Page:The story of milk.djvu/102

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involved in the process has not been changed. The object is to make the fat globules conglomerate into grains that can be collected and leave as little butter-*fat as possible in the buttermilk.

Old Arabian churn made out of the skin of a goat

Ancient churn

Danish churn

The best temperature for churning varies from 48° to 56° and must be determined by local conditions and experience. To allow plenty of room for the cream to shake about, the churn should not be much more than half full. When the globules of fat suspended in the milk stick together and form granules as large as good sized pin-heads it is time to stop the churn and drain off the buttermilk. If the butter fails to "come" in half an hour or forty minutes it may be because the cream in the churn is too warm or too cold. A little cold or warm water, as the case may be, can be added as a simple remedy.

Toward the end of the process care must be taken that the churn is stopped at the right moment, when