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Production Testing for the Professor of Dairy Science

The Department of Education, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637

ABSTRACT

In 1890 Dr. S. M. Babcock completed his development of the classical test for milk fat. Prior to 1890 it was well known that cows gave different quantities of milk. It was also known that milk from different cows contained different amounts of fat. Babcock's development of a rapid test for fat content rendered production testing more efficient. It did not change the standards of excellence to be used in judging production.

Milk fat testing was of importance because the fat was regarded as the most valuable constituent of milk. Because those who marketed milk were able to charge a higher price for milk with higher fat content, they were willing to pay dairy farmers for their milk partly on the basis of its fat content. If fat production had been the only factor to consider in buying, breeding, feeding, and milking dairy cattle our dairy industry would probably have moved toward the Jersey breed and away from those huge black and white producers of what is sometimes known as "blue John."