NEW CHEESE FACTORY.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 279, 24 November 1928, Page 4

NEW CHEESE FACTORY.

PROPOSED FOR KEREPEEHI

(From Our Own Correpondent.)

PAEROA, Friday

A meeting of Kerepeehi farmers was held in the Kerepeehi Hotel on Wednesday to discuss a proposal to build a cheese factory. Messrs. W. E. Hale (local director) and W. T. Kirkman (factory superintendent of the N.Z. Co-operative Dairy Co.), were present to supply information to the settlers. Mr. Kirkman said that the company would build a factory on suppliers undertaking to underwrite the cost and guaranteeing to supply for at least five vears. A six-vat factory, with plant, would cost about £9172, and a four-vat factory £8732. For all factories in New Zealand since 1902 cheese had given an average return of 1.439 d per lb above butter. To get the best results fanners wctold have to make up their mind 3 to stick to cheese once they went in for it. He remarked that there was an excellent cheese factory at Netherton lying disused on account of a lack of supply, while the farmers of Kerepeehi, only a few miles away, desired to change from butter to cheese.

Mr. Hale said that practically all the machinery had been removed from the Netherton factory, but the plant could be replaced in about six weeks. Butter shares could be transferred to cheese of the same value, although, on account of the basis being different, butter "A" shares would probably be transferred to cheese "B" shares. Cheese 6harcs could not be resumed or transferred to the butter branch until the group was financed and 15 per cent over-subscribed. The meeting appointed Messrs. C. Mcintosh, D. Shilton and C. Pearee to watch over the matter until next March, when the subject will again be discussed. It was also decided to recommend the directors of the company to go carefully into, the question of re-opening the Netherton cheese factory.