Transporting Butter
Back in the 1840s the size of the local market for butter relied on the growth of population and settlement nearby. However, because the communication and transport systems were too primitive (horses and carriages) to deliver butter to isolated settlements it largely restricted the market and confined it to just immediate settlers (Warr, 1988).
The market for butter expanded in the 20th century when motorised transport became available: railroads, roads, and ships. The market for butter excelled when refrigeration and proper packaging precautions took place.
Conditions for transporting butter:
Butter needs to be protected from moisture (rain, snow) during cargo handling, and kept away from high temperatures. Butter is pressure sensitive, so there must be precaution in packing the boxes. Butter is highly sensitive to foreign odours and if possible must be stored separately from cheese, fish, meat and other types of fruit. (Gdv, 2011)
Left: Keep dry
Right: Keep away from high temperatures
If the butter was being transported a long distance, it is likely that they would freeze the butter. The ideal temperature for transporting frozen butter is -16°C to -18°C. When chilled butter is transported the ideal temperature is 1°C - 4°C. When frozen the maximum storage is up to 12 months and when chilled the maximum storage is up to 2 months (Gdv, 2011).
By Zoe Foreman
