A RECORD

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 13 December 1924, Page 4

A RECORD

FOR DAIRY SEASON. PROSPECTS REVIEWED. DOMINION A AVERAGE. EXCEEDED IN TARANAKI.

[With increasing competition from the Argentine, the Baltic States and Siberia, we must keep our butter on a plane so high above the quality of those countries that New Zealand will be in a higher class and not in direct competition. Our cheese is being used over ever-widening districts in the United Kingdom, and more grocers are using it the year round.]

Mr W. M. Singleton, director of the Dairy Division of the Department of Agriculture, made this remark when discussing dairying matters with a representative of the Taranaki Herald. He had expressed satistactmn at the removal o.f certain disabilities in regard to quality, but pointed out the great desirability of there being no of effort to secure the very highest quality. Speaking of the current season. Mr Singleton said there had been an increase in the butter production of New Zealand, a decrease ,in cheese, and an increase in butter-faff. If the summer was equal to the average, we were likely to have a maximum yearly production by the close of the season. Ihe season bids fair to give a production which will exceejd. tnat of any other season or year, provided we get average summer and autumn cojidifc2ons > ’ said Mr Singleton. “The yield of butter-fat, as evidenced by the gi acting figures for the season from August 1 to the end. of November shows an increase of over 10 per cent compared with the corresponding period of last year. .Of : this increase North Taranaki has contributed its full quota and more, inasmuch as the figures for the port of New Plymouth represent an increase of ].B per cent. The season in the South Island has not been so propirious, and this has tended to reduce r® ?F r ! S "? uJd fi fty e obtained had the South Island production been as favourable as that of the North Island Ihe increase has been evidenced m the production of butter rather than in cheese, and this has been contributed to by the dual plant factories devoting their attention to Mmtter for a longer period during the sorimr doubt ess due to the fact that returns liom butter, as evidenced by the price , 1U * High Commissioner’s C u? A have H2en so mu ch more favourpresent 311 tslose f ron i cheese up to the

It will be recalled that during last season some ■ complaint was made with « Ce too much neutraliser or soda flavour in some brands of -New Zealand butter,” Air Singleton proceeded. ‘An endeavour lias been made by the dairy staff and factory managers to overcome this difficulty, and the quality of the butters going into ®, S l a ding stores this season gives good reason to expect that there is much less ground for complaint in conseason's tatter * in

It is also pleasing to note that the trouble previously experienced with-ex-cess water m New Zealand butter has ■ been satisfactorily dealt with. It may be recalled that not one official comseason regarding New Zealand butter being fouiSi on the markets of the United 5 Kingdom showing more than the legal limit of water, despite the fact that during the preceding season quite a number of be^ P of “f tS t W€le receiv<sd and a numhei of factories were mulcted in considerable loss. During the 1923-24 season additional staff was utit on, and wS tpLl f Uttel ' { lOlll e * a <?h churning , ds tes . ted fop water at the grading store. Any churnings found to contain an excess of water were withdrawn tha ; S !! PmeUt ' It J s Phasing to note tuat this season the percentage of of U wn^ SS vf° Und to contain a » excess atep if ho^ 8 a marked reduction on the number found during th e corresponding months of the spring of 1923.” Turning to the Question of the standf, 1 ™ S l ‘ adin g> Mr Singleton said: Por some years there has been a growing demand from directors of dairy companies for more particular recognition of the higher quality butters, me matter has received consideration at a number of conferences, and after consulting the importing houses and the dairy people the department has decided to raise the minimum points for first-grade butter and cheese from January 1 next. Complaint has been made regarding the quality of some of our low-scoring first-grade butters, and it is believed that the raising of the minimum points will induce the manufacturers of much, of this class of butter to make a Unore strenuous endeavour to produce better quality; if not this low-sconiig .first-grade butter will, - after the New'. } ear, be branded as secondgrade rather than first-grade. This apphes to cheese as welf as to butter 1 his action should be in the direct interests or the dairy producers, and should be o.f assistance in briwnnff more money into the Dominion foAhe benefit of the suppliers and the community generally. ; “The present minimum points for first-grade butter or cheese are 88 Alter January 1 they will lie 90, all though for the balance of the season the grading will he eased to some extent so that the change will not lie epute so abrupt as it otherwise would

o Readers may note that whereas Mr £ ln % e * on S* ves t^ie increase in butterfat for North Taranaki as 18 per cent, it was given as about 12 uer cent in the returns of the, Taranaki' Producers’ Freezing Co., published a few davs ago. Ihe apparent discrepancy is explained by the fact that Mr Singleton’s figures apply to the period August 1 to November 30, while the company’s figures covered the longer period June 30 to December 6. Another point to be obsei ved is that the fact that more butter and less cheese was made this spring than last would swell the grading returns for the early part of the season in a greater proportion than the actual increase in butter-fat production warrants. This is due to butter going into store immediately after manufacture, whereas cheese has to remain at the factories for a iieriod.