Study of difficult churning

Abstract

There is at the present time a lack of definite knowledge as to why cream, at certain times, fails to give up its fat in the form of butter. This trouble occurs most commonly where only one or two cows are kept, the usual experience being that the cream gradually becomes more and more difficult to churn until it is apparently impossible to obtain butter by any amount of agitation. Difficult churning of this kind also appears to be independent of the usual factors having a bearing on the churnability of the cream which are under the control of the buttermaker. For example, the control of such factors as the temperature of churning, the percentage of fat in the cream, and the proper use of commercial starters seem to be without effect on the cream. Considerable financial loss is frequently involved where the butter fails to form, for the buttermaker frequently loses patience after several hours of apparently useless effort and throws away the cream as unfit for use. The present investigation was undertaken with the view of studying the occurrence, causes, and possible remedies of difficult churning. It was hoped that the results would lead to a solution of this perplexing condition and at the same time extend our knowledge of the fundamental processes involved in the formation of butter.