DAIRY PRODUCE

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 189, 8 May 1931, Page 11

DAIRY PRODUCE

Position of the Industry

STATEMENTS CHALLENGED

Farmers’ Difficulties

A reply to some statements appearing in an article published in “The Dominion” yesterday, which struck an optimistic note in regard to the dairy industry, was made to a “Dominion representative by Mr. T. C, Brash, secretary to the Dairy Board. Mr. Brash said he was by nature an optimist, and appreciated optimism in these trying days. He pointed out, however, that optimism must be based on facts, and said that there were certain statemenst made in the article referred to which would scarcely be classed as such. It was true that the stock position in London, as far as butter was concerned, was fairly healthy and consumption had-been increased—due to low prices and the well-sustained advertising being carried on by the Dairy Board. The board, out of funds supplied by the producers themselves, had been spending £15,000 a year in advertising New Zealand dairy P r <** u <i e - The work of the Empire Marketing Board was certainly assisting, but Mr. Brash pointed out that the Empire Marketing Board never advertised the New Zealand dairy produce, but simply Empire produce.

Effect of Herd Testing.

It was true also, as stated in the same article, that the average production per cow in New Zealand had increased in recent years. This had been due to the increase in the amount of herd-testing being carried on, and while the Government had assisted in this work, the cost of it had largely been borne by the dairy producer himself. It should be mentioned, too, that for the coming season, owing to the difficulty which the dairy farmer was finding in keeping the flour bag full, there was a great danger of his being: unable to continue with the work of h£ra te The B ’points in the article which tended to be misleading, he said, were, firstly the statement that a well-run butter factory should pay out 1/0} to 1/1 on homeseparated cream for the present season. As a matter of fact, the average payout by butter factories was more likely to be in the nature of lid- than 1/1, and it was interesting to note that the payout for butter factories m the 1913-14 season was 1/-. The article further stated that "the whole position of the New Zealand butter producer has been immensely strengthened by the recent course of the market.” This again was misleading, as the market had been gradually falling for the last four or five weeks, and there was no indication that it was likely to rise. The statement that the great bulk of the butter and cheese for the present season had been already sold, also tended to convey a wrong impression, as up to the present date only two-thirds of the season’s butter had been sold, end three-fifths of the season’s cheese.

Present Cheese Position.

It was interesting to note that the article was entirely , silent regarding the present cheese position. New Zealand dairy producers shipped some 90,009 tons of cheese a year, an amount equal to the total export of butter, and the prices being realised for cheese were so serious that unless there was an improvement it was doubtful if the production of cheese could be continued. The. average payout by cheese factories to their suppliers for the present season would probably run from Old. to lOd. a lb. of butter-fat In 191314 the average payout for cheese factories was 1/2, and even in 1905-9 season it was more could be said regarding the difficulties of the dairyfarmers at the present time, especially in connection with the cost of production, which is still 40 per cent, to '5O per cent, above pre-war Mr. Brash concluded.