NEW ZEALAND BUTTER AND CHEESE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3212, 6 October 1915, Page 18

NEW ZEALAND BUTTER AND CHEESE.

TRADE CONDITIONS DISTURBED. MR MACKENZIE'S WARNING. (From Oun Own Correspondent.) LONDON, August 4. Like other branches of the provision trade, dairy produce has been greatly affected by war conditions, and the outlook at present is uncertain. The High Commis-loner for New Zealand has lately been studying the problem of the Home market with a view to assisting the New Zealand butter and cheese producer, and in the course of an interview he said : “I he butter market of the past season ruled fairly steady, high prices being fa : rly constant. Siberia had great difficulty in getting her shipments through, some of which came to hand via Vladivostok, the remainder coming by way of Archangel, and a certain portion through Sweden. But owing to Baltic ports being closed this route was not available. Danish and Dutch butters and cream have been going freely into Germany, which cured the market to be rather bare here. French butters were in plentiful supply on English markets. The "most notable feature, perhaps, in the dairy produce section of the trade has been that of the cheese market. This market has been greatly affected, and connected therewith there have been some reamarkable features.

“ During last winter the War Office drew very largely on New Zealand cheese supplies "for rations for the troops; in fact, at one period of the season, it is safe to say, fully two-thirds of New Zealand supply of cheese was diverted from the regular and legitimate channels for this purpose. At the beginning of this period prices rose to such unheard-of levels as to create a record'! This was ■caused chiefly by the lack of visible supply on the market, which was not equal to the demand. As the price rose, however, it had the effect of checking the usual consumptive demand of the trade. At the same time, this condition of things, during the period in which the War Office was uring New Zealand cheese, placed some of the leading provision merchants in what might be termed a rather awkward position, because the War Office, by anticipating requirements at a fixed limit, was paying a somewhat lower price during a certain portion of the time than the prices that were quoted to the trade when the produce landed. The effect of this is that those merchants whose supplies were diverted to War Office requirements were not able to return such a high price to the producer as some of the other firms who hold on to their supplies, which were directed into the usual tr'ide channels. This meant- that the latter were returning probably several shillings per cwt higher prices to their clients than the former. BUTTER PROSPECTS. “ With regard to the prospects of next season, it would appear from the butter podton to-day that New Zealand creamery butters will meet with a good demand in the early part of the winter and command high prices. I have at hand reliable information to the effect that there are good grounds for believing that before long almost the entire Danish output of butter will be diverted to Germany. This, of course, is problematical, but it is worthy of note, as the Danish suplpies are a ruling'feature in all markets that.demand a butler of high standard. “ Then, again, in the Danish Butter Trade Journal of July 2 we have information to the effect that the hay crop in Denmark has been a failure, and the whole harvest must certainly be below the average. This will have some effect on the production of butter in Denmark during the coming winter. The prospect is that while finest butters will rule high, especially during the autumn and early winter, secondary grades will be plentiful, owing to large supplies of Siberian — a small portion only of which will be finest owing to the absence of cold air space and delay in transit. It is therefore expected that the total quantity to come from Siberia will be much larger than last j-ear, because none can go to Germany. CHEESE MARKET UPSET. “ With regard to the cheese position, it is very difficult indeed to gauge with any certainty what may happen in the near future. ' During the last two weeks and at the present time the cheese market has been very unsettled—prices have been falling very rapidly and very considerably. This is due to the laro-e supplies that are coming to hand not only from Canada but from the United States, in fact, probably it is the United States factor that is disturbing the market so greatly. This' is on account of the great quantity of cheese that was imported into tin’s country from the United States, not only last winter, ibut also at the present time, and it appears as if this supply was going to continue, which it is almost certain to do so long as prices on this side rule sufficiently high to encourage American merchants to export cheese to this country. The amount of cheese that has been imported Into this country from America during the past few months has been quite a revelation to all those engaged in the provision trade in this country. Another factor which seems to indicate that the Americans intend to make a bid for this market is the fact that some of the factories there are giving their attention to the manufacture of the 801 b to 851 b cheddar-shaped

cheese. Up to the present they have been making a much smaller cheese than this, and the article has been a drag on the market for some time. Certainly there was room for the supply during the past winter months, and the cheap American cheese was able to supply certain markets. At the same time it had the effect of diverting buyers’ attention from New Zealand cheese to American. A WARNING TO NEW ZEALAND. “ The prospects for next season,” said Mr Mackenzie, ‘‘depend a good deal upon the amount of cheese that will be withdrawn from the usual trade channels for the supply of the troops, and at the present time there is no definite indication of what the British Government intends to do in this direction. It certainly is a fact that since the war broke out the consumption of cheese in this country has increased considerably, due chiefly to the fact that the Government has recognised the high nutritive value of cheese, and on that account included it very freely in the rations for the troops. It meant, however, that thousands of men were eating cheese regularly who in their civil life would very probablv not eat as much in a week as they would in one day while on service.

‘‘The outlook for dairy produce at the present time is a most difficult one to deal with, and we have information here that several of the co-operative dairy companies in New Zealand anticipate changing over from butter to cheese, ready for the coming season. It would be well, however, for those dairy companies to retain their butter plant intact, so that in the event of cheese prices reaching lower level and butter prices ruling as high as they were during the present season, they would then be in a position to continue the manufacture of butter, or vice versa, as the case might be. Owing to the present disturbed conditions of trade any abrupt change from the usual course of business is dangerous to those interested.”