RB32-270 A Seven Year Study of a Milk Supply

The amount of butter produced by the grain-belt states is evidence that a great many cows are milked by the midwestern farmer. Most of this milk is separated on the farm, the cream is sold, and the skimmilk is fed to hogs and other livestock. As the market for fluid milk has developed, many farmers near the cities have turned to the sale of milk, because it affords a better return for the butterfat sold. Much of the milk produced for sale as fluid milk is produced under practically the same conditions as milk which is produced primarily for the same of cream. The Department of Dairy Husbandry of the University of Nebraska, in conducting its instructional and investigational work, comes in contact with the milk producer. An effort has been made, therefore, to study the relation of milk quality to farm conditions as found among the milk producers or patrons who have delivered milk to the department. The study was carried on in an effort to find possible ways of bettering the conditions without upsetting the economic balance existing between the production of cream and fluid milk.

RB32-266 Cooling Milk on Nebraska Farms

The desire of Nebraska people to continue the improvement of living conditions and to secure more healthful foods has been responsible for many changes in methods of caring for milk. One of the important factors in keeping milk sweet and of good quality is the process of cooling and keeping it cool until used. Three of these processes are as follows: placing containers of warm milk in any quantity of still water or still air at temperatures ranging from freezing to within a few degrees of the temperature of the milk, placing the containers in such positions that air or water are circulated around them, and causing the milk to flow in such manner that a thin film comes in contact with a surface which is cooled by air or liquids varying in temperature from 10 degrees Fahrenheit to a few degrees below that of the milk. After some of the heat has been removed the milk is stored under conditions very similar to those found in cooling processes. This 1932 research bulletin discusses why milk is cooled, why milk sours, how bacteria grows, and the many ways that milk can be cooled.

Milk Containing Mycobacterium bovis as a Source of Infection for White-Tailed Deer Fawns (Odocoileus virginianus)

Setting:White-tailed deer represent the first wildlife reservoir of Mycobacterium bovis in the United States. The behavior of does with nursing fawns provides several potential mechanisms for disease transmission. Little information exists concerning transmission between doe and fawn, specifically transmammary transmission. Objective: Determine if fawns can become infected by ingestion of milk replacer containing M. bovis, thus simulating transmission from doe to fawn through contaminated milk. Design: Seventeen, 21-day-old white-tailed deer fawns were inoculated orally with 2x108 CFU (high dose, n=5), 2.5 x 105 to 2.5 x 106 CFU (medium dose, n=5), and 1x104 CFU (low dose, n=5) of M. bovis in milk replacer. Dosages were divided equally and fed daily over a 5-day period. Positive control fawns (n=2) received 1x105 CFU of M. bovis instilled in the tonsillar crypts. Fawns were euthanized and examined 35-115 days after inoculation and various tissues collected for bacteriologic and microscopic analysis. Results: All fawns in the tonsillar, high oral and medium oral dose groups developed generalized tuberculosis involving numerous organs and tissues by 35-84 days after inoculation. Three of five fawns in the low-dose oral group had tuberculous lesions in the mandibular lymph node, and one of five had lesions in the medial retropharyngeal lymph node when examined 115 days after inoculation. Conclusion: White-tailed deer fawns can become infected through oral exposure to M. bovis. Therefore, the potential exists for fawns to acquire M. bovis while nursing tuberculous does.

RP92-217 #2 Producer Marketing Mangement: Deferred Pricing Alternatives for Grain

Grain producers must make marketing decisions every day. First they must decide whether to price or hold grain. If they decide to price grain, they must then choose the most appropriate method of pricing: cash sale, forward contract, or hedging. If they decide to hold grain (not to price), they must choose the most appropriate method of retaining ownership. This fact sheet presents some guidelines to help producers choose the least costly method of owning grain or speculating on price level changes.