How It Works: Cream Separator

Refining an industry

In 1879, in honor of his invention, de Laval was presented a silver medal by the Royal Agricultural Society of England. Shortly thereafter, the King of Sweden presented him with the cross of the Order of Vasa and made him a Knight of the Order of the North Star. In 1886, de Laval became a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which presented him with a gold medal in 1892. He was made an honorary member of the Agricultural Academy of Sweden in 1896.

Although de Laval’s invention separated cream from milk, the dairy industry still faced a pressing problem: determination of butterfat content in both cream and skim milk. In 1890, Dr. Stephen M. Babcock, an agricultural chemist at the University of Wisconsin, discovered a simple test that determined with great accuracy the percentage of butterfat in whole milk, cream and skim milk. (For more on milk testing, see Growing Up with the Milk Tester and Milk Scales) Today, it can easily be said that de Laval and Babcock changed the dairy industry worldwide. Although cream separators have virtually disappeared, except for use on a few hobby farms and specialized dairies, de Laval’s invention alone was once estimated to have saved the dairy industry as much as $35 million worldwide. FC 

Tharran Gaines is the author of five books on antique tractor restoration and writes a variety of materials for AGCO Corp. He is also a contributing editor to AGCO Advantage and Massey Ferguson Farm Life magazines for AGCO. Email him at gainescomm@yahoo.com; online at Gaines Communications 

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