PROPOSED ALTERATIONS OF GRADING.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 18 July 1924, Page 4

PROPOSED ALTERATIONS OF GRADING.

(To the Editor). Sir, —With reference to the resolution passed at the N.D'.A. conference at Auckland lequesting the.. Department oi Agriculture to raise the hist grade points of butter and cheese from tit; to 90, w-e wish to enter a protest, as we are of the opinion that to do so will not .be in the best interests of the producers of this Dominion, but rather will have very much, .the reverse sheet. In the first place, we think that the Dairy Division will admit that nearly if not aif of the factory managers m New Zealand to-day are making the very best article that they are capable of making with the* milk that tnev receive. That being so, 'if there is more low grade produce than we like to see, the fault must be mostly from the two following cause's: The suppliers do not- deliver the raw; article in as good oendition as they should', and some of the managers have not had the chance to learn all that “should be learnt about" the manufacture of butter and cheese, which latter difficulty can be overcome by a laboratory -for research work in this. line. The former difficulty is being overcome by several factories by employing a dairy, inspector, who is paid by the factories and has the power of the Department be r hind him. We understand that the idea for raising the grade points is to get our manufacturers to make a higher grade of article. We are of the opinion that it would have the reverse effect for different reasons, and at the same time spoil the good name, of Neir Zealand producers on the Fthklish market. Seeing that at file present time the managers are; doing their very best, the higher the minimum first grade point is raised, the more second grade produce is going to be shipped, from New Zealand; and.it must be realised that a very considerable amount of produce is graded from 88 to 90, and this will have the effect of lowering the standard of our prodube in the eyes of the consumers of our produce at Home.

There are a few questions we would like to ask the Dairy Division: Has the produce * that has been graded from 88 to 90 in the past been a first-class article, or has it not? Do the merchants and others tell us the truth when they tell us that our produce is surpassed by none on the London market?

We have been listening to such words of approval for years, and endeavouring to live up to “them, and now we are given to understand, by whom, we do not know, that the quality pf our produce is going down. Is it ja fact that for some years the Dairy Division has been endeavouring to get most dairy factories to pasteurise milk for cheese making? We know they strong favour pasteurisation, and in this we think they are wrong. They aim at getting one uniform article with good keeping qualities, but flat in flavour and not appreciated by the general public of this district at •least, and seem to overlook the very notable fact that there are all kinds of tastes for good cheese to he catered for. At the same time it is recognised in many quarters that the nutrient and digestive qualities of unpasteurised cheese are much in advance of the pasteurised article. This does not apply to cheese alone, hut to all milk foods'. Another point against pasteurisation is that once pasteurisers are installed in a factory many farmers are not so careful about their milk supply, thinking, either rightly or wrongly, the machines will make it all right. Therefore nasturising milk is putting a premium on filth, and after all is it not much better to educate the producer along the lines of cleanliness ? In the eyes of many factory directors the raises of the grade by two points is playlng into the hands of the merchants and manufacturers of pasteurisers. At the same time it makes the cost of manufacture very much higher, the cost of fuel alone amounting to about 10s per ton of cheese. When you add to that the cost of extra building boiler P? 5« r > and pasturisers for an ordinary fa o to l y ’ amounting to about idOlX), and the interest and depreciar 1 thereon, it will be a serious item to the dairv farmers. It will be a heavy expenditure which is not justified by results, for as a rule the nonpasturised cheese brings as high, and fcsk* price on the London maiket than the nasteurised article and in consequence the non-pasteurisl mg factories often pay out a better P r to their suppliers. This question will he discussed at the meeting of factory directors to be held n £ the 21st inst., when the of a. federation 2 c . tor, «s for South Taranaki is to be considered.—l am, etc., G. W. GANE, Director Normanby Dairv Co.