GRASS DRYING METHODS

Southland Times, Issue 23332, 16 October 1937, Page 14

GRASS DRYING METHODS

VALUE OF SYSTEM VARIED OPINIONS Dried grass was the subject of much discussion at the mechanized farming conference held at Oxford, England. Dried grass has the advantage of keeping indefinitely and interesting experiments are now being carried out in New Zealand.

In the Old Country only six driers were in operation in 1935, but the idea was taken up rapidly, and last year something like fifty were in operation. Nevertheless the majority of farmers and many of the agricultural scientists are by no means satisfied that grass-drying is all that is claimed for it. The interest in it is great and the desire to make use of it appears to be equally great. The average total cost a ton of dried grass from 12 driers was £5 17/6 last year. Assuming best quality on a basis of starch and protein equivalents, the value amounted to about £7.

Speaking at the conference, Mr Robert Boutflour, of the Royal Agricultural College at Cirencester, doubted whether the economics of grass drying were sound. For from being worth £7 a ton he estimated that it was worth £4 15/-, on a basis of digestible protein and starch equivalent. It was true this did not take into account the carotene and the vitamins in dried grass. That might apply to the man with a retail round, but the average farmer selling milk through the Milk Board could not cash the better colour and vitamins of his milk.

Mr Boutflour also suggested that if the present increase in grass-drying plants continued there would be about a thousand of them shortly. That would reduce the demand for ordinary concentrates, prices would

have to be reduced, and automatically the value of dried grass would fall in proportion. On the matter of fire dangers, Colonel Pollit said that the 1.C.1. experts had made a series of tests following his loss of 106 tons. The one possible source of danger was in baling the dried grass very hot and tight A cooling interval of fifteen minutes between drying and baling was sufficient to avoid any trouble, but each day’s production might be kept 24 hours before moving into the main store. Dried grass would not heat like a haystack and take fire spontaneously. Professor J. A. Scott-Watson, of Oxford, stated that Mr Boutflour had calculated the value of dried grass on the basis of palm-kernal cake. His figure was £4 15/-, but calculated on a basis cf bran the value would be £ll 17/6. That calculation Professor Scott-Watson regarded as only a little more absurd than Mr Boutflour’s.