The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-02-26
BIRMINGHAMS MILK SUPPLY

The following interesting article, taken from Mirk Magazine for December. and written by Augustus Forrest chief of the department of meat and dairy inspection for Birmingham. covers a subject which is now foremost before the consuming public:
 A city of 2oO,Oo0 people, Birmingham re- ceives daily only 5000 gallons of milk, and tho quality of this is questionable | Up to December sl. 1918. were inspected ll3 dairies from which the city of Blr- mingham derives it's milk supply. There were 4ll2 cows. The average dairy score was SAG Of the total number of cows SS22 were milking and producing ra5iy 4l51 salons of milk, or 40.S52 pounds Of the total number of cows owned at these dairies. 65f, or 15.6 per cent, are idle: that is to say, they are not producing milk. Thus this percentage of these herds must ! be fed from the profits of the remaining ! portion of the herd
 ! From that portion of these herds that are producing is secured daily 4757 gallons 1 of milk. This is an average daily pro- auction per COW of 1.5S gallons. or E.J pounds. This means a years production | per COW of 45i4 pounds of milk. Consid- i ering the butterfat content of this milk. ' 3.5 per cent there is a total fat pro duction of 159.04 pounds per year per cew.
 l In times when feed was less high than now the butter fat production considered | necessary for a COW to produce to enable i her to pay for her own feed was 1l9 pounds per year On this basis. from l aaeh COW in the herds around Brming- ham these is profit of but the price of l9 0i pounds of butterfat yearly. Allow ! ing the very liberal estimate of 70 cents per pound of butterfat. we have a proht in dollars and cents of $132S per year. This is gross profit. not a net profit
 This statement in itself should be great 1 enough proof that this is not suffi. l cient profit That this is true is shown 1 by the comparison of these herds with herds that are producing 27S pounds of lhUtterfat per COW per year. which in dol- lars and cents means a profit of S96 GU per COW per year
 The type of cows in the herds just men toned are the types generally and justly considered profitable. It costs just as much-in fact more--to feed a COW that produces 159 pounds of butterfat per wear
 as it does to feed COW that produces 27S pounds of butterfat per year.
 The strain or strains of cattle used in
 the daries surriundng Birmingham are
 a retrograde type of cross of Jersey upon a beef type, apparently Shorthorn. The retrogression has proceeded so far without the infusion of new blood of a strictly dairy type that the herds hsve ceased to be profitable The dairymen are thus unable financially to meet the de- mands of modern inspection. The public suffers from this in several ways. It does not have an adequate milk supply, the supply is deficient chemically and bac- teriolosically because the dairymen, even
 after advancing the prices of their proc ucts as far as the public will and has a right to stand, is still unable, because
 of the deficient milk producing qualities
 Of their herds to meet their expense with out a chemical modification of their milk.
 This fact Is shown hN the percentage
 of watered samples of nSlk collected by
 the inspectors. This percentage amounts
 tc one-third of the whole. The dairymen
 water this milk not because he wishes
 to be dishonest let us say, but because he does not know in the matter. He is do ing what he considers a life-saving feat
 for himself He is trying to make his business profitable, not knowing why Il
 is unproftable.
 To start the breeding up of these herds
 will in the course of three or four years increase the supply of milk. But shorter
 cut is possible and that is by the in' mediate purchase of new cows of pure
 bred. strictly dairy type.
 These things have already been accom-
 nlished by communities suffering Iron
 the same conditions as those surround, line Birmingham In the case to be ciesd