Vashon Island news-record. [volume] (Vashon, Wash.) 1919-1954, 1931-09-03
Modern Methods
Insure Pure And
Wholesome Milk


1t used to be thought that to get
good milk one had to live in the coun-
try, but now Vashon Island residents
~ both permanent and summer =.
esteem it privilege to &c the same
pure, bottled milk that is available in
Seattle, as distributed ON the Island by
Mr., and Mrs. l.. d. Houghton.
The reason for this is evident when
one makes tour of inspection of the
plant of the Carnation Company,
Fresh Milk Division, located at Fifth
Avenue and Harrison Street and sees
the modern methods employed for the
protection of milk. The Carnation
Grade A Pasteurized milk has stood
first in its class during the last two
consecutive city siX-months tests and
last year won the first award at the
Western Washington Fair.
The visitor is informed that the
first steps in the protection of this
milk occur at the dairy farms. Every
herd supplying this milk is rigidly
tested and careful inspection is made
of the sanitary conditions under which
the milk is produced and handled at
the farms.
Most of the milk is brought to the
Seattle plant from the farms in great
glass lined tank trucks. These tanks
each have a capacity of 1880 gallons
and are so insulated that even on the
warmest days the temperature of the
milk does not raise two degrees while
being brought to the plant. Upon
o% fha ,N1o ,,t 40
is tested and passes into huge receiv-
| ing tanks. A new automatic washer
scelds and sterilisas the milk cans
used either in bringing in milk from
some of lhc farms or in supplying
quantity customers Cans are dried
| by blasts of hot air and the lids re-
placed-all without being touched.
From the receiving tanks the milk
passes directly into the pasteurizing
equipment. This new equipment repre-
sentS the most modern methods OF
| pasteurizing combined with exception
al simplicity The milk is first passed
| through a set of internal heating
| pipes where it is heated to certain
temperature. It then passes into
large nickle watts where it is held at
this controlled temperature for the
| proper time and slowly agitated so
that all the milk is kept at uniform
temperature. This heating is con-
trolled automatically and recording
thermometers keep an exact record of
the temperature of the milk at every
stage of its pasteurization and subse-
| quent cooling.
When 1t has remained in the watts
for sufficient time, the milk is
pumped through cooling pipes and re-
duced to the proper temperature. 1t
| then flows through pipes to the bottle
filling machine.
One of the most interesting pieces
| of equipment in this plant, especially
| to women, is the enormous machine
for washing bottles at the rate of more
| than 5000 per hour. All bottles after
being received from customers are fed
| into one end of the washer and soak
ed in a hot caustic soda solution and
then outsides and insides are
thoroughly brushed while hot water is
sprayed into them.
The bottles are then treated with
scalding water as an added precaution
to complete sterilization, and then
gradually sprayed with cold water to
chill them. The cold bottles are de-
livered on conveyer to the filters, so
! that they are never touched by hands
until after they are filled and double
capped. The entire process of wash
ing single bottle takes about twenty
minutes.
These bottles pass in shining pro-
cession under the filling machines
where just the right amount of milk
is automatically poured into them and
the disc cap forced snuggly into the
top of the bottle. A jet of water is
played over the cap to wash off any
milk that might drip on this cap and
then blast of air dries it as it moves
under the machine that affixes the
outer or hood cap. Here the hood is
slipped over the top of the bottle and
the wire seal is welded in place cleo
trically, giving the final protection
against any possible contamination or
tampering with the milk before il
reaches the customer.
After being sealed the bottles are
placed in boxes and held in a cold
room until they are loaded upon the
trucks for delivery.
The fresh milk plant of the Carna-
ton Company is housed in building
of steel and concrete construction, 100
feet by 100 feet, and has a daily
capacity of 10000 quarts of milk. Be
sides Carnation Grade A Pasteurized
milk, it also distributes certified milk
from the Carnation Milk Farm, COM
mercial and whipping cream, butter,
buttermilk, Bulgarian milk and cottage
cheese. A well-equipped laboratory Is
maintained for the analysis of milk
and the testing of the various pro-
ducts.
The plant is lighted entirely by day
light, broad windows letting in gener-
GUS floods of sunlight that empha-
size its glistening air of sanitation.