CORRESPONDENCE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 12615, 18 November 1911, Page 6

CORRESPONDENCE.

PURE MILK FOR TOWN SUPPLY

(To tbe Editor of the Herald.)

Sir,— ln your report of yesterday concerning the pasteurised milk business, which the Kia Ora Dairy Company have taken up here, there are some remarks which should be explained so that the public may not be under the impression that they are getting impure milk from the individual milk vendors from whom they have for many years been drawing their supplies. These milk vendors have made a speciality of supplying milk for town suppiy, and the- whole of them have registered dairies and their herds have been passed by the Gover nmenU veterinarian, and most of them have also installed milk coolers, ancl are delivering fine, healthy milk to their customers — not guaranteeing 4 per cent, buttei"fat perhaps— but -selling at a reasonable price, giving good measure, and showing, many assert, a good percentage of cream. Now, Mr Caesar states that the company started this milk supply purely for philanthropic reasons (vh?., owing to the amount of sickness in the district, he says). The milk! vendors think that is rather thin ; in other words, very doubtful. We are also doubtful whether there will be a marked diminution of sickness with the advent of pasteurised milk. To show what the Kia Ora Company's manager thinks of pasteurisation, I ask you to publish this extract from the Poverty Bay Herald, October 26th, 1907, which is signed by him. He says :. "It is generally acknowledged that pasteurisation is only a remedy fori defects in the milk that should, not exist, and further, he says get fhe suppliers to supply good, clean ' milk ; and there is no need for pasteurisation." : We, the private milk, vendors, contend, that we supply the public with a good and .pure article and according to the Act, and in :repl^fß. the remark that the Kia**'Ora. Clompahy draws their milk from selected herds .would, point out that few farmers will accept the price paid by the company for new milk on account of there being no skim milk returned to feed their stock, so that in that case they are not in a position to select the herds. — Yours etc., MILK VENDOR.