TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION C. H. McDOWELL, Acting Director College Station, Texas BULLETIN NO. 670 MAY 1945 FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER AS- REVEALED BY A STATEWIDE SURVEY By F. E. Hanson, W. S. Arbuckle, C. N. Shepardson Division of Dairy Husbandry i iERM- ngiasuataraxtiiifneiaiziaaifis%iegeui"%lfl% Behegefiaiianfiexas AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE OF TEXAS GIBB GILCHRIST, President A EI-‘Y E65-545-5M-L180 [Blank Page in Original Bulletin] This bulletin reports the results of a survey of the quality 0f butter manufactured in various dairy producing sections 0f Texas. The data presented include information concerning common manufacturing methods, feeding practices, quality of cream, score value and the physical and chemical analyses of 273 samples of butter produced over a period of 32 months from eight different sections o-f the State. The survey showed that the manufacturing methods were fairly uniform in the different sections. Pasture was available to a small per cent of the producers during the entire year, but was most abundant from March through June. Cottonseed feeds were present in a large number of the rations throughout the year. Abundance of cottonseed feeds on dry pastures in July, August and September was associated with a firm gummy body and a flat flavor condition in the butter examined. The presence of green pasture in the ration was important for the production of butter free from the firm gummy body defect. The use of starter and a ripening period prevented the flat flavor condition. Although the defects encountered in the butter examined included weedy, _ old cream, oxidized and flat flavors and a firm gummy body condition, the average score of the butter ranked a commercial grade of a medium first. The score of the butter was fairly uniform for all sections of the State, and most of the defects in the butter examined could be associated with the quality of the cream from which the butter was made. The average analytical values for Texas butter are shown and reveal that Texas butter was harder, had a higher melting point and a lower iodine number than the normal values generally given for these constants. _ CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ............................................. . Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Butter Examination n.--¢-..-.--¢-.--.--.-¢-----.--...---~¢.~' Manufacturing Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Feeding Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Monthly Trend in Score Value and Composition of Texas Butter. f Flavor‘ and Body Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Study of the Oxidized and Flat Flavors and the Gummy v u Body Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oxidized Flavor . . . . . . . . .' . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Flat Flavor - . - . . . . . . . . . . - - - - - . . - . . - - - - - . . . - . . - - . . . . - - -..1 1 Gummy Body . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 a _~ Hardness Studies - - - . - . . . . - - - . . - . - . - - - - - - . . . . - - - . - - . . - - ¢ - - a or , Other Analytical Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .' . . . . . . . . . . . .. ' “ Analytical Data of Butter Produced in Four States . . . . . . . . . . DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IACKNOWLEDGEMENTS REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .e FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER AS REVEALED BY A STATEWIDE SURVEY F. E. Hansonl, W. S. Arbucklez, and C. N. Shepardsong i Rightly or not Southern butter is often critized on the principal butter ‘markets because of certain flavor and body characteristics. Consequently, igthis butter suffers a price discrimination which amounts to considerable iloss to the Southern butter manufacturers. It has been established that Lthe predominance of the Jersey breed of cattle, and the abundance of cot- §tonseed feeds in the South result in the production of butter with a high melting point (4). This butter has a firmer somewhat gummy body and éless desirable spreading qualities, but has greater heat resisting proper- gties than butter from States where a majority of the cattle are of breeds irthat produce softer fats, and where cottonseed feeds are fed less ex- Tftensively. Butter manufactured by Texas creameries constitutes a large épercentage of the butter produced in the South and is subjected to the {criticism given Southern butter. The work of Kemmerer and Fraps (6) tshows the vitamine A potency of commercial butter sold in Texas, but lfurther information concerning" the quality of butter produced in dif- éferent parts of the State and during various seasons of the year has not ibeen well established. The ~following study was conducted in order to ob- Stain information concerning the factors affecting the quality of Texas butter. Survey A number of creameries representing various dairy producing sections 40f the State cooperated in making a statewide survey of butter quality. Once a month, during a 32-month period from March, 1938 to October, 1940, each creamery sent a pound of butter to the Texas Agricultural Ex- prriment Station for analysis. Two hundred seventy-three samples of butter from these Texas creameries were received, scored and analyzed. ilnformation was also secured concerning the manufacturing operations and tthe general feeding practices of the producers. For the purpose of com- Eparison, butter samples were also obtained monthly for a period of one gyear from a New Mexico, a Nebraska and an Iowa creamery. * i Butter Examination y To secure complete information upon quality and composition of the (butter, each sample received was examined for flavor and body defects gand was analyzed for moisture, fat, salt and curd content and the pH of ‘gthe serum. The following determinations were also made: hardness and islipping point values for both the butter and butterfat; fat values includ- l I K {Former Associate in Dairy Manufacturers, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, iresigned_August 31, 1942. 2Assoc1ate in Dairy Manufacturers, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. 3Head, Department of Dairy Husbandry, Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas. 6 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS~AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION V. ing melting point, saponification number, iodine absorption nu H, Reichert-Meissl number, thiocyanogen number and the percentage so and insoluble acids of the butterfat. y Scoring of the butter was done organoleptically by two expeli butter judges. The moisture, fat, salt and curd content of the butter was deter’ by the modified Kohman method (1). The pH determination of the I? serum was made with a Coleman glass electrode potentiometer. The s was obtained for the determination by the following procedure: a melting the butter samples most of the fat Was decanted and the re f. ing fat, together with the serum, was poured into test tubes. The tubes were tightly stoppered and centrifuged in an inverted positio that after centrifuging, the serum would be in the stoppered end ofi tube. Then the tubes, still inverted, were placed in a refrigerator in o‘ to solidify the fat. After the fat had solidified, the serum was poured adjusted to the proper temperature, and the pH determined. 1 The firmness of the butter was found by the use of a penetrorii developed by this laboratory. This apparatus has been described ' previous publication (3). The firmness of the butter was expressed as weight of mercury required to press a plunger into the butter. plunger was 4 mm. in diameter and was depressed 14.7 millimeters. l The slipping point of the butter was determined by the method g cribed by Jameison (5). i The butterfat was prepared for analysis by melting and filtering‘, butter in an electrically heated oven. Hardness of the butterfat was determined by the apparatus which 7 used for determining the hardness of the butter. Each sample of ». terfat was poured into round tinned metal boxes 3-inches in diameter lt-inches high which held 4 ounces of butterfat. The fat was hard in this container for three hours or longer at 10°Fahrenheit. The dete nations were made at 60°F. after the samples had been tempered for hours or longer at this temperature. An average of five determinations- each sample was taken for the hardness value. l The slipping point of the butterfat was determined on the harde fat that was prepared for the hardness test. a The Wiley method (2) was used to determine the melting point. The saponification number was determined by the method described j the A.O.A.C. (2) with the exception that Nile blue indicator, 0.2 per c of Nil-e blue in alcohol solution, was used instead of phenolphthalein. Nile blue indicator gave» a much sharper titration end point. This - especially true when the alcoholic potassium hydroxide solution was l’ perfectly, . colorless. l The iodine absorption number was determined by the Hanus method ( ‘r more creameries during the entire 32-month period. ailed occasionally to send butter but suflicient regularity Was practiced o that it is believed that the record obtained is representative throughout FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY ‘OF TEXAS BUTTER 7 v The Reichert-Meissl number was determined by the A.O.A.C. method (2) except that the samples of fat were saponified according to the method of Spitzer and Epple (7). _ The thiocyanogen number was found according to the directions given ‘by Jameison (5) except that 0.5 gm. of fat and 50 ml. of thiocyanogen oluiion were used as directed by Stebnitz and Sommer (8). The percentage of soluble and insoluble acids was determined by the O_ .O.A.C. method (2). A RESULTS V Figure 1. shows the location of the creameries and the sections of the tate represented in the survey. Each section was represented by one The creameries he period. ‘ PLAINVIEW QECATUR MT. PLEASANT ‘5";F°"° GARLAND 9K B , ' C» r1. wonm O ABILENE . O SAN ANGELO 9* WACO D anaov COLLEGE snmou if KERRVILLE , F LA GRANGE HOUSTON . O * SAN ANTONIO , WHARTON O SHINER 9K . E / DEvmE A. PANHANDLE / B. NORTH CENTRAL C. NORTH EAST D. EAST CENTRAL KINGSWLLE f E. GULF COAST o F. SOUTH CENTRAL a‘? G. SOUTH TEXAS FALFURRIAS H. LOWER VALLEY H >§< caemsmss courmsurso SAMPLES oumus "ARLWG: 5mm: sz-momu PERIOD. cnszuuennes conrmeutzo SAMPLES ONLY PART OF sz-Monm PERIOD. ‘gure 1. Location of Creamerics in Sections of Texas Which Were Represented in the Butter Quality Survey. 8 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. ~A~ Manufacturing Methods A summarization of the information supplied by the plant man.‘ concerning the manufacturing operations indicates that the average? of the cream churned was approximately 35 per cent. Neutralization a common practice and various neutralizers were used. Most of creameries pasteurized the cream by the holding method at 1509B‘; 30 minutes although a few creameries used the flash method and." pasteurized at a temperature as high as 170°F. for 15 minutes. j few creameries followed the practice of adding starter and ripenin cream. The above mentioned factors were uniform throughout the Manufacturing methods followed by the different creameries were what variable, but there was no very distinct seasonal variation i; manufacturing methods. The churning acidity was higher and the required to cool the cream after pasteurization was longer durin‘ summer. Also the churning temperature averaged approximately; less, and the temperature of the wash water ranged 3 to 7 °F. lower to summer. The churning time was slightly longer during the summer, ‘ - I FAT PER CENT ' 35 j FAT TEST 35 - 34- ,33 t ACIDITY PER CENT '_; o a-t QT; o. 6-» 0.5-- '04-- 03~ av-fiflt i t tflct: +- fi—*‘t*‘ JAN. FEB MAR. APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC; Figure 2. Monthly Trend of the Fat Test and the Acidity of the Cream (my; Samples . FACTORS AFFECTING TIF-IE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 9 ‘utter was worked an average of 3 to 10 minutes less during the spring i. nd summer months. Figure 2. shows the monthly trend of the fat test and the per cent cidity of the cream. Both the fat test and the acidity of the cream ere somewhat higher during the summer months. The higher acidity as probably due to the storage of the cream at high temperatures before livery to the creamery. This partly accounts for the lower score butter hat was produced from April through October. Feeding Methods Feeds composed chiefly of cottonseed, cottonseed products, sorghums nd native grasses were used extensively by the producers. The com- on concentrate feeds included: kafir, milo, hegari, corn, oats, wheat and ice bran, rice products and cottonseed products. Pasture and hay were omposed of Johnson grass, alfalfa, Sudan, Bermuda, cane, oats, prairie nd clovers. The data presented in Table 1 were taken from information supplied y the plant managers concerning the feeds being used by the majority f their producers at various times of the year. Table 1 shows the month- y influence on feeding practices. The greatest amount of pasture was vailable in the five months of March, April, May, June and July. Cot- onseed meal was fed quite uniformly throughout the year. In only a few ses were seed or hulls fed alone. A combination of meal and seed, or eal and hulls, or meal, seed and hulls in the ration occurred frequently specially during August, September, October, November and December. able l. Monthly Percentages of Butter Produced on Rations Containing Various Feeds Percentage of butter produced on rations containing the_ following feeds: ' Number Cottonseed products Month samples . Green Meal Meal Meal, pasture Meal Seed Hulls and and Seed- and . Seed Hulls Hulls anuary . . . . .. 7 14.3 57.1 0 0 O 14.3 28.6 ebruary..... 10 30.0 60.0 0 0 0 0 40.0 arch . . . . . .. 20 70.0 50.0 10.0 0 15.0 5.0 20:0 pnl......... 18 94.4 27.8 16.7 0 0 27.8 27.8 ay . . . . . . . .. 12 83.3 50.0 16.7 0 0 25.0 8.3 une . . . . . . . .. 22 90.9 4-5.5 0 0 4.5 22.7 27.3 uly . . . . . . . .. l‘? 73.7 63.2 0 0 10.5 0 26.3 ugust... 57.9 31.6 5.3 5.3 26.3 10.5 21-0 ptember 38.9 38.9 0 0 5.6 16.7 38.9 ctober . . . . .. ll 28.6 42.9 0 0 7.1 28.6 21.4 ovember.... 16 28.6 43.8 6.2 .0 6.2 18.8 25.0 ecember.... 15 25.0 46.7 0 0 6.7 33.3 13.3 Monthly Trend in Score Value and Composition of Texas Butter Figure 3. shows the monthly trend in the score value, moisture, fat, salt d curd content and the pH value of the serum of the butter examined. 10 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION SCORE - _ VALUE 91% 90-- 89 —*—1“'\~ 7+," I ~ f 1 ~~_~/~+i*"*r\ ——~r'—\/T MOSTURE _ 8Q ~¢~~ q-~»~v\fvJ~rwflw~Jr~~/rf~fv—/flf~~’~r~ "" ("r SALT 3.0- — 21) ’-~"+’\~’\4/“~fi~P~—/\4-~——#”\-/+ ~'~W»,»_.~|'~ ev-\¢»+~_»_A CURD PER CENT 0.8 C1? CURD <15 (15 #~~»»' |-» -+~—»-+A PH VALUE 6.9 6.8 6.7 6.6 6.5. PH 6.4 6.3 ——,__ 1- ~, JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV DEC. _6 Figure 3. Monthly Trend of‘ the Score Value, Moisture, Fat, Salt and Curd Content: pH Value of the Butter Examined. -V FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 11 1 ‘ he highest score butter was produced in November. The butter produced uring the months of April, September and October ranged lower in score lue. Butter having the lowest score was produced in the month of Oc- t ber. The highest moisture content of the butter occurred during May, nd the lowest percentage moisture was in January. The fat content was airly uniform during the year, the lowest percentage occurring in May and , e highest in September. A slightly higher salt content was encountered ring March, April, May and December with the lowest amount in eptember butter. The butter produced during July, August and Sep- mber was highest in curd content. The pH of the butter serum ranged .1 om 6.3 in June to 6.9 in January. These values show a fairly definite R end during the year. The lowest pH values occurred in June, September i d October with the highest values occurring during November, Decem- w- January and February. The variations in the score value and the omposition of the butter were closely associated with the quality of the; A eam from which the butter was made. The results show that the average *- ore of butter manufactured under Texas conditions ranked a commercial g de of a medium first. Flavor and Body Defects I The common flavor and body defects encountered and the frequency of heir occurrence during the survey are shown in Table 2.. The weedy flavor as most common as about one-third, or 82 of the 273 samples examined, ere criticized as having this favor defect. Twenty-seven per cent of the putter had an old cream flavor, 24 per cent had an oxidized flavor and 19 F- cent of the butter was flat or, lacking in flavor. ’ The most serious body defect Was a gummy condition with 25 per cent f the butter examined being criticized for this defect. About 6 per cent f the butter was leaky, 3 per cent sticky, 3 per cent mealy and 2 per ent was crumbly. '- Figure 4. shows the monthly distribution of the five defects most com- 1 only encountered. The weedy flavor was encountered much less frequent- ' during the months of December, January and February. It was great- st in March, July and August. Old cream flavor was noticed in a certain mount of the butter throughout the year, but the defect was most serious 1 the butter produced during August. The oxidized, tallowy flavor was resent in a large per cent of the butter produced during February, cember an-d June. The flat flavor occurred, most frequently in. the utter produced during February, June, July, August and September. The i tter produced in October, March and January was more free from the at flavor defect. The gummy body characteristic very definitely appeared to be a season- defect. It seemed to be more common from June through October than m November through May. It began to be encountered to a greater ex- nt in May butter and continued to gradually increase through Septem- r. The defect was quite prevalent during October, but was much less u November butter. Z1 Table 2. Monthly Distribution of Defects in Texas Butter During a 32-Month Period W C3 F‘ F‘ Q H i-i Z Months z Type of Defect .0 Jan. Feb. Mar. April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Total a, .3 Num ber of Flavor Defec ts ,3 - m Weedy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3 9 8 8 9 12 12 6 5 5 2 82 >4 Old cream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5 6 5 5 8 6 13 7 6 5 4 74 71> Tallowy, oxidized . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 5 6 7 8 3 7 5 5 2 5 59 m Flat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 5 2 4 5 8 5 7 8 1 2 3 52 3, Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . . . . 3 1 2 1 4 6 3 5 5 3 4 1 38 Q Stale, storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 3 0 1 2 2 0 0 1 10 3 2 29 5U Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ., . . . . . . . . 1 2 4 3 4 2 2 2 1 4 O 0 25 a Neutralizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0 0 5 3 2 1 3 3 2 1 0 21 c} Bitter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 1 2 0 1 O 3 0 3 0 0 0 10 t‘ 0 1 4 0 1 O 0 O 0 1 0 0 7 '9 2 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 7 g 1 O 0 0 O 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 4 a, Num ber of Body and T exturc Defec ts g 2 2 3 3 6 s 9 11 9 9 3 3 68 Q 2 4 1 4 * 1 1 O 1 O O 1 2 17 m 1 1 O 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 2 9 w 1 1 1 1 O 0 Q O l 2 1 1 9 *" 2 0 0 1 0 0 o 0 0 0 2 0 5 E Mottled, wavy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 1 1 0 0 O O 1 0 0 O 3 z N0. samples examined . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 18 23 26 28 26 25 29 21 25 17 16 273 i >-] > *3 7-1 O Z FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 13 SAMPLES PER CENT 5O__ WEEDY FLAVOR 40-- 30-- 20-- IO" O 50" 01.0 CREAM FLAVOR 4Q -- 30-- 20- IO» O 50-- 4o» 30-- 20-- 10-- o TALLOWY OXIDIZED FLAVOR FLAT FLAVOR 50-- 40» 30-- 20-- l0- 9 2 a i a a a i i I ' i FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT-OCT. NOV. DEC. GUMMY BODY Figure 4. Monthly Trend in the Occurrence of the Five Most Common Defects in the Butter Examined. 14 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Study of the Oxidized and Flat Flavors and the Gummy Body Defects _ The presence of weedy and old cream flavors in butter is known to F caused by the use of off-flavored or poor quality cream. However, t causes of the oxidized and flat flavor and gummy body defects are n well established. A further study was made which included a comparison A of the analytical data of defective butter with that of normal butter. Oxidized Flavor. The oxidized flavor defect is prevalent in many dairy products, but its causes are not well established. Oxidized flavor resembles the flavor and odor of cardboard and is sometimes called cardboard or tallowy flavor. In this study the butter that developed an oxidized flavor was found to be made from cream of a slightly lower acidity and fat test. Sixty-eight per cent of the oxidized butter was made from cream that was cooled on surface coolers; whereas, 35 per cent of the normal butter was made from cream that was cooled in this manner. Twenty-five per cent of the oxidized butter and 38 per cent of the normal butter was produced by cows receiving rations containing cottonseed or cottonseed products. No very definite relationship appeared between the occurrence of oxidized flavor and rations containing cottonseed or cottonseed .1 products. ' Table 3 shows the analytical data of normal butter and of butter that; possessed an oxidized flavor. The butter with oxidized flavor was slightly; higher in the hardness of the fat, slipping point of the butter, Reichert-i“ Meissl number, per cent soluble acids and thiocyanogen number. There seemed to be a slight difference in the analytical data of butter". possessing an oxidized flavor and butter that did not have an oxidized}- flavor. This difference was not great enough to justify the drawing of‘, any specific conclusions’. l‘ Table 3. Relation of the Analysis to the Occurrence of Oxidized Flavor in Butter Average for 65 Average for 208 normal ‘A Analysis samples possessing samples free fro - 1- an oxidized flavor oxidized flavor Acidity of cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.43 0. 55 Fat test of cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.22 36.03 Moisture content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . 16.13 15.92 Fat content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80.80 - 80. 93 Salt content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.40 2.36 Curd content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . 0. 67 0. 64 pH value of butter serum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 6.52 6.62 Hardness of butter, gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 582.15 592.07 Hardness of fat, gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 759.39 710.40 Slipping point of butter, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.90 36.44 Slipping point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.90 34.95 eltiiig point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35. 69 35.60 Saponification number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226.80 225.93 Iodine absorption number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.74 31.99 Reichert-Meissl number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.01 30. 50 Thiocyanogen number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.07 27.05 Soluble acids, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.05 3.87 Insoluble acids, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88.19 88.36 F’ ‘t. FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 15 Flat Flavor. As the term implies, flat flavor is a defect in which the butter has a mild flavor or lacks full flavor. Forty-two per cent of the butter with a flat flavor also had a gummy body. Only 21 per cent of the butter with normal flavor was gummy. Forty-nine per cent of the flat flavored butter and 39 per cent of the normal flavored butter was pro- duced on dry feed. In this survey little relationship was found between the occurrence of flat flavor and heavy feeding of cottonseed products. The flat flavor condition occurred considerably less frequently in the but- ter produced by creameries that used starters and let the cream ripen. Table 4 shows the average of the various analyses for flat and normal flavored butter. The acidity of the cream and the moisture content of the butter were lower for the butter that possessed the flat flavor than for normal butter. Also the flat flavored butter was harder, the hardness of the fat and the saponification number were higher, but the iodine number was lower than for normal butter. Otherwise there was little difference in the analytical data for the flat flavor butter and the normal butter. Table 4. Relation of the Analysis to the Occurrence of Flat Flavor in Butter Average values for Average values for 52 samples of butter 221 samples of normal Analysis possessing a flat flavor flavor butter Acidity of the cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.37 0.55 Fat test of cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.20 34.53 Moisture content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . 15.80 16.01 Fat content of butler, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81.32 80. 80 ‘ Salt content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.16 2.41 , Curd content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0. 69 0. 64 pH value of butter serum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6. 64 6.59 Hardness of butter. gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 610.73 558.40 Hardness of fat, gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 831.00 697.24 Slipping point of butter, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.65 36.53 Slipping point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.03 34.93 Melting point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.66 35.61 Saponification number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226.87 225.96 v Iodine absorption number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.58 32.23 ‘ Reichert-Meissl number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.08 30. 74 Thiocyanogen number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27. 70 27.11 Soluble acids, per rent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 84 3.92 Insoluble acids, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 25 88.34 Gummy Body. Gumminess is a body defect of butter. When gummy butter is placed in the mouth, it gives the impression of a firm condition and does not melt readily, but seems to stick to the roof of the mouth. In the total of 273 samples of Texas butter examined, 68 samples, or about 25 per cent, had a gummy body defect. It has been reported that cottonseed products in the cow’s ration may cause gummy butter, and that succulent feeds in the ration reduces gumminess. Table 5 shows the relation of feeding practices to the occurrence of gumminess in the butter examined. The data show that when green pasturage was present in the ration the occurrence of the gummy condition was considerably less than when green pasturage was not available. Also the gummy condition was present in a greater per cent of the butter when cottonseed or cottonseed - in the winter and spring. Figure 5. Relation of Weather Temperature to 16 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Table 5. The Relation of Rations Containing Cottonseed Products With and Without G _ Pasturage to the Occurrence of Gumminess in Butter ‘ With green pasture Without green pasture Cottonseed Product _ -————— ——-——— Fed Number of Samples Samples Number of Samples samples gummy gummy samples gummy Number Per cent Number Meal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 7 12. 7 31 18 Seed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 0 0 3 2 Hulls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 0 O 1 1 Mealand seed....'... 8 3 37.5 7 5 Meal and hulls . . . . . . . 15 5 33.3 17 _ 13 Meal, seed and hulls, . 27 ‘ 8 29. 6 20 14 hulls were fed in combination with cottonseed meal. the presence of pasturage reduced the countered. In all cases stu percentage of gummy butter As already stated, gumminess was very definitely a seasonal defec seemed to be much more common in the summer and autumn months ~ In Figure 5. the average monthly wea Q V» 88- 8O 72 64 é e/umav SAMPLES-HER can!" o1 cn a OI b (D 8-4 TEMPERATURE ' F J5 O n3 or OJ N lb .0 24 G — — '- — TEMPERATURE-AVERAGE MONTHLY —————suMMY BUTTER-PER CENT " 5 i O | I 4 | | | 1 I I 1 o JAN. FEB. MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT~ NOV DEC. the Occurrence of Gummincss in i (Av. of 32-month period). FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 17 temperature at College Station, during the 32-month period, is plotted together with the percentage of gummy butter. There was a very close relationship between higher weather temperature and the occurrence of the gummy body defect. It has been observed that butter exposed to high temperature and then cooled will become gummy. Some of the gummy butter may have been caused by exposure to the summer heat at some time during the manufacturing process. i Figure 6. shows the relation of weather humidity to the occurrence of the gummy defect in butter. The low humidity occurred through July, August, September and October, and the largest per cent of gummy but- ter was also produced during these months. It is possible that humidity, through its effect on the quality of pasture and feed and the quality of the cream produced, may indirectly cause gumminess in butter. 89 " ~65 88 r --so 87- 86- (I) J5 (I) O1 RELATIVE HUMIDITY m on — m GUMMY SAMPLES-PER CENT 80- 79 78 h * - — — HUMIDITY- AVERAGE MONTHLY | R ism/MAY BUTTER-PER CENT " 5 o I I I l q ; | I [ i O JAN FEB MAR. APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT. or-T Ngv DEC Figure 6. Relation of the Relative Humidity of the Weather to the Occurrence of Gum- miness in Butter (Av. of 32-month period). 18 BULLETIN NO. 670,_ TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Table 6 shows the analyses of gummy butter and the analyses of butter 1' free from the defect. The fat of the gummy butter was harder than that of the normal butter. Forty-nine per cent of the gummy butter showed a hardness value of the fat higher than 800 grams; whereas, only 30 per _ cent of the normal butter was above this hardness value. The iodine ab- 9i sorption number of the normal butter averaged slightly higher than that Table 6. Relation of the Analysis to the Occurrence of Gumminess in Butter _ Average for 68 Average for 205 Analysis samples of samples of gummy butter normal butter Acidity 0f cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.54 0.52 Fat test of cream, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.03 35.06 Moisture content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.18 15.90 Fat content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80. 91 80.89 Salt content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.25 2.41 Curd content of butter, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.64 0. 65 pH value of butter serum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.41 6.65 Hardness of butter, gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 597.50 591 .00 Hardness of fat, gm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 833.36 737.38 Slipping point of butter, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.43 36.58 Slipping point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.85 35.00 Melting point of fat, °C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34.54 35.64 Saponification number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227.00 221.86 Iodine absorption number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 .38 32.09 Reichert-Meissl number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30. 20 30. 79 Thiocyanoeen number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26.46 27.44 Soluble acids, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 . 90 3.91 Insoluble acids, per cent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88.34 88.32 of the gummy samples. Fifty-two per cent of the normal butter had an iodine absorption number above 32, but only 36 per cent of the gummy butter had iodine absorption numbers above this figure. Also the melting point of the butterfat and the thiocyanogen number were higher for the normal butter, but the saponification number was higher for the gummy butter. There was little difference between gummy and normal butter in the other data considered. Hardness Studies As a further study of the characteristics of Texas butter, a comparison was made of the hardness of the butterfat and of the butter produced in different sections of the State. Table 7 shows the monthly averages of the hardness of the butterfat from the different sections. The hardness of the butterfat produced in the Panhandle, Northeast, South Central and South Texas was quite similar. The maximum hardness was between 1031 and 1168 grams, and the minimum hardness for these sections was between 514 and 608 grams. The difference between the maximum and minimum was 654 grams. The average hardness of the butterfat for these sections was 820 grams. The North Central, East Central and Lower Valley sections comprise another group which produced butterfat of about the same hardness. The maximum hardness for this group ranged from 820 to 868 grams, and the minimum hardness ranged between Table 7. Monthly Averages of the Hardness of Butterfat Produced in Different Sections of Texas Hardness in Grams by h/Ionths Section ~—- i- Jan Feb Mar April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Average Panhandle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 760 902 825 811 700 690 608 628 844 971 1077 1168 832 North Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . * 587 868 671 684 757 749 788 * 616 644 784 715 Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 881 716 778 549 668 805 793 799 1015 907 1122 915 834 East Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 638 722 706 669 74-3 709 712 710 759 820 736 686 709 Gulf Coast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 587 634 493 556 667 709 708 763 788 74-4 697 651 667 South Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 833 672 600 514 645 665 726 820 1067 839 1099 898 782 South Texas Plains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 737 655 707 900 623 825 854 910 1031 827 886 1034 832 Lower Valley. . . .‘ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 661 624 736 593 835 714 846 * 804 743 759 814 739 *N0 samples examined. 61 HELLLHH SVXELL £0 LLYIVHb EIHL DNILOEI&¢IV SHOLOVcI OZ Table 8. Monthly Averages of the Hardness of Butter Produced in Difierent Sections of Texas Hardness in Grams by Months ' Section _ Jan. I Feb. I Mar. i April I May l June l July l Aug. Sept. l Oct. i Nov. I Dec. Average Panhandle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772 738 646 603 489 456 456 336 564 712 812 1013 633 North Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . * 582 342 425 493 541 534 554 * 628 568 861 553 Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 819 738 607 522 532 431 470 573 709 681 957 953 666 East Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 735 646 555 513 532 467 567 513 657 826 769 713 625 Gulf Coast 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 627 377 361 418 445 382 507 450 520 569 634 556 4-87 South Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 662 671 528 547 487 419 475 485 660 682 866 874 613 South Texas Plains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 722 642 487 649 505 517 551 625 818 735 818 903 665 Lower Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 643 607 502 506 627 420 500 * 538 607 703 655 574 *No samples examined NOLLVLS lNEIWIHEIdXH"IVHfLL'IflOIHDV SVXELL ‘0L9 'ON NLLEYITHH FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 21 F HARDNESS GRAMS 900+ BOO- TOO" 600- SOO- - -- — — HARDNESS OF BUTTERFAT i-HARDNESS OF BUTTER 400' JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. Figure 7. Relation of the Hardness of Butter to the Hardness of the Butterfat. 587 and 622 grams. The difference between the maximum and minimum was 281 grams, and the average hardness of the butterfat was 721 grams. This was somewhat less than the previous group. The butterfat from the Gulf Coast section had a maximum hardness of 788 grams, and a minimum of 493 grams. The difference between the maximum and minimum hardness for this section was 295 grams, but the average hard- ness of the butterfat was only 667 grams. There was not only a variation in the average hardness of the butterfat produced in the different sections, but the monthly value was also different for the various sections. It is interesting to observe that the hardness of the butterfat produced during the summer from all sections of the State approached the same value, but the hardness of the butterfat produced during the winter varied greatly. A partial explanation for these difierences may be the varia- tion in temperature conditions and the kind and quality of winter pastur- age and feeds. Table 8 shows the monthly averages of the hardness of the butter produced in different sections of the State. In the Panhandle, Northeast, 22 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION South Central and South Texas sections, the hardness of the butter was similar to the hardness of the butterfat produced in those sections. In the East Central, North Central, Lower Valley and the Gulf Coast sections, the hardness of the butter and the hardness of the butterfat were less similar. For the yearly average values, the hardness of the butter ranged from 88 to 199 grams less than that of the butterfat. The greatest dif- ference between the hardness of the butter and the hardness of the butter- fat occurred in the sections that produced the buterfat having the highest and the lowest hardness values. Less difference occurred when the butter- fat was of medium hardness. Figure 7. shows the monthly relation between the hardness of the butter and that of the butter-fat. The hardness of the butter was quite different from that of the butterfat for the greater portion of the time. The hard- IODINE 4i NUMBER 38+ 37-- \/ 36" I \ 35 -- 34-- 33-- 32-- 3| -- 3o- 29- 2a- -i—- PANHANDLE 27 -- — — — -GULF COAST JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. The Iodine Absorption Numbers of Butter Produced in the Panhandle and Gulf Coast Sections. Figure 8. l£ FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 23 ness of the butterfat gradually decreased from January through April, then it increased during the summer months through November, except for a slight decrease in October. The butterfat usually had a higher hardness value, and generally the butter and butterfat hardness differed greatly from March through September. However, the hardness of both approached the same value during the winter months, and in some in- stances, the winter butter was actually harder than the butterfat. In comparing the hardness values with other analytical data, it was noted that there was an inverse relationship between the iodine absorp- tion number and the hardness of the butter. Since there» is a close inverse relationship between the iodine- absorption number and the hardness, and as the hardness of the Panhandle and Gulf Coast butter difiered con- siderably, the iodine absorption number of the butter from the two sections should also vary. Figure 8. shows the iodine absorption numbers of the butter produced in these two areas and indicates the expected wide varia- tion between the iodine numbers. There was a direct relationship between the hardness of the butter and the melting point and slipping point of the butterfat. An inverse rela- tionship was found between the hardness of the butter and the thiocyanogen number. No relationship was evident between the other analytical values considered and the hardness values. Other Analytical Data A study of other analytical data shows certain monthly trends. Figure 9. shows the monthly trend in the slipping point of the butter and the butterfat and the melting point of the butterfat. The lower slipping point values for the butter occurred during the period from April t0 November, inclusive. These values ranged from 36.0°F. to 37.2°F. and averaged 36.6°F. for the year. The slipping point value for the butterfat was lowest in the months of April and May and was higher during the remaining months. This value. ranged from 34.0°F. in May to 35.7°F. in November, and averaged 35.0°F. for the year. The melting point of the fat was lower from April through July, and the highest values oc- curred from November through February. The melting point ranged from the lowest value of 34.8°F. in May to the highest value of'36.6°F. in November. The average value was 35.7°F. for the year. Figure 10. gives the monthly trend in the Reichert-Meissl, iodine ab- sorption and saponification numbers of the butter examined. The Reichert- Meissl number reached the highest value of 33.5 in February, and then gradually decreased until it was the lowest at 29.1 in December. The value remained practically the same during the summer and fall months with a slight increase occurring in November. The average Reichert- Meissl value of the butter examined was 30.6. The seasonal variation in the iodine absorption number has an inverse relationship to the slipping point of the butter and the slipping and melting points of the butterfat. The highest value of 34.4 was in April, and the lowest value of 29.6 in Novem- ' ber. 24 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION 38-- 37-- SLIPPING POINT OF THE BUTTER 36-- SLIPPING POINT OF THE BUTTERFAT Q 35 - 0 u; n: 3 r- <1 c: u; 0-34- E UJ +- 36- MELTING POINT OF THE BUTTERFAT 3Qs~ 34- 4 _4_ + ++fi-'P JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. Figure 9. Monthly Trend of the Slipping Point of the Butter and the Butterfat and the Melting Point of the Butterfat. The average iodine absorption number was 31.8. The seasonal variation in the saponification number was similar to that of the iodine absorption number. The highest value of 229.0 occurred in May, and there was a gradual decrease except for a slight increase during July, November and December, until the lowest value 223.3 was reached in January. The average saponification number of the butter examined was 226.2. The variations found in the per cent soluble and insoluble acids and the thiocyanogen number are shown in Figure 11. Little variation oc- IEI FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 25 curred in the per cent soluble acids as this value ranged between 4.2 and 3.6 per cent, and the average value Was 3.9. The per cent insoluble acids was lowest in April and highest in December. There was a gradual VALUE 33- 32- 50 < REICHERT-MEISSL NUMBER 55+ s4_ 33» IOMNE ABSORPHON NUMBER 32- 5|» a \/ 29- zsol» 229-- 228-- 221-» SAPONIFIOATION NUMBER JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC Figure 10. Monthly Trend of the Reichert-Meissl, Iodine Absorption and Saponification Numbers of the Butterfat. 4 26 BULLETIN NO- 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION PER CENT 5.0-- SQLUBLE ACIDS 3 ofi 89- INSOLUBLE ACIDS 88- avl VALUE 30¢ THIOCYANOGEN NUMBER 29- 28- 27- 26~ 25'- 24-- 23 A + -.—_,+—~ + re i’ é? +-.+_._._¢__.._._ JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC Figure 11. Monthly Trend of the Per Cent Soluble and Insoluble Acids and the Thiocyano- gen Number. increase in this value from April to December. The values ranged from 87.8 per cent to 89.0 per cent and averaged 88.4 per cent. There was a tendency for the thiocyanogen number of the butter examined to increase from January through September when a sharp decrease occurred. The increase from January through September occurred except during the summer months when the thiocyanogen number was very irregular. The lowest value of 24.4 occurred in May and the highest value of 30.0 occurred in September. The average for the butter examined was 27.4. Analytical Data of Butter Produced in Four States The data secured upon butter produced in Texas were compared with that of butter from New Mexico, Nebraska and Iowa. The analytical Table 9. The Analytical Data of Butter Produced in Four States Fat Hardness Slipping Slipping Melting content Acidity pH value Hardness of point of point of point of Reichert- Iodine Saponifi- Soluble Insoluble Thiocyano- of cream of cream of butter of butter butterfat butterfat butter butterfat Meissl absorption cation acids acids gen-iodine Per cent Per cent serum Grams Grams Degrees C. Degrees C. Degrees C. number number number Per cent Per cent number T Range 33.7-35.8 .37-.78 6.3-6.9 465-775 660-880 34.0-35.7 36.0-37.2 34.8-36.6 29.0-33.5 29.6-34.4 223.3- 0 3.6-4.2 87.8-89.0 24.4-30.0 exas 229. ve. 34.76 .59 6.59 609 763 34.97 36.58 35.67 30.62 31.77 226.16 3.92 88.40 27.41 Range 29.0-33.0 .60-.95 6.2-7.4 430-830 595-1045 34.1-35.7 35.0-36.1 34.4-36.4 27.0-31.5 29.2-34.0 2216- 2.5—4.3 89.6-87.7 22.4-32.0 New Mexico 229. 1 ve. 31.29 .66 6.86 669 823 34.92 35.59 35.58 28.73 31.41 225. 2 3.74 88.86 26.25 Nb k Range 29.0-39.0 32-.75 6.2-6.9 205-620 360-750 30.8-34.0 32.1-35.5 31.2-35.1 26.8-30.3 28.0-40.6 219.2% 2.2-4.3 86.7-89.7 22.2-35.0 e ras a 2 . ve. 33.04 .50 6.59 383 484 32.89 34.20 34.85 28.35 34.08 225.74 3.55 88.51 29.17 I Range 30.0-32.0 16-.79 6.3-7.3 140-460 310-510 31.3-33.2 32.0-35.8 32.4-34.7 26.8-33.5 30.0—4,0.0 219%- 2.7-4.7 87.9-89.8 25.6-34.6 owa, 22 .6 Ave 31.22 .28 6.84 320 32.45 33.77 33.18 29.43 35.26 224.81 3.68 89.03 30.70 383 LZ ‘HELLLIIEI SVXELL JO KLYIVIIU EH1. ONLLOEDIJV SHOLOVJ 28 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION data of the butter from the four States are shown in Table 9. It was found _ that the fat test of the cream, from which Texas butter was manufactured, was slightly higher throughout the year than that for the butter from the other States. The acidity of the cream used in Texas butter was the highest during the warmer months and was the highest for the 12 month average except for the New Mexico butter. The yearly average of the pH value of the butter serum in Texas butter, although it was irregular, was somewhat lower than that from Iowa and New Mexico and about the same as that from Nebraska. The gummy defect was less prevalent in the butter received from Nebraska and Iowa, and the defects occurred at a later date in butter from those States. Texas butter was gummy during May, June, July, August, September and October. Butt-er from New Mexico was gummy in June, July, August and September, while the butter from Nebraska was gummy in August and September, and that from Iowa showed ‘gum- miness in September. The softest butter produced in Texas was as hard as the hardest butter received from Iowa. The butter produced in New Mexico was quite similar to Texas butter in hardness, and the Nebraska and Iowa butter were similar. The yearly average for the hardness of the butterfat of Texas butter was about 200 to 300 grams greater than that of the Nebraska and Iowa butter, and the New Mexico butterfat was approximately 60 grams greater than the value for Texas butterfat. The Texas butter had a higher slipping point value than butter from the other States. The slipping point value of the butterfat of the Texas and New Mexico butter was similar but was higher than that of the Nebraska and Iowa butter. The same was true of the melting point values. The average melting point of the fat of Texas butter was slightly more than two degrees greater than that of the Iowa butter. The Reichert-Meissl number of Texas butter was higher from January through September than that of the butter from the other three States; however, this value for Texas butter averaged the lowest for the remain- ing months. The average Reichert-Meissl number for Texas butter was approximately 1.2 higher than the average value for the butter examined from any of the other States. The iodine absorption number was much more uniform throughout the year when compared to the values of the Nebraska and Iowa butter which were much higher during the spring and summer months. The iodine ab- sorption number of Texas and New Mexico butter was very similar and was considerably lower than that of the Nebraska and Iowa butter. The saponification number of Texas butter was lower in the winter and higher in the summer than that for the butter produced in the other States. The variation was not as great for the Texas butter, and the yearly average value was somewhat higher. The per cent soluble acids FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 29 was higher, the per cent insoluble acids was practically the same, and the thiocyanogen number was lower for Texas butter than those values for the butter produced in the other States. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS The results of the survey of the quality of Texas butter indicate that the manufacturing methods were fairly uniform throughout the State. The high acidity of the cream encountered during the summer months was common and was probably due to the storage of the cream at high temperatures before delivery. This probably accounted for the lower score butter produced from April through October. Old cream flavor was common during this time as well as weedy or feed flavors. Pasture was available to a small per cent of the producers throughout the entire year; however, it was most abundant for about five months during the spring and summer. Cottonseed meal was present in a very high per cent of the rations throughout the year. Also large amounts of cottonseed and cottonseed hulls were fed. , Abundance of cottonseed feeds on the dry pastures in July, August and September was associated with an extremely firm gummy body and a flat flavor condition in the butter examined. The five most commonly occurring defects found in the butter examined could be associated with the quality of the cream and feeding practices. A comparison of the analytical data of butter possessing oxidized or flat flavor or a gummy body with butter of normal flavor and body showed that generally the analytical data were slightly different for the defective butter. ~ There was an indication that a relationship existed between these defects and the analysis of the butter. A relationship appeared to existvbetween the feeding practices and the occurrence of gummy butter; usually the presence of abundant pasturage was associated with a reduced amount of gumminess. Also there was a close relationship between weather temperature and humidity and the occurrence of this defect. Thus, it appears that temperature treatment of the cream during storage and in preparation for the churning process is of con- siderable importance in producing a butter with the desired body charac- teristics. A relationship existed between the method of pasteurization employed and the occurrence of the gummy defect. Creameries that used the Rogers high temperature method of pasteurization of cream con- sistently produced butter free from gumminess, yet this defect was prevalent in the butter produced by creameries using the vat method of pasteurization in the same locality. Also a higher per cent of the butter was gummy when made from cream cooled on surface coolers than when the slower vat method of cooling was used. The hardness of the butter from various sections of the State was practically the same during the summer; however, the winter butter varied markedly in hardness. This indicates that the differences in / 30 BULLETIN NO. 670, TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION hardness of the butter from the different sections may be to feeding conditions and the quality of winter pasture. The analytical data show the following values for constants of Te g butter: hardness of the butterfat, 763 gm.; slipping point of the butte i"; 35.0°C.; melting point of the butterfat, 35.7°C.; Reichert-Meissl numi 30.6; iodine absorption number, 31.8; saponification number, 226.2; Q cent soluble acids, 3.9; per cent insoluble acids, 88.4 and the thiocyano’ number, 27.4. l ’ partially A comparison of the average values obtained for Texas butterfat Q the normal values and with those of butter produced in Northern S show that the hardness, slipping and melting point, Reichert- number, saponification number and the per cent soluble acids were i .greater than the values generally given for normal butter. The i0» absorption and the thiocyanogen numbers were lower than normal I the per cent insoluble acids was approximately normal. The hig melting point of the butterfat produced in Texas offers definite in manufacturing processes, in transportatio sumer acceptance during the warm months. advan n and in influencing c: The results of this survey offer a basi cerning the specific effect of certain feedi methods on maintainin butter. s for further investigations ng, production and manufact _ g and improving the marketing qualities of -r ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Credit is due Professor A. V. Moore of the Dairy Husbandry J partment for his assistance in scoring the butter. Acknowledgement,‘ also made to Professor S. M. Cleland of the Engineering Drawing Dep‘ ment for his assistance in the preparation of the charts used in t; bulletin. A FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF TEXAS BUTTER 31 REFERENCES American Butter Institute. Laboratory Manual. 1937. Methods of Analysis for the Butter Industry. Edited and arranged by J. C. Fridenberg. pp. 20-23. Association of Oflicial Agricultural Chemists. 1940. Ofiicial and Tentative Methods of Analysis, 5th ed: Assoc. Oflficial Agr. Chem., Washington, D. C. Hanson, F. E., Arbuckle, W. S. and Shepardson, C. N. 1944. Factors Affecting the Quality of Southern Short Cure Cheddar Cheese. Texas Agr. Experiment Station Bul. 646 pages 10-11. Herzer, F. H., Moore, J. S. and Cowsert, W. C. 1939. The Effects of Various Feeds on the Milkfat Constants and on the Flavor and Texture of Butter. Mississippi Agr. Experiment Station Tec. Bul. 25. Jameison, George Samuel. 1932. Vegetable Fats and Oils. The Chemical Catalog Company. Kemmerer, A. R. and Fraps, G. S. 1943. The Vitamine Potency of Commercial Butters Sold in Texas. Texas Agr. Experiment Station Bul. 629. Spitzer, Geo. and Epple, W. F. 1927. A Method for the Saponification of Butterfat for Determining the Reichert- Meissl Number. ~ Jour. Dairy Science 10:193. Stebnitz, V. C. and Sommer, H. H. 1937. The Oxidationof Bizterfat II., The Composition of the Fat in Relation to Its Susceptibility Toward Oxidation. Jour. Dairy Science 20:265.