DAIRY PRODUCE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 533, 14 June 1909, Page 10

DAIRY PRODUCE.

■(<, THE 3HOISTURE QUESTION A: H'.PER iCENT. BUTTER KEEPS BEST. The complaints as to excess of moisture- in this. year's Australasian butter *in Britain recoive official ondorsement from "tho British Government; Laboratory. In a report issued from that source i'lip to : iLarch 31 last, attention, is :,called to.,tho increaso, in. tio amouiit' of .water 'contained in' certain.. Australasian butter.' ."In; previous years (says the Melbourne '.'Age, ). these makes had established a', reputation for dryness, the moisture:.averaging'; 10. to.,;' 11.-per;, cent. - , whereas'' , at .the datd :mentiqned above 'the proportion'had risen to 13 pk cent. "'"..The characteristic, dryness had made.such butters peculiarly useful to' tho fraudulent trader,who realised; largo profits by blending-the imported article with milk, and thus increasing; its moisture contents to'something like 24 : per.cent.' : The-result of.this popularity among■ butter 'faker's',' and the remunerative nature; of their operations, • have apparently corrupted the. morals of the Now Zealand and somo other Australasian producers. Tho latter aro said to bo gradually raising the amount of moisture.in_their butters, in tho endeavour to eecure immediate gains, or to prevent others from benefiting at their expense'by'■ illegitimate "means. , ""■ According to the London ' Grocer,' this policy is now .so extensively followed that samples , which fall appreciably below tho standttd of 16 per cent, fixed by law promise to bo tho oxcep ? tion rather than.tbo rulo. Tho marked tendency, to which Tefereuco was ; mado in the official Teport is - being converted into i> common practico, and many producers seom; to have_ gone from ono_ extreme to the other. Complaints,among.British importers in re--spect to mbistnrp in Now Zealand .butter hnve, / states tho 'Grocer, , , been frequent and sorere of: kto. A limit of: even up to 14. per cent, of moisture is perfectly safe and legitimate', as amalgamation of the water with, tho: fatty components is more complete than when only 10 per cent, moisture is present. It is an incontrovertible fact that the former is a finer andbetter keeping article than one containing only 9 to 10 per cent, moisturo that ia not properly : amnlgamated with ; tho fatty solids of ■ the butter. But a factory that deliberately at/tempts to work up. to .tho 16 per ■.and ehios a .waterlogged butter does aot pro- : moto. : .the > «spansion and prosperity;. of the dairying industry." /., . . ' '.-, . '■'■'