DAIRY INDUSTRY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21982, 13 December 1934, Page 22

DAIRY INDUSTRY

NEW PRODUCTION ERA POINTS FOR ATTENTION BY PAN It can truly bo said that our dairying industry is in the melting pot Wo have come to tho parting of the ways and a new era is commencing. Tho position is so serious that the Legislature has enacted a measure which will place the control of our great primary industry largely in tho hands of the Government of the country. This action was inevitable and was, in fact, overdue. One looks back to the achievements of New Zealand dairymen in former days and wonders if it is not possible to regain tho proud position we once occupied on the London market. It is necessary to take stock and review the position fully before deciding what measures are neocssary to achieve this desirable result. The -factor of quality is one of the most urgent problems and will be quite sufficient to absorb all our attention in these studies. From the GovernorGeneral downward authorities hav© stressed the need for a more uniformly high standard of quality in our dairy products, particularly butter and cheese. The point to consider is how it can be brought about. Lack ol Training The dairy industry is different in many ways from other trades and occupations. and in ono particular, at least, this difference is striking. It is usual in other callings for workers to serve some form of apprenticeship in which to learn the theory and practice of the trade. During the term of apprenticeship there is usually a probationary period for the purpose of allowing the person to decide whether the proposed trade or calling will bo congenial to him and also to determine whether he has any natural aptitude for the work. Although commercial dairying ib much more involved and intricate than many other occupations, this necessary introduction ha? not been given to numbers of dairy farmers who are on the land to-day. This absence of training on the part of some of its members has proved a serious handicap to the industry in these times of difficulty and stress. A correspondent writing to the press recently expressed the opinion that if 20 per cent of the dairy-farmers were eliminated, the remaining 80 per cent would make good and save the industry* from collapse. This was interesting reading because, as the result of lengthy shed-inspection work, the writer had mentally divided dairy-farmers into two classes. First there was the larger number to whom the term dairyman could bo correctly applied. These men have the dairying instinct, tho sense of order and cleanliness, a liking for the animals they tend and many other virtues necessary to success in dairying pursuits. The other class —fortunately very much smaller —comprised those who were only milkers of cow&. They would likely be quite satisfactory in some other walk of life, but are not so as dairy-farmers. This is one of the problems awaiting solution and it will have to be attacked in due course. Our Advantages Td help us in meeting the competition of European and other Northern peoples we have certain advantages which have already been enumerated. Climate, dairy cows, pastures and rainfall ar© only a few of the conditions in our favour. We have, however, a number of drawbacks to offset these which require our serious attention. Distance from our principal market is a handicap which may be minimised, to a certain extent only; by faster steamers and better loading arrangements at this end. Two adverse factors of more serious moment ar© "undoubtedly our almost universal abuse of milkingmachines and. of the home-separation system. Both of these have become established gradually, which perhaps accounts for oqr failure to regulate and fix them firmly upon a proper working basis. To enable us to understand the r<sal significance of these two factors it is necessary to consider the position of our competitors in relation to these handicaps of ours. With the exception of the Australian article w© may conclude that the butter we have to compete with roaches, the London market in a fresh, un-} frozen state, and is made, sold, andeaten within the short space of, say»i two weeks. Milking-machines ar© unknown or ar© of the bucket type, which is .noted for the short length of milktubing attached to each unit, making it easy to cleanse and sterilise. Strangely enough milking-machine hygiene has not received from us that close attention so very necessary to the production of clean milk; indeed, incredible as it may seem we have not Oven a recognised standard of cleanliness and sterilysis to work to. In most cases every supplier is a law unto himself in this important matter, and even where farm dairy instructors are employed each has his own idea of what constitutes a clean and sterile milkingmachine. Frequent Sterilisation In this connection the results of this year's better-milk competition in Yorkshire is of particular interst. milking-machines. The judges said among other things: ' that in most cases there wero Vide daily fluctuations in tho bacterial quality of the milk. After each milking it is , necessary to dismantle, wash and thorouchly sterilise all parts coming in contact with the milk. The competition proved that the importance of sterilisation «f all utensils is becoming more fully appreciated each year. Where, however, the steriliser was used only once dailv the bacteriological examinations of the milk often gave disappointing results." In view of our almost universal practice of sterilising milking machines only once daily, and in some cases not at all, while tho dismantling, or taking wholly to pieces is mostly done only at long intervals, those words are full of interest to us. They are very timely just now when our new era of dairying is being introduced.