GERMAN SCIENTIST

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVI, Issue 248, 17 September 1936, Page 8

GERMAN SCIENTIST

STUDY OF DAIRY METHODS

VISIT TO PALMERSTON NORTH

New Zealand’s prestige as a leading agricultural country stands lug " ° estimation of Germany, according to Professor W. Mohr,. Director of the Department of Physics at the Research Institute attached University, who yesterday visited la - merston North. Informing » »Una ard” representative, in an T +lns that lie had been sent out to tins country by the German Government to study dairy methods in the Domimon, where he is spending five weeks, i o fessor Mohr stated that he hoped to maintain in future, to the mutual advantage of Germany and New Zea land, the contacts which he had establlSDN mission to New Zealand was undertaken, said Professor Mohr because few European farmers or dan j men engaged in either . the scientific or practical sides of agriculture, kne much about New Zealand conditions. It had been very interesting to usit this country, exchange information and learn new methods of inci easing production or developing the agricultural possibilities of Germany. LOCAL CONDITIONS PRAISED. “For a small country New Zealand has made remarkable progress, attaining a high standard, and the futuie possibilities are very good, stated Professor Mohr, who spent some time, yesterday, at the New Zealand Dairy Research Institute at Massey College, which he considered to be admirably situated. He praised the work being done in the laboratories there, adding that at Kiel he and seven other professors were engaged on similar problems. They dealt at the German institute with all manner of dairy research, from feeding and breeding experiments for butter, cheese and tresli milk, to dried milk and casein. Having had the opportunity to se<s some of the Manawatu grasslands yesterday afternoon, Professor Mohr described them as beautiful, adding that he had been very interested and impressed. Germany had no such pastures, the only land comparable being the hilly country in the southern part of Germany. Having different climatic conditions from New . Zealand b, and a very clear demarcation of summer and winter, Germany had to keep her cattle in stalls during the wintei months, feeding them with rape, turnips, ensilage, and the leaves of the sugar beet, besides other stock foods. GERMANY’S FOOD PROBLEM. Germany, said Professor Mohr, did not produce enough food for her internal requirements, and was see King to increase her production per acre. Sli6 was compelled to import butter from Denmark, Poland, Austria, and England, and took some from New Zealand, whose product was__ highly regarded for its keeping qualfties. Germans did not consume clieddar or Cheshire cheese. Their land available for dairying was very limited, because Germany had to grow wheat and corn also in her agricultural areas. Economic conditions in Germany’ were good, commented Professor Mohr, and in three years the number of workless had been reduced from 6,000,000 to 1,500,000. The taxation position was not too good, but conditions generally were better. Professor Mohr stated that lie had met Dr. F. H. McDowall, of the New Zealand Dairy Research Institute, at the Dairy Confress in London in 1928, i that he had met Professor W. Riddet in London while en route to Canada and New Zealand, and was acquainted with Dr. H. R. Whitehead, all being engaged in research activities at Palmerston North. The next Dairy Congress would be held in Berlin in August, 1937, and he hoped to see New Zealand represented, so that its research scientists could see something of dairying conditions in Germany and Europe.