The Adulteration of Butter

Abstract

My attention has been directed to an article in your issue of March 15 on “The Adulteration of Butter” in which your contributor refers to the composition of butter fat as a triglyceride of oleic, palmitic, and butyric acids, or as containing such a substance. Some years ago I traced this opinion to Mr. Bell, a former analyst of Somerset House, who appears to have based his conclusions upon the insolubility of butter fat in alcohol. Butter fat is, however, soluble in alcohol, and I have no doubt whatever that a process of fractional precipitation from this solution would enable us to ascertain with fair accuracy what the real constituents are. My own experiments certainly pointed to a great number of separate glycerides being present, palmitin and stearin separating out in tolerable purity. The separation of the lower fatty acid compounds is more difficult to attain, probably owing to their existence as esters. It would be interesting to know whether the theory of the presence of triglyceride rests upon a more stable foundation than that of Bell's statement.