The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries’ 1938 practical guide to farm and factory cheesemaking. Covers dairy fundamentals, British territorial makes, blue and soft cheeses, faults and grading. Particularly useful for comparing traditional curd handling and acidity tests. Includes the original cover and a reading link to LIBRAL’s second-edition scan.
A substantial practical reference for British cheesemaking before the Second World War. Bulletin 43 brings together general dairy practice, methods for individual varieties and the faults that a maker should learn to recognise. The 1938 second edition expands the earlier farm guidance to cover factory conditions as well.
What it covers
The opening section deals with milk quality, premises and equipment, starter preparation, rennet, heating and curd handling. Its acidity tests include the rennet test, acidimeter titration and the hot-iron test. The canonical recipes cover Caerphilly, Cheddar, Cheshire, Derby, Lancashire and Leicester, as well as smallholder and crustless cheeses; Stilton and Wensleydale, including white versions; and soft cheeses such as Cambridge or York, Camembert, Coulommier, Petit Suisse and Pont l’Evêque.
The practical value is in the detailing of the relationship between stages in each recipe: starter activity, acidity, moisture removal, curd condition, salting, pressing and ripening. The bulletin also describes variety-specific defects and the contemporary National Mark grading arrangements, connecting the make with the quality expected of the finished cheese.
Of interest to cheesemakers
Useful for comparing and designing traditional territorial makes and understanding the observations on which an experienced maker relied. The foreword recognises that milk and conditions vary, so the process needs informed judgement as well as accurate measurements. Its acidity percentages are titratable-acidity readings, not pH values, and should not be substituted for pH targets.
Read it as a historical technical source. Its starter propagation, hygiene advice, equipment, grading schemes and measurements reflect 1938 practice; they need separate assessment before use in a modern dairy.
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Citation: Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (1938). Farm and Factory Cheese-Making. Bulletin No. 43, second edition. London: His Majesty’s Stationery Office. Scan provided by LIBRAL, the Library of Rural and Agricultural Literature. The cover is shown for source identification; the full scan remains at LIBRAL.