THE DAIRYING INDUSTRY.

Bruce Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 74, 20 September 1917, Page 3

THE DAIRYING INDUSTRY.

BALCLUTHA'S UP-TO-DATE , FACTORY. Balclutha progresses! The latest mark of her industrial advancement is to be fouml 'in the Clutlia Dairy Company's factory at North Balclutha. For many years the Taicri antl> Peninsula Milk Supply Company had a cream separating establishment, but it has remained to the present owner, Mr C'apell, -to show enterprise enough to start a butter and cheese-maTiing business. The old creamery has been more than doubled in size, and now a building of about Goft x 40ft.

THE RECENT INNOVATIONS. The reeent innovations include a new boiler and engine, in these days, when so natch is heard of "efficiency," it is but the proper thiug when setting out in business to instal nothing but machinery that will be conducive of the greatest working efficiency. This has been done at the factory, and its plant is now up to date in every respect. A modern butter plant, under the personal charge of the manager, together with a cheese-making outfit, under Miss Harrison's supervision, will be. in operation in the course of a day or so. FROM FARMYARD TO CONSUMES. The art of butter ami cheese-making is no doubt a very old one, but the present-day methods of handling the milk to produce the fresh pound or the tasty cheese vastly differ from those adopted by our grandfathers. The cream from the farm is taken in at the receiving stage of the factory and passed into a vat for treatment. It next is sent to the pasteuriser, and from there finds its way info a second pasteuriser, which is coupled with live steam from tho boiler. The cooling process is then gone through, the coolers in this instance measuring about 7ft x 4ft Bin. When the required temperature is reached the cream passes to the cream vats going through the second pump. The butter is made in a combined churn, capable of turning out , 12001b at a time. When it is taken from this •machine it is placed in a power-driven Anderson printer. This consists of a wooden trough, from which . the butter is forced through openings the size of the required pound, coming out in length somewhat similar to soap bars. By means of a wire gauge the correct pound is measured off, thus obviating the necessity of weighing each pound. Twenty-one pats are made at a cutting, which requires about three minutes to go through the machine. After wrapping the butter is ,ready for sale across the counter. An insnlated room lined with poilite has been erected for curing cheese. The water supply for cooling purposes is taken direct from tbe river, while that for washing the ■butter is procured from a well on the premises. The 'testing of the milk and cream is done by a Babcock tester. THE FACTORY'S CAPACITY. Two and a-half' tons of butter can be made every day with the machinery going at full swing. At present about 50 suppliers have promised their support, but there is no reason why all the cream from the Owaka, Clinton, Tapanui, Inchclutha, "Wangaloa and up-river districts should not be handled at •Balclutha with gain both to producer and consumer alike. The supplier who delivers his cream at the factory will make an extra profit of jd per lb. The ruling rate is now Js per lb for vream for butter (delivered), aad the Dunedin rates will be paid by the management. THE NEW MANAGER. Mr C'apell, under whose direction the affairs of the factory will be managed, is a past-master at his trade and holds an enviable record' as a butter and cheese manufacturer. Three times has he won the championship of New Zealand for butter-making, and so is debarred from again competing. Two large silver cups presented by the Palmerston North Society were won outTight, and another cup has been won .three times iu succession. Besides these trophies of his ability, Mr Capell is the possessor of some 27 gold medals for various championships at butter-making and one silver medal presented by a London society. He also holds several-certificates which are firstclass awards. But his diplomas have not alone been won by his skill as a tradesman, as he possesses numerous interesting and highly-prized relics of his days as' a shootist, footballer and runner. His collection of souvenirs would be hard to beat both in quantity as well as value.