DAIRY PRODUCE EXPORTS

Press, Volume LXXV, Issue 22906, 30 December 1939, Page 6

DAIRY PRODUCE EXPORTS

WEDDEL’S REVIEW DOMINION’S HEAVY DECLINE An advance copy of Weddcl’s Review, received by the local agents—A. H. Turnbull and Company—for the year ended June 31, 1939, gives some instructive information regarding the importations of dairy produce into England in that period. The figures are more than ordinarily interesting, in view of the fact that most of the European sources which were heavy contributors to the total are now largely out of the list of exporters because of the war and German submarine activity. . , The total quantity of butter imported into the United Kingdom in the year amounted to 471,990 tons, compared with 474,114 tons in the preceding year, a decrease of 0.45 per cent. The quantity received from British sources amounted to 240,453 tons, or 50.9 per cent, of the total, compared with 242,465 tons, or 51.1 per cent, in the previous year. There was again a very considerable drop in shipments from New Zealand, continues the Review, which totalled only 125,346 tons, a decrease of 14,328 tons. The deficiency was partly made up by increases of 6448 tons from Australia. 2965 tons from Africa, and 3406 tons from Canada, the Irish total being practically unchanged. - Amongst the foreign sources of supply, the biggest change was the disappearance of Russia. Denmark sent a slightly lower quantity, while Holland, the next largest contributor, supplied a record total of 40.943 tons, ,or 5832 tons more than in 1937-38. Sweden and Finland together sent about the same, and from the Baltic countries slightly increased totals were received. Altogether, the arrivals from foreign countries amounted to 231,537 tons. The grand totals of arrivals of butter into the United Kingdom have not varied in the last six years by more than 3 per cent, v Cheese

The total arrivals of cheese from all sources were slightly lower at 148,982 tons than the previous year’s total, which aggregated 149,393 tons, the decrease being only 411 tons. The total from British sources totalled 133,054 tons, or 1460 tons more than in the previous year. There was another big increase in shipments from Australia, which has trebled its export of cheese to the United Kingdom in the last two years. The two main producing countries —New Zealand and Canada—both shipped smaller quantities, the decreases being 3322 tons and 3572 tons respectively, but from Africa there was a record total of 2340 tons, or nearly 2000 tons more than in the preceding year. Arrivals from foreign sources consisted of 9250 tons from Holland, 3472 tons from Italy, 934 tons from Switzerland, and 1982 tons from other countries, the total being 15.928 tons, compared with 17,709 tons in 1937-38. Dominion-Australian Comparison In the three years from 1936-37 to 1938-39 (Inclusive) butter exported from New Zealand to the United Kingdom has declined from 149,239 tons to 110 856 tons, whilst in the same period the’ exports of cheese have decreased from 86,154 tons to 82,719 tons. In the Same period, butter from Australia has increased by 71,038 tons to 96,985 tons, and of cheese from 5599 tons to 15,799 tons. A NEW TRACTOR DESIGN FOR SMALL FARMERS

Steadily and irrevocably mechanical contrivances are replacing labour in primary production. An American once said that it Is a fool who kills his own job. The job of the harvester has been largely killed in New Zealand—the header is taking his place There are still a feiv old hands left who remember the hostility of farm workers to the introduction into Canterbury of the reaper and binder, the first of Which had to be guarded at night in case some resentful harvester damaged them. In those days the harvester was afraid of being pushed out of his job. To-day there is no pushing—life in other walks is more attractive.

An objection to the general use of the tractor in the past has been that a farm must comprise a definite area of tillable land to make a machine an economic unit. If not, such a machine' became little more than a lazy man’s toy. But an entirely new design of tractor is to be placed on the Australian market after the New Year which, it is claimed, will entirely get over this difficulty. It is to be a small man’s machine, so constructed that it will combine with the working of implements with maximum efficiency. It is not a new model but a new design. It is understood that this new rub-ber-tyred -tractor will have all the features of the conventional fourwheel tractor, combined with all the features of the small or all-purpose type of tractor. All the best features of the conventional tractor have been maintained for hauling the regular types of implements, and in addition there has been incorporated in this tractor the manoeuvrability of the small type with individual rear-wheel brakes to ensure a short turning radius. Perhaps the outstanding feature of the design is the mounting of the power plant, which allows the operator to have an unobstructed front and, rear view of the implement being operated. It has been the custom to design tractors more or less as a power plant, and then set about designing the various types of implements to be hauled. This process has now been reversed. The hew tractor has been designed around the various implements which are to be hauled, keeping in mind that tractors are of very little value without proper implements to go with them.

The essential idea is to make the tractor serve as the wheels and the main frames of the implements wherever possible. It has been found that implements so designed can be produced cheaper and will have a far greater utility This kind of equipment Will be designed to meet the needs of a larger number of presentday small farms as yet uhcatered for by an economical and efficient tractor unit. Orchafdists, pastoralists, mixed farmers, dairy farmers, and. various row-crop farmers ahd potato and onion growers ere contemplating modern equipment. Another novel feature incorporated in this new tractor is its versatility of working Speeds. A new device will permit of almost any desired speed between H and 4j miles an hbtlh The fact that a speed can be selected which will permit .the most eflicieht work to be dche by the implement should prove of great value to, the operator. In addition to these various adjust*

able working speeds,, a speed of 10 miles an hour has been provided for speedy transportation around the farm and on the road. ~