Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-12-02
State Dairy Inspection
Pennsylvania Farmer.l

The preliminary Legislative program
for the next session of the Pennsylvania
Legislature is reported to provide for
system of State inspection of dairy
herds, barns and equipment. The plan
favored proposes to put such inspection
under the State Livestock Sanitary
Board with power to call in the State
Department of Health in cases of out
break of diseases affecting public
health. Dairy inspection has long had
peculiar fascination for the legislators.
Theoretically, 1t is a beneficial and at
times, a necessary service. But practi-
cally, few systems of inspection have
measured up to the theoretical posi-
bilities and most of them have failed
Because of the frequent failures, and
more particularly because of the abuses
that have led to the failures, the entire
subject of dairy inspection has become
q very tender one with dairy farmers.
The most common abuse has developed
from one of two causes: A multiplicity
of inspection authority and standards,
and inefficiency of inspectors Under
the old practice of each municipality
setting up its own standards and en-
forcing its own rules, dairy commune
ties contributing milk to more than one
city market often had varying require
ments to meet. Such municipalities
have the habit also of changing their
standards frequently, and the inspec-
| tion became menace of unknown
power and ever-changing requirements.
State inspection to apply uniformly to
all sections of the State and replacing
all municipal inspection would be
welcome relief If honestly and eff
clently administered. But efficiency of
| inspection has always been O trouble
some problem. 1t is absolutely impos-
sible to lay down one set of regulations
/ fn AL.
justice and comparable result The
purpose of inspection is to insure "a
wholesome product. Some dairymen can
and do produce a perfectly wholesome
product with equipment that would not
| pass even lenient set of regulations
while there are others whose products
would be questionable if produced un-
der the most eXacting requirements.
These classes represent the two ex-
tremes. Between them are the great
body of dairymen who are guided and
safeguarded by an intelligent inspec-
tion, but who would be seriously han
dicapped by an arbitrary and un-
| flexible set of regulations. The good
inspector must be man of experience
in dairy work. He must know the
business and know what makes q good
product. He must have brains and
common sense: Such men are not en-
ployed on a meagre salary. They cost
money With such inspectors the State
must be prepared to appropriate a lib
eral supply of money; with any other
kind. a State system would be worse
than useless. The best system of in
spection is a marketing system that
pays a premium on high quality milk,
| cream and butter and penalties the
careless or Indifferent producer by Civ
ing him lower price for his product.
This would call for the establishment
of market grades of all dairy products.
condition that should result from the
present dairy organization movement.
Until such time, there must be some
system of official inspection. We be-
lieve that State inspection is better
than municipal or district inspection be-
cause it will be more stable and less
subject to change. But State inspection
must be literally supported to secure
the proper standard of officials and