BISCUIT CONTRACT

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 92, 19 April 1941, Page 8

BISCUIT CONTRACT

DAIRYING INTEREST.

IMPORTANCE TO WAIKATO. (O.O.) HAMT7/lOX. this day. The announcement that buscuit manufacturers in Xew Zealand have received contracts approximating in value £1.000,000 for the supply of SOOO to 0000 tons of biscuits to the British Government for the use of the armed forces, and the possibility of further contracts for amounts up to about 12,000 tons, lias created more than passing interest in the Waikato, for ainonpr the ingredients stipulated for the bis■cuitx is dried milk. A rmifrli computation show* that nearly 800 tons of dried milk will be required.

Aekcd to cfimmeut on the position, a Waikato official in cl»>e touch with developments remarked that it may well be that the whole of The milk powder required will bo manufactured in this part of the Dominion, and supplied to the biscuit manufacturers. Whether whole milk or skim milk powder would be used was. lie r-.iid. not certain, but that point would be cleared up in a day or two. Whichever was stipulated did not make much difference to the Waikato. as either kind could be. supplied.

It riecniod to him. ho said, that ckimined milk powder would be nectled. and that would ensure very good iiis- , oiiit<?. for skim mod mi!k puwder, with only about 1 per cent of buttorfat. would j contain larger quantities of essential ! solids such as calcium. Whole milk powder contained about 2(i to 28 per | cent of buttcrfut. and the percentage of i other solids was therefore less. flood ' quality biscuits would be made, for the contract- r-eemed to stipulate the iirs" j of wheatmeal and flour, in the propor- : tion of two to one. plus *u<;ar and milk ; powder, soda. salt, etc The moisture! content was lower than in biscuits now ! i

on tile market, ami (hat would improve the keeping qualities, especially as they would be wrapped in grease-proof paper and packed in tin container*.

It was mentioned that some dairvmen

were rather despondent about the outlook for butter export, due to the uncertainty of chipping, but thev would bo heartened by the knowledge that milk powder had an improved market.

Butter for Munitions? ('oniuu'iitin: on the reported |><> —ibility of surplus butter being u>ed in the manufacture of certain kinds of munition* of war. a Waikato authority said the su«"estion was not likely to be adopted for the principal reason that larpe qunntitie* nf low-grade tallow were available for munition making. file tallow, besides beinjr far cheaper than butter, was actually easier to convert into glycerine or glycerol, one of the important Ingredient*, of explneivw.

A-keil if there wh- any pri-lm-hHitr of munitions beinji made on a hirjie scale in the Dominiim. he >aid that was a matter for ilccifioti by the Army Department. He imiiiM only say that there were certain plants and laboratories in Xew Zealand that ciuild. he thonpht. be con vert e<l for the purpose, without much difficulty. Staffs could he trained, too.

"But tallow would !•.• n-eil in preference to butter."" lie added, "for there is nol the ««nme residue frmn that product. I do not think that I>iiU.t would !«■ iiM-d at all. and even if it wn« there would not be a great deal of relief to tilbutter market."