Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-03-17
Milk for WASHINGTON

ana encouraged, ratner imam
prosecuted by the Gov
eminent. In these cases
the Government becomes a
partner with certain private
interests to set prices and
restrict competition.
An association Of sellers
of a particular product which
sets prices for its members
is ordinarily considered to
be engaged in illegal prac-
tices. and many such asso-
Citations have been prose-
cuted by the antitrust di-
vision of the Justice Depart
ment. However. the Mary
land and Virginia Milk Pro-
ducers Association, an aSso-
cation of dairy farmers,
engages in this very practice,
and it is all very legal. Fur
thermore, the Department of
Agriculture sets a minimum
price paid to farmers in this
area for their milk, and this
further protects the associa-
ton. However. there is no
need for the Government to
be concerned that the aSso-
citation will set prices too
low On top of all this the
District health code re-
stricts competition from nom
members. whether they are
located in this area or ad-
jacent States.
To conform to this code a
dairy must be inspected by
District inspectors. which
excludes farms outside this
area from shipping milk for
distribution in the District.
The code also provides that
special and more expensive
equipment must be main
tanned by the farmer than is
required under United States
Public Health Service stand
ards under which most large
cities operate. Therefore, I'M
less a dairy makes this
additional investment it is
prevented from selling its
milk in the District and from
belonging to the association.
ALI this help from the
Government makes it nice
and coy for the association,
and it is putting up quite a
fight to keep it that way.
Zalie v. Warner.
Milk is the most important
item In the food budget of
most mothers. How safe is
our milk supply? How clean
is it? How good is its quality?
These are the questions which
interest the housewife-not
who is to blame for the cur
rent battle going on between
the farmers and the diaries,
or who, other than the con-
sumers. will reap the profits
or take the losses. But these
are the questions that are
not being properly answered
in public.
The quality of milk depends
primarily on cleanliness and
absence Of large numbers of
communicating bacteria. Pas
teurization does not kill all
the bacteria present in milk.
A high bacteria count at the
farm means that there will
be some spoilage of the milk
before paSteurization, and
that the pasteurized product
will spoil more quickly. WASH
ington has prided itself in
the past on having the best
milk supply in the world. The
Maryland-V Milk Pro-
ducers Association, by means
of quality premiums to farm
ers. attempts to keen bac-
terra counts below 10000 per
milliliter. and in December,
1858. Al per cent of its mem
bers shipped milk with aver
aoe counts of less than 5000.
The District code enforces a
maximum of 100000. The
milk which Chestnut Farms
is nov shipping to suburban
Maryland will. II it meets
the Maryland code, have
counts as high as 200, 900.
The difference is significant
In terms of the sweetness and
keeping quality Of our milk,
arr rosSihlv also the safety.
The District Health De-
pertinent inspects at inter-
walls of approximately two
months ell farms supplying
milk to Washington. Mary
land makes no attempt to
carrv out such insertions.
Fave the out-of-State forms.
not eligible to shin to Wash
inoton consumers, but now
s"nr'vinP milk TO suburban
Narvland. actually met any
O. the requirements of the
Marvland milk code? Some
farms in PENNSYLVANIA do
have permits to shir to the
District. Why have these
farms from whom Chestnut