"STANDARDISED MILK"

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 39, 15 February 1929, Page 17

"STANDARDISED MILK"

CHEESE. ANOTHER N. 2. BRAND. A NEEDED REFORM. A subject of outstanding interest in dairying circles at the moment is the Introduction of the new "standardised jnilk" cheese, and even in districts where cheesemakbig is not general its import is being studied by factory directors. At recent conferences references have been made to the new cheeee, and arguments for and against its introduction brought forward. That it ie an innovation the effect of which has yet to be tested on the London market is admitted by aIL Why is it necessary?

In New Zealand dairying we have an anomaly that exists in no other cheeee* making country in the world. This ie the reliance of cheeee milk producers on the high testing Jersey. In other countries, in cheese districts, Ayrshirea and Friesiajia hold sway, this being distinctly the case with our greatest competitor, Canada. Apart from all questions of breed, it is difficult to understand why the present position should have arisen in a country where any breed will do well, thanks to the inherent qualities of the land and a good climate. It is surely reasonable to aseume that since the low testing breeds are eo largely favoured in oheesemaking districts in very much older countries, they must have been found the most economical for cheese, but here in New Zealand our reliance on tho Jersey ban opened up a eerioue problem for the factory manager end for the directors who want high yields in the factory. The Yield Question. The lower testing milk gives a greater quantity of cheese per lb of fat, the increased yield being due to the higher ratio of casein to fat in low testing milk. Thie simply means that factories in district* where Frieeians and Ayr shires are prominent are able to give better yields than those in which the Jersey dominates the picture—a situation which jrave rise to the suggestion after the Hawera cheese test that a differential payment should be adopted, giving the low testing milk a premium above the Jersey milk. The yield question ie always accentuated towards the close of the season when the Jersey milk rises to eo high a test that it is difficult to make a satisfactory cheese from it. Much of the "greasy body" cheese of which English importers complain in our autumn make is <lue to the high testing milk. A Lose to Producers. It is unnecessary here to go into the question as to whether or not producers are losing heavily through these fatty cheeses. Jersey fanciers say the cheeee ie higher in quality; Friesian supporters my that this butterfat is simply thrown away. Certain it is, however, that in the Sorth Island, at any rate, our cheeee contains considerably more butterfat than that of our principal competitor. The Canadian standard ie below that of New Zealand, 45 per cent as against out 50 pervcent of fat in the dry matter, and as our autumn make—in the Jersey district*—rises very considerably over the 60 per eent standard eome loss undoubtedly accrues, unless our late autumn cheese sells at a premium. The solution of the difficulty is believed to be the introduction of the "standardised milk" cheese, which will have a minimum of 50 per cent fat in the dry matter in the earlier part of the season, and 52 per cent in the autumn months. Part Skimming. It has been known in dairy circles for some considerable time that part skimming was going on in many factories, but the fact was difficult to prove. The skimming was done mostly during the autumn months and aimed at the reduction of the over-rich Jersey milk to a lower fat standard. The South Island, of course, is more fortunately situated, and in Southland, where the lower testing breeds are largely found in the cheese districts, none of this trouble has been Apparent. The fact that factories were allowed to use ekim milk starter in the Tats left the door open for wider use of the separator fn the factory, but the new regulations gazetted since the introduction of the new brand effectively close it. In future "full cream ,, cheeee must be made eolely from whole milk, and no skim milk starter may be used. Effect of Regulations. All factories will benefit through the new regulations. Those who are troubled with'over-rich milk will make the standardised product {which will be better and richer in fat than the cheese sent forward by our competitors) and the factories "which make "full cream" cheese, including all the South Island factories, will have & fuller protection for their brand. There is only one unknown factor in the situation. That is prejudice. Will the "standardised milk" cheeee receive fair treatment in England, or will there be a prejudice against it which will react against the price? Only actual marketing can decide that issue. The Dairy Board will do its utmost to make the trade understand that the standardised milk cheeee is a first-class product, as indeed it will be, but if there is a price reaction it may well be that producers will actually lose through the adoption of the new brand.

A certain amount of criticism hae been levelled at the new regulations, but aa these were adopted only after a very full discussion at a conference of representatives of the cheese industry from one end of New Zealand to the other, it must be taken that they represent the considered opinion of the majority. Whether their adoption will mean more money for the dairy fannere is, of course, an open question, but they at least right a wrong in preventing unfair description of cheese.