Make & Take Activity – Better Butter

1. Ask youth, “What is milk?” Accept reasonable answers and use further questions to guide students to discover and recall information about milk.
   • “Where does milk come from?”
     • Milk is produced by mammals after they give birth. Although all mammals produce milk, cows produce it most efficiently to make it available for humans to drink.
   • “What is milk made of?”
     • Milk is made up of mostly water (almost 87%). It also contains solids such as fat, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals.
2. Ask youth, “What happens to milk after it leaves the dairy farm and before it is sold as milk, cheese, or butter in the grocery store?” Explain that many of the foods we eat must be processed in some way. Food processing takes place after food leaves the farm. Examples include pork being cured into bacon or apples being made into applesauce.
3. Explain that they are going to process heavy whipping cream into butter!

1. Pour whipping cream into condiment cups until cup is half full.
2. Snap the lid tightly on the cup. Before letting students shake the cup, make sure the lid is secured.
3. Instruct students to shake the condiment cup. Teams or groups of students can take turns shaking the cup.
4. The butter is done when there is a mound of butter in the center. There may be a small amount of clear water, which can be drained off.
5. Spread butter onto cracker. Enjoy!

Milk undergoes processing after it leaves the dairy farm. The fluid milk we drink and the milk that is used to make other dairy products such as butter is typically produced by cows on a dairy farm. Milk leaves the dairy farm and must be processed prior to being sold to consumers. Food processing is a benefit to consumers as it provides a greater variety of food we eat as well as food that is safer.