THE FARM INDUSTRY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 172, 14 April 1908, Page 2

THE FARM INDUSTRY.

MILK—AND WATER.

THE INFLEXIBLE STANDARD, WHERE IT HURTS THE DAIRY , ■ • - v FARMER. The : following' reference to the British'milk regulations," contained in a paper read by Mr. Christopher % Middleton to a meeting of British' farmers, possesses a lot that will interest also the dairy farmers of New Zealand, in view of the new milk regulations in this country:— Watcrotf by Retailors. 1 , • In the course of the paper he saidThe farmer's liability foremilk (at.least so far as its composition is concerncd) should cease when it is ; delivered to: the purchaser, which, in the case of milk delivered by rail,should bo at the station to which it, is consigned. It has been ' contended that this responsibility should cease as soon as the milk has been put on rail, as it is then practically out of the - control of. the sender'; but this would be unfair to the .consignee, who would bo in the came position in regard' to non-control durin™ transit. It does, how-' ever, appear to. be unreasonable , that ,the' warranty of the purity of an article which can so easily be adulterated las milk should continue after .it.;l\a3 been removed from the station and been on- the premises of the purchaser, for, as ■ has -been frequently pointed' out, anyono -who is r capable of wil-' fully adulterating milk would be equally capable of swearing' that he had not done so. ; 1

A Cup that Told a Talo. The exigencies of the milk traffic frequently entail,, or ;at least result in', milk, churns standing- for hours' at the' termini to which they are consigned practically uncontrolled, pnd during that time, or during transit, it 'is .not impossible .to . estract a. portion of the richest milk .from the top of. the_ churn, and'either replaco.it or not with a-similar quantity, of water. . The occasional presence, (which is - not an unknown. occurrence) at the bottom of the churn of milk of a vessel bearing the initials of the railway company is, -at any rate, strong presumptive evidence 'of. what has taken - place. It is true that the sender can to a 'great extent protect himself against this method of pilfering or tampering with ; .his, milk by' locking or sealing his churns, ,which_ he 'is now allowed to do under certain conditions; and, as a rule, he, would be well advised to adopt this precaution. ; But with the: ordi-; nary.pattern of railway.milk churn in common use, even locking or sealing would not be an effectual safeguard, as it is possible from most churns, without removing the lid, to pour some of their contents, and, in the case of , some, oven to replace this amount. This, .however, .is a- very different matter from simply lifting the lid of a churn',, and would probably, require more' than one person to. carry, it out. Below ths Standard. The principal and by far the most serious grievance, from which' milk producers undoubtedly -suffer is their liability-, not- only, to prosecution; but ahso to conviction, for selling- lfiilk .• which, though perfectly genuine, happens, for the time, being,- from one "or-..other natural cause; to': fall short 1 of the limit; fixed by the Board of Agriculture of .3 per -. cent. , of- fat, or 8.5 per cent, of solids other than fat. Difficulty ' seldom arises with regard to any ■ deficiency of '.npn-fatty ■ solids, -,which a?,. a.! rijtjo.i'iirpj'.lai^]v •'constant'; r but, < this-. is far from .ibihg'tho'case, a^regards fat.--.-I don't ipr,,'a niomtent- contend that, the limit of 3; per cent.: 6t"f , atVi's'/;tpb'''hi^h; - on -the contrary, ~genuihe'.: milk, .generally,' contains a higher percentage'., of- fat, .and there, is seldom- a-'difficulty" in ..maintaining '.that- standard. Nevertheless, from time-to time, at certain periods of the year, -the morning's milk of ..even well : fed cows will, occasionally, frpm .causes' entirely beyond the: control of tho .owner", contain less than 3 per cent, of fat; and especially;will this be the case where,' for reasons such as the time when tho milk ,is required by: the customers, or to suit the time of'the' trains' by which-it is oonveyed, milking must hovdone'at unequal intervals. Tho necessity of- milking 'at un-equal-intervals is the principal of the great variation jn the. compositionjof milk, at least bo far as, the, fat is concerned; _ and I have -no ; hesitation- in , saying that if ' it, were posSibio',for fill cows' to be, milked at' regular intervals of twelvo hours, this' diffi-culty:-;would' practically, disappear,' and the mixed' milk ; of a' ;herd' of; cows would very rarely fail to. exceed' 3. per; cent, of fat. It may bo pointed' out that' when, from this, cause; the morning's milk happens to contain less than 3 per cent, of fat, the afternoon's milk-,is .usually correspondingly richer, frequently showing 4 per cont. or even more of fat; but- this, \of course, is no consolation ,to consumers: whoso, day's supply consists of. morning's milk. /

The: Elastic Law Necossary. • - The Board of Agriculture; whon fixing'the limit of .3 per cent, of,fat, 'recognised the fact that'genuino milk might fall below this limit, and' on more than one occasion-'have, by circular, pointed out to local authorities and .benches of magistratestthan certain, discretion might bo exercised; in dealing with, such cases.' . Many.' authorities act upon these circulars; : and do not'institute' proceedings if a satisfactory explanation'is forthcoming: .but others: appear : to- entirely disregard them. Many thousands of pounds _ are ' annually spent by farmers in establishing their innocence 'in prosecutions of this nature, «nd many convictions actually take place and. penalties are inflicted even'when : it has been clearly established that'the milk Avas sold as given by the cows... Unfortunately, science does not yet enable the analyst to discriminate between naturally poor and ' wilfully adulterated milk. .. . To Make Tests Constant is Not Easy. Much advice has been freely given, and many suggestions have been made, as the difficulty may bo overcome, ■ such as improved , feeding, frequent testing of the-quality of the milk, -mixing the milk of all the cows, weeding out inferior cows, altering the hours of milking where tho periods of milking were unequal, etc. A single experience of my-own will demonstrate tho absolute futility attimes of all'-these remedies which could,be adopted. For- several weeks in ..the spring of, .1. t.nnk, the year 1893-the, mixedi morning milk, of my own cows,-, notwithstanding ,they were very highly fed, only contained, as ascertained by 'almost daily analysis, from 2.5 to 2.8 per cent, of fat, although the afternoon's milking always showed over. :4 per cent. Weeding-out was clearly impracticable, as individual tests of each cow showed that,' out of the lot of 40, "only 11 reached the standard of 3 per cent. in the morning. Besides, later in tho year, the same cows,gave milk showing: over 4 and o per cent, of fat at the respective milldngs. The only change which could have had the desired cffcct—viz., altering' the .hours of milking—was utterly impossible. . " i Appeal to tho Cow. - Tho only way to meet this state of affairs, which will inevitably bo of constant recurrence, will bo to alter tho administration of tho law in this respect, so that the owner of cows whose milk temporarily' fails to reach, an artificial -standard shall not bo liable'to the same treatment as one who; wilfully adulterates or tampers with his milk. On moro than ono occasion tho Board of Agriculture has been requested to provide some system of prompt appeal to tho . cow whenever a sample of milk taken from tho producer lias been found below the standard, so that no prosecution should follow if tho official sample taken from the cows confirmed' the previous one. ;Sir'. Edward Stracboy, speaking for the Board,' pointed out that this appeal to the cow might prove a two-edged weapon, as the composition of. milk is iiablo. to cnangc so quickly that the taking place in two or three days might furnish the moans of cpnviction.. Surely it is unfair to punish anyone for the natural variation of ,o. product liable to such sudden change. Whilst recognising tho possible danger of I

" ... ■ NEWS AND NOTES FOR , THE MAN 0\ THE LAND.

what Sir Edward pointed out, if I'ware stiM the owner of cows I should have no hesitation, if necessary,.arose, in risking such aa appeal. ' Preservatives. . .'• > Another matter needing'attention, thouj»li. probably affecting the milk seller and dealer rather than the producer, is the unsatisfactory, because uncertain, state of the law as regards the use of preservatives in milk and- ? cream." The use of such. should bo cither definitely prohibited or the quantity .allowed prescribed, so as to pnt an end-to vexatious prosecutions and expensivo litigation,' But, after all theso regulations dealing with its production and distribution, witK the object of ensuring v to the; consumer a genuine and wholesompi .niillt supply,have been' adopted,, in. how • niany . cases is'lnot ; this abject, frustrated by the -.want,of know- 1 ledge and ,by the lack of ordinary care, and cleanliness on- the part of those , for its • treatment after coming into their' possession?.- >. Dirty dugs. ';' - • l;o,- : In many, households no vessel : is cousidpre.d : . .too filthy to'receive the morning's supply, of ' milk, which in too many-eases constitutes.thOi' whole day's supply, and 'frequently .(perhaps sometimes from lack of. proper accommodation) it remains for hours in a disease-laden atmosphere. Milk under, such conditions,, however wholesome when received, cannot re?, main sweet and untainted for long, and many infantile disorders thufe" caused havo in the past undoubtedly been attributed rathor. to ■ ■ the- cow . and her surroundings than to the real cause. ' ' If some of thoso who have been .mostprominent in tho_,erusade against the milk supply as it comes from'the farm would institute a crusade against the'ignorance::and apathy prevailing in too many homes regarding its treatment after being distributed,-pos-sibly they might do more for the saving of infant life than .they have yet achieved. , :

sheep up. • A RECORD ,PRICE. • -A'record-.price in sheep for,recent, months was obtained at Levin last .Friday bj iMessrs.''. Dalgety and l C 0.,, when a .line . of . 250rfatj wethers of-Messrs. M'Donald sold at" 21s. 6<Land 21s. 10d. each. -;v'•l■■■. •...•• ; : .LANCDALE ; ' ' In'one Langdale orchard (writei.oui 1 -, travelling. 'correspondent) there is a" big- crop, of apples: th£- ground was'- covered Trith-vtlte'-. fruit. • What a pity it can'tbe .made use of !' The freight;'-1 am told,^precludes'sending-it away. . Fruit-growing, to bo sufc<?:ssful, requires to be within- easy iaccesß : of 'the railway. I also saw at another farin,: Mr;' Fill-'' ingham's, some of 'the best : potatoes I have . seen this-season.- They were-.Up-to-Dates; a really: good' crop, 1 with very fow small on6s." This is quite exceptional, as most potatoes in the same district are' decidedly oil r ;the small s side.; Here there is also some particularly good rape, being now fed o5 'the thifd; bito, and a paddock of turnips which will'-bp, hard . to heat. This farm is; one.'of I 'the smallest on Langdale, 'but its productiveness: derful, 1 owing, in a large 'degree'; to £he number of paddocks into which' it''is divided.. On Langdale tlieri is'alsd a very pretty Anglican Church--which; I believe, is. free'of debtc-dnd a comfortable hall in which' cntertairiiifichts and dances a?o held: . . ;

FARM WORK IN MANAWATU.V' r : Throslung operations-are -now..-about-:- finished'in'the Maiiawatu district, but. chaff-cut* . ting- is i proceeding; . ";The returns -have not been so satisfactory, as might have, been expocted. -. Algerian oat crops, on tho - whole, have shown the best results. • Durmgthe recent fine weather, feed has shown a- marked improvement, and in many .parts of the district,; the fields-, almost, represent; a second spring. t CHELTENHAM BUTTER INDUSTRY. : APITI'S NEW FACTORY. - ~ • The Cheltenham- DairyrCompanv .Tvill pay out. Is; per lb.-for butterrfat-for last:month (says. our ;Manawatu • correspondent)■ .Tliei company will probably add Another link-to its -'j business by erecting a creamery on the. flat on the Kimbolton-Apiti road in time ;fpr. next season.' Tho manager (Miv-Murray) informs me that he is putting through -moro'milk.now than in February, and that feed is' plentiful . in his district. . / ■ The'Apiti Company still continues to manufacture butter at Cheltenham, c ilt is Understood -that' th9-new factory for the ■ Apiti Dairy Company will.be on a more elaborate scale than' the old one recently destroyed. by fire. LOWLANDS FOR DAIRYING. 'In the Hakuri district (writes : our travelling correspondent)' farms are of a fairly largo size, and properly, so,- as the land m the district is only fitted' for'sheop : farmih'g, though there 13 a butter factory;in the township.' HillyVcountry,' .hdwever; 1 against dairying. I know a] farmer, who'sold'out in , a hilly bush district, 'ivhero he' had-.beei)-'milk- - ing; and weiit to the low country, ! ; wncr4' it was all 'flat; .'arid "riot too' severe'in th'b. wiut-er". .Tho same 'eows next season 'ou the lowlands . .gave; him' a 'return. of '.'m»rly': 60 per : ;cerit". more thaivon tlie hill country. - The soil oil Makuri. Hills is ;a" rich chocolate loani on: the limestone,-and stands drought well,' but never holds water; 'it aliyays ■' gets' "away quickly.-'''lt-''was a-great sight to notice the : beautiful cocksfoot : pasture ■ and : : splendid 'clover.'What a lot of money has been' lost this season by the seed not being saved I'-:-. BALLANCE AND NIREAHA FACTORIES. : The Ballanco Company's Creamery.at Hukanui (says our. correspondent) is receiving 500 gallons of:,milk daily. Jlr. Billirigton. manager,', in tho course of an interview,-saia ho belioved tljat next season, as a result of tho' fires this year, his creamery would,.put 400 .to.' 600 gallons in oscessrof all previous .records. 1 -' - , : , Niroaha: Dairy Company's cheese iaetoiy is putting through 500 gallons per day. Ninety eases were dispatched last .week for export, and 70 cases are following.; : OUR DIARY. ' SHOWS. Apr. 20. —Strath-Taieri, (Middlemarch). Apr. 20.—Mackonzio County (Fairlie).> •• Apr. 30—Malvern A. and 1!. (Sheffield), May-29.—Tokomairiro Farmers' Club -(M& '. '. ton), , ; , ■ June 2, .8, 4, s.—Otago A.' and P. Winter . , Show (Dvinodin). .. June-12,: 13.—Ashburton A. and P. W-intar .. I-Show.; . - ..v----juno I&,' A. and P. .Winter • Show (Invercargill). y . . , Juno 23; to 26.—National Dairy Show, Palraerston North.. , , : - ' ■. July 8, 11.—Waikato Winter Show (Hamilton).- ■- -: n : ■ ' Oct; 21, 22. —Hawko's Bay A. and P. (Hast ings). ■ . ■ ■■■■ Nov. 5, 0. —Manavatn. >• Nov. 11, 12,-13.—Chrittchnrch. ' Nov. 13, 14.—Wnnganui. . : LONDON WOOL SALES3rd series begin : ... ' May 13 " 4th , „ „ July 14 • sth"" ..." Sept. 1 29 6th »' ■' •, '... '... Nov. 24 STOCK SALES ADVERTISED.: Wednesday, April 15.— H. E. Leigh ton, Said ' Stock, i.t Lower Hntt. - Thursday; r April 16— Dakety and Co.: and '■' New Zealand' Loan and -Mercantile Agency Co., Sale Stock,' at Palmorston North.