No Can’ts For Dairy Industry

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 107, 7 May 1941, Page 4

No Can’ts For Dairy Industry

Must Meet Britain's Needs APPEAL BY PROFESSOR W. RIDDET '‘There can’t be any can’ts in this business,” declared Professor W. Riddet, director of the Dairy Research Institute, when speaking yesterday to dairy factory managers attending the tenth annual w'eek held by the institute in order that they might learn about the research work of the past twelve months. Professor Riddet was speaking of war problems facing the industry and urged that the requests of Britain must be met by readjusted systems. Our difficulties were as nothing' compared with those facing the Old Country and the least we could do was to meet the wishes of the United Kingdom, he said. Whether the change to cheese would be permanent was a matter for the future. There had been a falling market for cheese because of cheap meats offered the British consumer but as a war measure the people had accepted the dictum of the dietitians that cheese was better for them. The turn to greater cheese consumption might be permanent but even if only temporary New Zealand must make the change over to help the Mother Country. Professor Riddet added that it must also be recognised that the production of food stuffs in New Zealand was not nearly so important as it was twelve months ago. Manpower was more important now and the industry must make arrangements to relieve all possible types of manpower for the armed forces. We must readjust systems of manufacture in order to use less or substitute labour. It may well happeu that in factories women will have to be used and he asked that womenfolk be not turned away. Britain was making good use of their services. Labour might also have to be transferred from one factory to another such as buttermakers to cheese making. Massey College was arranging for short courses to enable women to learn the rudiments ot : factory work and buttermakers to get a knowledge of cheese making. The delegates stood in. appreciation of the magnificent fight put up by New Zealand’s Forces in Greece and to honour the memory of those who had fallen.