BUTTER VERSUS CHEESE.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XIV, Issue 3310, 1 May 1909, Page 4

BUTTER VERSUS CHEESE.

MEETING OF AIILK SUPPLIERS AT KONINI. A meeting of suppliers of milk to the Ballance Co-operative Dairv Company was held in the Konini Hall last night for the purpose of considering the advisableness of requisitioning the directors of tire company to manufacture cheese instead of butter. There were about fifty present, and Mr Harry Daysh occupied the chair. Mr J. G. Brechin said those who had called the meeting had not done so in any spirit of antagonism to the Ballance Company, but because they were after the extra penny if it could he got. They desired that the directors of the company should take into consideration the advisability of going in for the manufacture of butter instead of cheese. For the last two years cheese had paid better than butter. If the Ballance Company had been making cheese instead ,of butter during that period the suppliers would have received lid per pound more for their butter-fat, which was equal to more than £I2,(XX). As bearing out his contention that there was need to discuss tilts question he quoted from an article in the April number of the Dairyman pointing out the difference in value of butter-fat made into cheese and butter respectively, at present English prices. The article said:—‘‘The cable from the High Commissioner on the stli instant gave the prices on the English markets of cheese and butter respectively as: Cheese (coloured) 645. butter 98s. Now, 64s for cheese is in round figures 7d per pound, or 17(d per. pound of butter-fat; while the pi:;.- quotI ed tor butter (98s) is only about equal jto one shilling for butter-fat. Here, I then, is a difference of roughly 50 I per cent, in the value of the raw' mai terial. It is, therefore, likely, if this I state of tilings continues—and there j is every likelihood of it so doing—that the manufacture of cheese will go on steadily increasing, while that of butter will as steadily decrease. Under these circumstances it is not surprising that already several olcl-c-'.ablish-ed butter factories are now cansider- . ing tlie installation of cheese plants, or rather the erection of cheese facj tones in addition to the butter factories which they already posse.".” A statement of that kind made a man wonder whether lie was getting .sufficient out of his 100 acres of land or not. They had £9OOO vested in the Ballance Company, and he asneci ww'i. would he the value of the shares if a cheese company started and paid 2d a pound more for butter-fat? He (jnoted figures to show that cheese at 6d per pound in the English market was equal to 13.4 d per pound for but-ter-lat after deducting cost ol manufacture ; at sjd it was equal to 12.7 d: at s id, 12.12 d :at 5Jd, 11.52 c:: at sd, 1 10.9 d. The advances made by the Ballance Company during the past i three seasons were—in 1905-6, 9.21 d : j in 1906-7, 10.03 d: in 1907-''. 9.34 d; and this .season, just about lid. The prices realised for butter in the years lit' had mentioned were—in 1905-6 10.38 d; 1906-7. 10.96 d: in 1907-8, 10.28 d: and this year llfd. They would therefore see that cheese at its very lowest price gave a better average return than butter at it- very highest. That brought them face to face with the question, what were their by-products worth? He said skim-milk had never been worth a penny a pound t> him. and contended that it would be more profitable for him to take an extra ltd per pound tor butter-lat and not to bother with pigs. It was possible titat the cheese factory at Ballance would close the butter factory there, and it was also likely that a cheese factory would be started at Konini. In fact a site tor a cheese factory at Konini had already been chosen, and it was 10 to 1 that, their butter factory there would also be closed, because a man would he a fool to sell his milk to a butter factory for less than he could sell it to a cheese factory, and in a few years lie could afford to make anyone a present ot his shares in the Ballance Company. To safeguard the paid-up capital of £9OOO it seemed that the company must spend £4OOO in putting in a cheese plant. If they got an extra IRI. and Id ot that were put bv. the cheese plant would he paid tor in the first year.

.Mr G. Brown, chairman of directors of the Mangaramarama Cheese Company, who was present bv invitation, said that last vear his company paid llid per pound tor butter-fat, which was more than any butter company now paid. Jills year they had advanced iOJd and were looking forward to getting Is. It cost 1. bod to manufacture clieesc, which this year sold tor Ins per cwt. Hie total cost ot putting their cheese on the market, including commission and freight. was just about fid per pound of butter-fat, and they realised Hid per pound of butter-fat last year, when tla'ir exlienses wore heavier than during tho previous year. Uist year, after paylnS 11 K'y had from £SO to £(*>o ovor, which they carried forward to this year. Referring to the value of whey as a pig-food ho stated that he had fattened pigs on nothing but " hey and sold them for C2 os each i ho value of whey was just about half that of skim-nnlk. He was not tin re to run down the Ha I lance Company Ml. he was satisfied that the shared holniers oil tikis side of the hill wero carrying a big poultice on tluir backs because tile lactory at Hailan.e and the creamery at .Mnk.omako were "line elephants. The cheest factory which was started in Hulhuue last. ,iear had paid, and it was enlv nafurnl for umneis to take then' milk "here they would go, the most for it. »'u tin present market prosivects it. was more profitable to go in for clieeso than hutter. In answer to a .pnstion Mr Brown stated that the Mangn.rainarama lactory cost flips. | t liad two vats with a capacity of (>d() gallons each, and there was'room in it lor another. With two vats they could dial I with tho milk of 3.‘>() cows'. .Mr A. .McKarlane, chairman of directors of the liallanee Daily Company said lie did not pretend to know anything a bout cheese. It had been stated that cheese plants could he put into their laetories at a cost oj £4(100 Well, they all knew Mr Singleton! one of the Government- ehecso ins pc,*! tors, who was Acting Dairy Commissioner while Mr Cuodie was in l-aig-land. That gentleman had piviviresl an estimate of the probable cost of converting the present butter laetorie.s iuto elieeso factories. The intimate dill not include the price of any laud which might have t.) lie ucouir-

■ed for sites. Mr Singleton said it would cost £9OOO to erect new making rooms furnished with the necessary machinery, a central curing room at Scarborough to cope with the cheese from the Scarborough, Komini, Makomako and Ballance branches, together with branch curing rooms at Hamua and Hukanui. From this amount the sum of £7OO or £BOO might he deducted as representing the saving by using some of the present butter plant as boilers, engines, receiving cans, scales and Babcock testers, leaving the net outlay at, say, £B3OO. Mr Singleton had supplied him with the following details: —Konini: Six vats, a making room 66ft x 30ft, £640; plant, £950—£1590. Ballance: Five vats to cope with possible increase, making-room 55ft x 30ft, £535; plant, £810—£1345. Makomako': Two vats now and allowing capacity for three vats, making-room 35ft x 30ft, £350; plant, £s3o £3BO. Scarborough (,1600 gallons): Three vats-, makingroom and plant (as above) —£880. Central curing-room and casing room to cope with above: Curing-room 65ft x 30rt, casing-room 20ft x 30ft, £1240. Hukanui (2500 gallons): Four vats, making-room, £440; plant, £670: curing-room 35ft x 30ft. £slo— Hamua (2500 gallons): Four vats (as above), £I6OO. Total, £9175. These figures were .of course, only approximate. Their butter plant stood that day at £S7BS, and practically this was covered by their paid-up capital. According to Mr Singleton’s estimate they would have to duplicate their capital if they went in for cheese-making. If they had a guarantee that cheese was going to remain at 65s for the next few years it might pay to make the change. If they looked over Hie balance-sheet of the Masterton Company they would find that the price of cheese had been low within the last four or five years. Tiie Taratahi Company, which was one of the best, paid in i 904, 9.46 d; in 1905, 9.38 d; m 1906, 12d; in 1907. 13.2-1: in 1908. 12.23 d. The Belvedere Company paid a little less. The Nireaha Company, in 1907, paid Is. He asked them, what was to stop cheese irom going down again? if they went in for cheese that article would have to be charged with interest on the butter plant, which would he lying idle, and which would depreciate in value quickly because those employed in the making of diet sa would not look after it. The whole question depended upon what the by-products were worth. He thought when they were doing well it was a good thing to leave well alone. It iiad been stated that the Makomako creamery was a white elephant. No creamery putting through 1400 gallons of milk daily could be so spoken of, and as to the Ballance factory there was only a difference of 800 gallons of milk daily since the cheese factory was started there. If they were going to put in a new plant lie would like to know where the extra capital was going to come from. He w ould like to get an extra penny tor the suppliers, but when they considered that they would have to allow for depreciation of two expensive plants he did not think there was much in it. It the suppliers thought they could do better by going in tor cheese and were prepared to find the capital required to put in a dual plant it was for them to say so. Mr J. Matthews, a director of the Ballance Company, also spoke. Mr Brechin moved: “That in the opinion of this meeting it is desirable that the directors of the Ballance Co-operative Dairy Company take into consideration the advisability of manufacturing choose and report to a meeting of suppliers to be held at an early date.”

The motion was seconded by Mr Richmond, and on being put to the meeting was carried by 12 votes to 8. The meeting then adjourned with the usual vote of thanks to the chair.