THE BUTTER MARKET.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 9588, 4 September 1913, Page 6

THE BUTTER MARKET.

WEDDEL AND CO.'S REPORT. "It is nomewhat discouraging," »tate4 YTeddel and Co.'s annual report on the imported dairy produce trade o.f England, "to have to record for the second year in succession a serious reduction in the import oi butter in(o the Mother "Country from llie UritUh Dominions. The great increases made in* the }oars ending June 30, 1910. and more notably 1911. when the highest export •ver known was recorded, raised the expectation that the United Kingdom could rely upon a growing supply of butter from the outlying parts of the Empire. The encouraging prospect then opened up has disappeared, and uncertainty as to these npplies being maintained in the future again prevaiU, notwithstanding the more : .vourable prospects for the coming year. A reduction of 13,027 tons or 24.6 per cent from tli3 previous season is a sad record to have to write over the past year, but it is unhappily true, the total import the overseas Dominions into the United Kingdom for 1913. being only 39.830 tons. That r ;g 21.153 tons below the record year of 1911, when 61.023 tons arrived. The Dominions of New Zealand and Canada show si riou* deficencic3 for the past, year, as itUo do various Australian States with the 'sole exception of Queensland, which increased her shipments by 2307 tons. The past year bears witness to the fact that Canadian supplies of butter to the Mother Country, whicK began to reach England about the middle of the 19rh century, have come to an end. and the only consoling circumstances in connection with this fact is that i: •."!.> to the prosperity of Canada and :• imye ised consumption arising from the rapid growth of population. So recently as i'i the yo..r ended .Line. 1906 'Canada sort no less than 10.145 to England. In 1911-12 she sent 2997. but'this was an unjustifiably large export brought about by the extraordinary high pikes prevailing in England in the autumn of 1911. and be- > - the year closed Canada was compelled to import butter from Great Britain and Zealand, having over-exported her siot ks mid not- having enough to supply her own population Die Commonwealth of< Australia and the Dominion of Nev Zealand are now the only two sources of supply of British oversea butter. Both sent reduced quantities in the past year. Australia by 7263 tons, and New Zealand by 2767 tons. This, however, does net predicate a permanent reduction, but is probably only a temporary shortage, clue to climatic conditions. The uncertainty of the Australian climate for butter production is now well known, and supplies from that source will probably continue to fluctuate .nore than those from some other countries. New Zealand for the past ten years has «ent a comparatively steady supply to the Mother Country, though the past year exhibits a deficit ef 2767 tons from 1912. This shortage, however, is due" to two very different causes: one is the growing tendency among the factories to substitute cheese for butter making, for. while arrivals of butter have fallen off those of cheese have increased by 4486 tons; the other factor is the prosperity of Canada, which during tha past year imported from New Zealand about 3000 tons via Vancouver. Although New Zealand has sent much less butter to the United Kingdom her actual output was probably as great as in any previous year. "Quality.—Whatever may be the cause, there is no denying the fact that the quality of Australasian butter this year was not so good as in the previous season. A distinct improvement in New Zealand was then reeorded. though there was at the same time a falling off in quality of Australian, attributable to the 1911-1912 drought in New South Wales and Queensland. Last year the drought passed away from Queensland, but. Unfortunately appeared in Victoria, the premier State, in Australia for quantity and qualitjV, consequently the proportionate shortage of "choicest" butter on British markets has been accentuated., and thie has had the eftoc-r of lowering the average of Australian quality. New Zealand butter, during the past season, while still maintaining its superiority over Australian, has shown in •. few cases a falling away from the standard Of previous years, and has not fully maintained the progress recorded a year ago. The increasing use of private separators and of milking machines is suspected as ■ probable cause of this decline. It may be that climatic conditions during the past season were not so favourable for butter making as formerly, or it nay be that some of the factories which were specially recognised for the superior quality of their output have been converted into cheese factories, but in any case there was not the same proportion of choicest butter exported to the United Kingdom as in the preceding year. "Nearly two-thirds of the imports of foreign butter into England came from Scandinavian sources—Denmark. Sweden, ana Norway, and amounted, for rive year K-Ktar review, to 99,757 tons."