DAIRY PRODUCE AND PETITE CULTURE.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1264, 21 May 1896, Page 5

DAIRY PRODUCE AND PETITE CULTURE.

C. R. VALENTINE'S LECTURE.

From Our Special Correspondent

London, March 27,

On Tuesday evening Mr Charles R. Valentine, some time Dairy Produce Expert for the Government of New Zealand, delivered a lecture on “The Colonies and the supply of Dairy Produce and the products of Petite Culture,” before the foreign and colonial section of the Society of Arts. The meeting was presided over by Sir Westby Perceval. It was a very meagre one, and if one had deleted tho pressmen and the Tooley street element, I question whether more than a dozen persons would have been left, Sir Westby introduced the lecturer with becoming brevity, and apologised for the absence of his successor, Mr Reeves. Then Mr Valentine set to work to read his exhaustive paper. It would have been exhausting to himself, and to us also, had he not cut it down by quite one half. As it was, Mr Valentine took a good fit) minutes to get through. His paper contained little that has not been said before, and little to which one could take exception. On the whole it was delightfully optimistic. He touched first upon the dependence of England upon outside food supplies, the growth of her population and the inert used consumption of the masses brought about by tho advance in wages, pointing out that whilst in the last 15 years tho population of England had risen from 34£ millions to 40 millions, tho home production has done little or nothing towards feeding the new mouths. Getting to the colonies he briefly sketched the paternal policy of the [ colonial Governments in relation to the food exports and touched upon the climatic and cheap land advantages held by colonial producers. The only drawback to the trade he said was freight, and to meet this handicap ho thought it was necessary that all the export trade from Australia should he thoroughly organized with a view to regulate shipments and ensure their uniformity in bulk and sequence of delivery. Owing to irregularity of shipments, tho existing cold storage capacity of the vessels that actually sail is little more than half availed of. Based at per sheep carcase it may be said that where vessels made six journeys, four would do. Regarding distribution lieie, Mr Valentine said there was room for improvement; the produce should not he gambled with, and the consignments might be sent direct to the large consuming centres. He thought that with the matter of freight arranged, and a more sympathetic system of distribution in vogue, the colonies could feed the Old Country “to advantage and cheaply, apart from Continental supplies.” Sentiment should, he said, induce us to prefer colonial to foreign products, but he recognised that intrinsic merit alone will carry the day for the colonial producers.

RUTTER. Butter was the first item of the lecturer’s list. His initial point wits the fact that since 1889 the import of butter into Great Britain has risen nearly two million cwt. Ho showed that France and Germany were falling off in their imports, and that the growih of Swedish and Danish imports could not go on at the rate they have been doing in recent years. He looks to Australasia to claim a greater proI portion of the next million cwt increase ; than .-lie. has done for the increased [ impoi t since 1892. In spite of low [prices Mr Valentine thinks that tho ! “ pro eminence of Australasia i.s assured ” in the dairy produce trade with the Old Country. Touching upon Canada the lecturer noted the development of I lie butter-making industry there, and seemed to indicate that the fosteiing of winter dairying there would lead to a very considerable export to England in the cold season as well as in summer. Mr Valentine then gave each of the butier-producing colonies a lit lie attention, and proved that each one could enormously increase its output. As regards New Zealand he said it would seem that purely pastoral farming there will bo greatly modified, and the farming of the future points to mixed husbandry—the growing of grain, beef, wool and mutton, combined with the production of milk, pork and fruit. There is still an immense area of land that can be put under dairying, and enormously

increase the output, and no country is capable of producing richer or better milk, ur producing it more cheaply than New Zealand. In New Soutli Wales Mr Valentine thinks the dairying development must advance as rapidly and markedly in the neat-

future as in the near past, and that every year butter will take a bette: footing on the market, and displace much inferior Continental. lie looks also for a regular export from Queensland and Tasmania, but apparently has no great belief in South Australia or Western Australia becoming large exporters of butter. Mr Valentine concluded that Australasia could keep up the trade in the face of any competition, but it seemed to me that he did not give much prominence to Argentina, which country without doubt, will soon become a very formidable rival to Australasia in the English butter market. Turning to

CHEESE. Mr Valentine put the English impor at 2,000,000 cwt, of which Canach sends over one half, the United State. l about one fourth, and Belgium about one seventh. Regarding the Australa sian import, the lecturer said that everything Was in favour of New Zealand taking the lead, but he recognised the fact that there are many districts in Victoria and New South Wales quite capable of producing an article equal to the best Canadian. Apparently he looks for an increased supply from all three colonies, so we may look for an evpn lower range ol prices in the near future. You can’t oust American and Dutch cheese except by starving them out. On the question of condensed milk, Mr Valentine had nothing to say worth quoting, except that the present supply seemed fully equal to the demand. Denmark, he told us, is turning her attention to the trade in frozen milk. A company has been started in Copenhagen for the regular export of congealed milk to England. On the subject of BACON AND HAMS

the lecturer was brief. Great Britain’s bill for alien pig meat is over ten millions per annum, of which Canada gets about seven per cent, Denmark about 25 per cent., the United States about 50 per cent. Mr Valentine has hopes that New Zealand v. ill get a share of the Old Country’s patronage in this article. He said:—‘‘Any export of bacon for Australasia at present is nominal. The pig fattening industry, however, will follow the cheese factoiy, and in the near future must receive the close attention of those concerned in the dairy industry.

Having regard to the low prices of grain in New Zealand, and its great value in the production of bacon and pork, together with utilisation of the by-products from tbe dairies and factories, there should be no difficulty

in developing an important industry The profitable use of tho whey and butter-milk is too important a matter

to allow of it being neglected, and New Zealand bacon would find a market in colonies and countries nearer homo than Great Britain. Co operation appears to bo the method to bring this to a successful issue.” POULTRY AND EGGS came next. Our poultry hill last year was £005,000. Of this, France claimed L 261,500 ; Belgium, L12C.000; Russia, L 85,417 ; Holland, L 49.318; Germany, L 39.254 ; Norway, L 10,610; Denmark, L 7523 ; United States of America, L 9523 \ and Australasia about L7OOO. The value per head of population of these products has gradually increased, and (svitli rabbits) is now about G 1 per h'-ad as against 4 I

in 1885, and 2d in 1875 The French imports have slightly ('alien off, and it said this is due to the high price of meat in France, owing to which the natives are willing to pay higher prices for poultry than those obtainable in London. This goes to show (Mr Valentine avers), that the colonies could drive a good deal of the French import off the market, selling at a slightly cheaper rate. Mr Valentine thinks there is a good opening for a colonial trade in poultry in G eat Britain, more especially from the Antipodes. What the colonies must look to is to provide for the spring trade in England, and also tor the large bird trade at Christmas. The trade would be a season trade, and have to be specially catered for. As an adjunct to general farming managed on co-operative lines it will be very remunerative, and, from Victoria’s experience, it is but a matter of time. For spring young chickens must be

good prices. For eggs Great Biitiau’s bill in 1895 was L 4,003,410. But in this trade Mr Valentine does not appear to think Australasia can shine. He said Canada appears, owing to her proximity, to have the best chance of all the colonies to increase her trade in eggs with England. The Australasian

colonies will never lie able to compete with France and the nearer Continental countries in tbe production of fresh eg"S. At the same time a considerable trade can be established by an improved system of conveying eygsjiti cool chambers, and the colonies should be able to com pete successfully against Russian and Italian and deliver better eggs at a higher price, RABBITS.

England’s annual rabbit account averages about L 300,000 ; last year it was L 315,585, the Australian colonies took about L22,<)00, and Belgium L 234,289. Air Valentine thinks a much greater proportion should be claimed by Australasia in the near futme, since lie believes the colonial rabbit to be a superior dish to the “stall fed ” Belgian bunny, and can be sent here and sold at a price defying | competition. He also stated that there is a deattli of tinned rabbits at the present time. FRUIT. The Old Country’s foreign raw fruit bill was L1,8(35,825, and the consumption of fruit per head has risen from 2.s 5d per head in 1860 to about 3s Mr Valentine’s remarks in connection with this trade seemed to me to indicate that with the exception of apples Australasia’s trade with the Old Country would bo mainly in dried or preserved fruits. On tho subject of

WJNE,

the lecturer was not particularly happy lie touched upon the work of the South Australian Depot, and gave some general figures relating to the Australian import, but, as lie is no authority on the subject, I refrain from quoting more than his concluding remarks. He said, “To sum up, the United Kingdom imports annually 14,000,000 gallons of wine. Austuilia only supplies 400,000 gallons. An improved system of marketing is needed. The cost of carriage and the heavy duty are serious items, but all the same fair remunerative prices can be obtained for sound red and white wines hero if properly placed before the public. It would seem to be necessary that the colonies should co-operate in this trade as a whole. First and foremost the colonies must take up tho business of wine-growing and wine-making on scientific principles, applying special knowledge and trained skill both to the growing and the making. It all means capital expenditure, time and money, and the colonies as a whole could bear it better than singly.” On the subject of honey also Mr Valentine had nothing fresh to say, and his remarks upon tobacco amounted to an expression of opinion that properly treated the Australian product should equal any other in ordinary use. In conclusion the leoturer s.tid : “ In considering the capabilities of production of Australia in tbe articles of food supply, &c., that I have referred to, it must lie borne in mind that, much as the seven Antipodean colonies do, agriculture therein has not passed the tentative stage, therefore, as we receive produce so excellent, so varied and in such quantity now, what may wo not receive in days to come and near at I band ] Producing everything than can lie. grown, could not Australasia with Canada alone in days to come supply us with all we receive from Europe that we could not produce ourselves!’

As to the discussion—well then wasn’t anything said worth recording,

We all agreed that the paper was interesting and informative, and were unanimous in holding that every effort made to make the Old Country independent of “ furrin ” food stuffs was laudable in the extreme. We also agreed with Air E. AI. Nelson that the time to encourage our colonial sources of supply was in the piping times of peace.