LOCAL DAIRY OUTPUT.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 79, 3 April 1928, Page 10

LOCAL DAIRY OUTPUT.

FURTHER DROP IN MARCH. BIG REDUCTION I2V CHEESE. THE SEASON'S RECORD.

As has been anticipated by those interested in the dairy industry, the returns for the month of March show a continuation of the decline in production which has featured Auckland's leading industry since the dry spell of the summer months checked pasture growth.

The quantity of butter and of cheese received into the grading stores for the month just closed has been considerably less than in March of last year, and has not, moreover, reached the lesser record of 1926. The latest figures made available by the Auckland Farmers' Freezing to. are as follow:—

Butter and cheese received and delivered i for the month ending March 31, 1928. by the Auckland Farmers' Freezing Co., Ltd., totalled :— 1928, "<1027. Boxes Crates Boxes Crates Butter Cheese Batter Cheese Received 1 .->5,328 13,312 204.516 20.&54 Delivered 159,876 21,223 155.970 33,306 In store March 31 138,492 10.179 360,432 27,030 THE SEASONS RECORDS. The following tables show the monthly receipts of boxes of butter and crates of «-he«-se at the grading stores for the first nipc months of th<» current season and the two previous seasons:— BUTTER. 19272S 1926 27 1925-20 July 20.202 9.8.-3 9.706 August 68.109 43,466 September ... 1 r>T.-' J .rir> 125, 111,206 Oetobcr 237.013 209.097 15'!,459 November .. . 304.666 258.099 22<>,!t5u December ... 314.792 295.995 263.163 January 244.117 246.153 203.991 February ... ie,s.r,»;o 208,211 1^5.458 March 155.52S 204.810 160,285 Totals 1,670.342 1,606,104 1,351,742 CHEESE. July 1.561 1,467 899 August 2,028 1.215 1,260 September .. 10,172 8,610 9,565 October 17.Hlt> 18,711 17,048 November ... 24.0-5 25.104 20.634 December ... 25.18.", 27.597 27,157 January . 21.074 23.025 21, SM February ... 10,071 21,661 20.152 March 13,312 20,854 19,351 Totals 131,651 118,244 137,937 From the foregoing it will bo seen that while the season's total for butter is still the highest yet recorded the returns for cheese are considerably less. Fortunately the rains which f«ll a month ago have had a most beneficial effect upon pastures, and at present there is every indication that stock will I winter well. Prices Better. Although the London butter market is said to be very quiet just now the position is much more .-atiMactorv than it was a' year ago, when New Zealand butter was quoted at 152/ to 154/ per cwt, and cheese at 78/ to SO/. Recently quite a -fair amount of business has been done in New Zealand butter at over 170/ per cwt, which must be considered satisfactory considering the large quanties of our produce that have been landed on the Home market. With chcest holding its price at 08/ to 100/ the general position of the London 1 market is quite favourable to the ' Dominion.