on the present basis of paying, and in
all probability the milk could not be
delivered at the plant for this amount
so that the proposition is really infe-
rior to the present method which the
company undoubtedly realizes as we'll
as the farmers to whom the PROPOSE
ton has been presented. At least so
far as reports go very few of the
farmers designated their preference
either way. Some are higly incensed
that this proposition should be pre-
sented to them at all since the COM
pany has made it's agreement through
a satisfactory channel and on the as
surance that this would go through
they resumed the shipment of their
milk. The reason for the Hood COM
pany presenting this at this time is
somewhat of a problem and it in no.
wise justifies the company in evading
their agreement with Mr.. Sevey, or
the officers of the N. E. M. P. A. The
latest development in the situation is
that the J. G. Turnbull company is
going over the Hood territory about
Newport and is securing a considera-
BILE amount of milk.
COMPARATIVE PRICES.
In determining which is the better
practice, to sell milk or cream and
keep the skim milk on the farm, it is
first necessary to determine the feed
ing value of skim milk. According
to Henry & Morrison's book on "Feed
and Feeding" which is the standard
work of this country the following
statement will shed authentic light
on the subject. For hog feeding
ShIH ullh compared Win corn at
$3.50 per hundred would make the
skim milk worth II cents per cwt.,
when fed at the rate of one pound of
corn to nine pounds of skim milk.
With corn at 1925 this would give the
skim milk a feeding value of 4O.5
cents per cwt. Ex-Gov Hoard Of
Hoard's Dairyman gives the following
rule, "To find the value of 100 pounds
of skim milk when fed alone multi