EXPORT OF BUTTER INDUSTRY IN VICTORIA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2203, 21 May 1896, Page 7

EXPORT OF BUTTER INDUSTRY IN VICTORIA.

Tbe Australasian gives the following condensation of the annual report furnished by Mr D. Wilaon, Govtrumeub dairy c-xp-rb, ta the Victorian ftSinistei for Agriculture :—: — A short S' a:on' and a ahorb supply of milk during the season greatly reduced the quantity of butter it was estimated early in the year would be coming forward for export. During the shipping season 1894-95 there were exported through youc department 11.584J tons of butter, valued at £1,081,243 The output for the shipping season now ending, however, to England and the colonies bits oaly reached 9386 tons in weight, and £876,026 iv value. Tho low price of cheese in England daring the season prevented extensive export** being made of thii produce, the milk-growers finding it more profitable to convert their milk into butter than cheese. The complete return of shipments through the refrigerating depot for this season is as follows :—: —

ALLEGED ADULTERATION OP VICTORIAN BUTTER. In the first place, it would not pay our factories to adulterate with foreign fats, and, in the second place, if the practice were attempted it would not be long before the fact would come within the knowledge of the department. The Dairymen's Association declare that the adulteration of butter consigned fom the country factories for export is a thing unknown in Victoria. If bitter br&nied as Victorian, and adulterated with foreign fat, should happen to be retailed in England, either the adulteration is done iv England or Victorian secondhand boxes are purahaaed by English retailers and packed wibh adulterated butter. "fishy" butter. Complaints frequently reach ua from England about whit is termed " fi<hy" butter, or, as W8 term it here, " cheesy " butter. Tfae?e complaints are most frequent when the butter m-irketis glutted. Taere aro several causes, the principal of which, however, are :—: — Neglacting to aerate the milk when paeturas a ye rank and strong tasting wee's abundant. Accepting from suppliers milk tbat is partly sour, or perhaps just "on the turn," separating the cream from th.it milk, and churniug it into butter. Churning cream at too high a temperature, and neglecting to air the chum during the operation. Working, sal'iug, an I packing the butter at too high a temperature, frequently SOdeg and 90dtg, whereas this work should never be attempted when the temperature is over 60Jeg. DAIRY EDUCATION. When the enormrus quantity of butter we are now annually producing in Victoria is taken into consideration it will be\ recognised that some inferior butter is certain to be manufactured. Without wishing to b3 an alarmiet, I cannot help referring to iha fact that the , quantity of inferior butter annually manufactured in Victoria demands immediate remedial measure* beiug taken. The only remedial measure likely to have any permanent | eftVct would be the training of our buttermakers in dairy schools and tt&tions. There is a want of uniformity in the system of management adopted by our best factory managers, while amongst many of them, where sufficient salary is not paid to secure the services of skilled men, great ignorance prevails of the fl'st principles of butter-making. Government instruction and Government supervision have given New Zealand dairy produce a reputation for quality and uniformity that has establisbeJ for it an eq^lity in value when placed on the English market. Dairy education, then, having accomplished so much for New Zealand, why not give the system a trial in Victoria ? INSPECTION OF DAIET HEEDS. That It would help to protect the reputation of our butter in England to have our dairy herds inspected by veterinary surgeons needs no argument. Much more, however, is being made of the question of the inspection of dairy herds than there is any occasion for. Nevertheless, it

is not sufficient that we should rest satisfied with a knowledge of that fact Whit is required is that evidence be furnished to the great body of British consumers that will guarantee to them that ouc butter is the product of pure milk obtained from cattle certified to by competent inspectors as being free from contagious and other diseases. The machinery necessary for such inspection already exiats. The regulations of "The Health Act 1890" require shire and borough councils to make periodical inspections of all dairy premises'and. dairy herds within their respective boundaries. The regula ions, however, have never been enforced. CHEESE Oar export of cheese during the season amounted only to 63 tons. The ruinously low prices that had to be accepted last season, just when our cheese factories m ids a start and Victorian chesfie wjs beginning to ba known in the E iglish inavket, discouraged the production of this article for the tima. Prices for cheese last season were the lowest recorded in England for 20 year 3. Coupled with the low price for cheese thera was the drought, which, causing a scarcity of milk, made -it more remunerative to nunuf&oture butter thau cheese. SUPERVISION BEFORE EXPORT. Regarding the advantages of strict supervision before export, and the value of a reDogoised Government _brand as a guarantee of quality, the disastrous exoeiipnce of the United States of America in the export of perishable produce ought to Btrve a3 a warning to Victorian producers. Writing on the decliue of United States dairy produce in the British markets the New Sfork Produce Review says :—: — " The Secretary for Agriculture (Hon. J Starling Morton) has just directed public attentiqa to the fdet that we have practically lost the British markets for dairy produce. The British markets require the best of produce, and America has built up a magnificent trade by sending nothing but such produce, and in the early 80's its oheeße and butter beat the world. Iv 1881 we sent enormous quantities of dairy produce to the United Kingdom, and for these we obtained the top prices of the market. America's exports in that year and 1895 compare as follows :—

This decline has been gradual, but the naked figures are none the less startling. Anl they iio not tell the whole story. The quality of our dairy products is now the loweit of any imported by the United Kingdom, and their values per ponnd, which in 1881 stood highest, are now the lowest of all. Every country sending butter or cheesw to the United Kingdom beats America for quality and value. We have wrecked our fiae position iv the finest market in the world, % position won by the good quality of our produce and an enormou expenditure of money." AERATIOS OF MILK. - I am not in favour of aeration of milk being made compulsory by legislation. You may compel a supplier to aerate his milk, bub unless milk is aerated properly better far for ib not to be aerated at all. I am of opinion that educational influences are better than coercive ones. QUALITY OF BUTTER EXPORTED. A great deal has b^en written of late in disparagement of th« quality of ths butter we have this y«ar exported, but notwithstanding the ve-y hot and dry sei-SJU wa have experienced, and consequent drynejs of grass, the quality of the butter in reality has shown a ma ked improvement as compared with that exported daring the season 1894 95. Of the total of 7733 tons exported to England during the season 6815 tons were bran led with the Government stamp, 912 tons v/ere of fair quality, bub not consideied sufficiently good to justify ils being branded, whilo only *ix tona were so inferior as to necessitate our branding it with the objectionable word " pastry." These figures, therefore, show that 93 pir cent, of the butter we exported was up to the standard required for the Government brand.

Produce. Quantity. Estimated Value. Butter 3heese Mutton and lamb Rabbits [lares tiame Furkeys and geese Ducks and chicks Honey Uggs ... , ... 9,386 tons fi3 tons 92,728 carcases 498,751 pairs 5,5"55 pairs 1,515 pairs 1,087 pairs 5,7'25i paira 90Scwt 21,200 dozen £876,026 57,953 29,09.1 1,107 190 870 1,4 il 1,270 7*5 Total I £971,381

188 1 L 895 — .. Cheese. ~~ " Ib. L 141,1*2 000 > 48 287,000 Decline 92,535,00 a Butter. lb. 23,492,091 8J9.000 22 6-23,030