EMPIRE AS A UNIT.

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 138, 14 June 1933, Page 16

EMPIRE AS A UNIT.

Taken as a unit, the British Empire is a net importer of cheese to the extent of about 400,000cwt annually. New Zealand, Canada, and Australia and other parts of the Empire exported 2,687,000cwt of cheese in 1926, and for the ensuing years.the amounts exported were 2;493,000, 2,647,000, 2,636,000, 2,591,000. :. In 1926, the importing countries — United Kingdom, Irish Tree State, India, and others—imported 3,039,000 cwt, and in the following years the imports were 2,944,000, 3,010,000, 2,985,000, and 3,106,000ewt. This left Empire net imports of 352,000ewt in 1926, 451,000 in 1927, 363,000 in 1928, 349,000 in 1929, and 515,000 in 1930. The world trade in the variety of cheese most popular in the United Kingdom, namely Cheddar, is almost entirely within the Empire. The Empire net imports consist of special cheeses of a kind not made in the Empire— Gorgon?ola, Parmesan, Roquefort, Gruyere, the Dutch cheeses, and ojher varieties. It would not be out of place to em-

phasise the value of dairy produce texpbrted from New Zealand. Butter and cheese predominate as dairy exports, after which follow casein, dried milk, and then condensed or preserved milk or cream. The following particulars show the value of dairy produce exported from New Zealand for the years 1929-32:— Butter: £13,228,000, £11,854,000, £10,650,000, £10,639,000. Cheese: £7,017,000, £6,438,000,: £4,461,000, £4,951,000. Casein: £168,000, £150,000, £89,000, £59,000. Dried milk: £301,000, £302,000, £225,000,' £237,000. Other, milk products: £51,000, £49,000, V £21.000, £32,000. As. an indication of the growth of the cheese industry in New. Zealand it is interesting to note that in 1904

imports of cheese from New Zealand represented 2.7 per cent, of the United Kingdom's total imports. In 1913, the figure had risen to 19.6, per cent.; in 1924, to 48.1 per cent.; and in 1929 to 52.2 per cent. On the other hand, Canada's cheese imports, which in 1904 represented 65.1 per cent., fell steadily to 31.8 per cent, in 1929. In 1904, imports into the United Kingdom from British countries represented 67.8 per cent, of the total imports, foreign country imports representing 32.2 per cent. Since 1904, British imports' have .'steadily replaced

those from foreign countries, and in 1929 British represented 86 per cent., and those from foreign countries 14 par cent. CHEESE AS A FOOD. The consumption of cheese in New Zealand is low, being only 5.811) per head of population, compared with 23.3 lb in Switzerland, 13.51b in Trance, 12.3 lb in the Netherlands, and 11.81b in Great Britain. In view of the present, trade position, cheese could be used to a greater extent in the Dominion diet. It is not generally recognised that the food value of cheese is very high. As a food it replaces meat, in that it is a food rich in muscle-producing substances, but it really excels meat in that besides being rich in muscle-pro-ducing substances it contains a very appreciable amount of butterfat, and is much richer than meat in minerals, particularly lime and phosphate. Since both these minerals are most important for growing children (and, indeed, for adults) their presence in cheese materially enhances its food value. It has been shown, too, that cheese is rich in all the vitamins, and in this respect, although there is no proof of it, it is quite probable that New Zealand cheese more than favourably compares with cheese of other countries by reason of the fact that New Zealand cheese is produced from the mine of cowa that are always fed on pasture and that are outside the whole year-round. It is'defluitely known that when cows receive green feed all the year round the milk is richer, particularly in vitamins A and D, than the milk of cows stall-fed, .as is the practice in northern Europe for part of the year. Cheeso lends itself to a variety of preparations. It may be used, for instance, in the raw state for luncheons; it may be toasted; and it may be worked into a very wide variety of foods. It can be used as the staple diet, and as a sweet; It can be worked into bread and biscuits, to which it

gives flavour and food value. s There is also the remarkable advantage that cheese can be made in many varieties, each of which has-a'( characteristic flavour, and in that way it appeals to a wide variety of palatesl In general, use

can be found for cheese by a people who .vary widely in their taste. :.

One reason why the Dominion consumption is low is probably the fact that meat is widely used here; yet there is no reason why cheese should not be more extensively used without in any way reducing the consumption of meat. It is noteworthy that the, people of Scandinavia are very- large consumers of cheese.

is necessarily made from pasteurised milk, and the factors which give rise to offensive flavour are, in the process of pasteurisation, mainly destroyed. The term "body" applied to cheese is a technical one, and really denotes its consistency. By a good "body" is meant a cheese which will be firm, and still remain smooth when a portion is kneaded between the fingers. Strong exception is taken to grittiness, and a "soapy" feeling. Texture refers to the closeness of the cheese body. A characteristic Cheddar cheese should be perfectly close. The existence of holes in cheese is repulsive to the eye, and tends to make the cheese dry out unduly when it ia cut. It does not necessarily signify bad flavour, or any other defect in quality. It frequently happens that a cheese which in all other respects is of finest quality is slightly open in .texture. Closeness is a characteristic Of: Cheddar chpese. In some yarieties, particularly'the,Swiss, the cheesemaker's aim" is to develop characteristic holes. In other varieties, notably the blue-veined, of which the English Stilton, Gorgonzola, and Boquefort are well-known examples, an open texture is sought so that a green mould can readily grow in the cheese and impart to it its characteristic aromatic flavour. ..-..■ Colour in cheese is an. important point. There are two distinctive colours, namely, white, and that known to the community as "coloured." _ The colour of coloured types varies in accordance with consumers' demands. Some like a mild straw colour, while others prefer a deep yellow. The colour varies considerably with the market demand, which again varies with the district, particularly in Britain. The colour of coloured cheese is due to the addition to the cheese milk of a a liquid made from the seeds of a plant called bixa orellana, which grows in Jamaica, and can be grown' in the South Pacific islands. ~ , White cheese, on the other hand, varies in colbur./v Inmost districts