Quality Aspects of Butter Marketing in South Dakota

The future well-being of the dairy industry in South Dakota may depend to a large extent on progress made in improving butter quality. About two-thirds of the dairy output in the state is exported to other states, mostly as bulk butter. Little of this butter qualifies as Grade A, and a sizeable proportion of it is below Grade B. Improvement in quality is necessary if South Dakota butter is to command top prices on the wholesale markets. It is particularly important in the light of the increasing competition which butter faces from margarine as a spread. Data for the study were gathered from a sample of 20 creameries in 1950 and from all of the South Dakota creameries in 1951. These data shed some light on the relationship between butter quality and prices received by creameries. The data also provide information on the relationship between the different measures of butter quality and various cream procurement, processing, and butter marketing methods prevailing in South Dakota at the time of the surveys