QUALITY OF OUR CHEESE

Taranaki Daily News, 18 January 1930, Page 15

QUALITY OF OUR CHEESE

THE SEAT OF THE TROUBLE MR. McEWAN’S GRAVE WARNING. DAIRY DIVISION’S RESPONSIBILITY. • Mr. Henry Johnston, of Stratford, writes to the editor: Sir, —The warning given the dairy in-, dustry by Mr. J. B. Mac Ewan is of too serious a nature to let pass, and the suggestion that a conference be held at the earliest possible moment is very timely. Mr. Mac Ewan is too well known throughout New Zealand for his advice to be ignored. What a contrast between Mr. Singleton’s remarks and Mr. MacEwaifs warning that some etie<-tive steps be taken to avert a catastrophe! Mr. Singleton evidently knew more than ho told the farmers at his Hawera meeting. His statement that he had repeatedly been told by directors of dairy companies of the glowing reports concerning the quality of their produce sent out by buyers. He knew, and the department knew, that the quality was not there, and he for 'one would not take much cognisance of such reports. ■But beyond recommending that the grading points be slightly altered, and advising the dairy companies that it would be better to dump all their modified chee-se into the sea than , send it to England, he had no advice to give as to' how to improve the quality. Mr. Mac Ewan, on the other hand, stated that some effective steps should be taken at once to avert the catastrophe, which will inevitably overtake a large section of dairy farmers if matters are .allowed to simply drift. Now, Mr. Editor, we have already had one catastrophe in the beef industry, and we know what disaster it brought in it-s train, and at all costs we must try and avert another experience of this nature. Taranaki farmers always have that monument at Smart Road’freezing works to remind them of the "Fools’ Paradise” they had while it lasted. And if they go on as they are going now they are going to have plenty of monument-? in the shape of ruined cheese factories and homesteads to remind them of the "Fools’ Paradise” they are having , with the cheese industry at present. The New Zealand farmers have had many warnings that they are not sending the class of cheese to Britain that Britain wants and is prepared to pay for. Mr. T. List (proprietor of the Taranaki Daily News) was the first per son to give them serious warning five or six years ago. He had inspected our ■cheese at Tooley Street and came back fully convinced that something was wrong with our grading system, and he told the farmers through the medium of his valuable newspaper.' Not only that but he visited the different dairy companies and told the directors what was wrong. Since then there have been many warnings given, but what,.is the use of these warnings if they are beingpaid top price foi' an inferior article? Sir Thos. Clements told the farmers how the Dutch ruined their cheese trade once they started skimming, and New Zealand farmers have followed the Dutch, and matters look serious.

Mr. Mac Ewan gives his opinion that we are drifting to disaster. This puts Mr. Singleton in a very awkward position. He has been director of the Dairy Division for a number of years, and the Dairy Division under his charge has had the sole responsibility of grading New Zealand cheese, upon which its reputation rests. To-day Mr. J. B. Mac Ewan, one of the foremost commercial men in the country, and one whose lifetime has been spent in the dairy industry, tells us that something must be done to arrest a catastrophe. The situation is desperate, and something will have to be done at once. Several opinions are given in your issue bf the 10th inst. One opinion is that -the trouble is in ■ the manufacturing. Another suggests that better inspection of sheds is needed, and yet another suggests advertising is necessary. Now, sir, I would like, to give my humble opinion. When the Tokaora test was taken some four years ago the scientist found that the Ayrshire and Friesio-n milk was ideal for cheesemaking. Mr. Singleton endorsed this when he told the farmers what class of milk the Canadians use, The scientist also found that the Friesian gave a yield of 31bs of cheese and over per pound of butter-fat, so that as far as cheese-mak-ing was concerned it was ideal milk for cheese-making. The scientist also found that the Friesian breeder was underpaid by the present system of payment approximately £2OO on his season’s supply; or, in other,, words, he was fined £2OO 'by his dairy company foi sending ideal milk for cheese-making. Now, was there any need for the director of the Dairy Division to go to England and Canada looking for the cause of the trouble? If the dairy companies are fining the farmers who send first grade milk for cheese-making, and the farmer who supplies the milk that modified Cheese is made from, which Mr. Singleton says is only fit to dump into the sea, is paid top price. The present system of payment is a disgrace to the Dairy Division, the Massey College, the Federation of Dairy Factories and the Minister of Agriculture, whose slogan is "Quality Before Quantity,” and yet they fine the farmer who sends the quality. What is the use of dairy inspectors and instructors if the farmer is fined for sending first grade milk? Are the ■students at the Massey College taught •on these lines?

Mr. Singleton says the Canadians have no Jersey problem to contend with. This is not a question of breeds .of cattle. It is a national one. Let the breeders look after their own problems, and the Dairy Division do its duty and waste no time contending with problems of this kind. Can the country afford to ruin th© cheese industry because of some breeder’s problem ? Mr. Singleton states that it is quite in order for any dairy company to pay for milk on whatever basis it chooses, whether it be weight, or fat, or fat plus casein, or any combination of these or other factors. I quite agree with this statement provided it is a just payment, but once it is proved to be unjust, and a danger to the industry, that system must g-o. This is a British Colony. The milkman who waters his milk is fined, and the storekeeper who gives short weight is fined and surely it is unjust to fine th© farmer for first grade milk. '

Our Canadian cousins would tell us they were "simply tickled to death” to think that New Zealand farmers had a srystem of payment in force that fined farmers if they dared to send first grade milk for eheesemakingj and then- send.

the director of the Dairy Division round j the world looking for the trouble. Now, if farmers are a set of fools that is no excuse for the Dairy Division. They have and all information to hand, and it should be their duty to see that the farmers who supply a first-class article is not fined for doing so. The department say they have not got the necessary legislation to deal with the matter, but if they wanted the necessary legislation they could soon get it. It did not take Mr. Singleton Fong to get the necessary power for the dairy industry to adopt his illegitimate twins, "standardised cheese” and "modified cheese.” Since he has come back from England he is now so displeased with one of his offspring (modified cheese) that he suggests drowning it as quickly as possible. Now, Mr. Mac Ewan has returned from England he is evident-, ly of the opinion that both t'he twins would be better drowned. ADD QUALITY OF OUR CHEESE At the meeting of the Federation of Dairy Factories held at Hawera, when Mr. Singleton was present, it was decided to adopt the standardising of the milk. It was. also decided that the three scientists, one at Hawera, another al the Massey College, and one at Hamilton, try and arrange a more equitable system of payment, which certainly looked as if the federation was going to do the best’for all farmers. The standardising for the milk unsuitable for cheese-making, and a casein-butter-fat test for the breeds who were going to save the industry. This did not suit Mr. .Singleton, who, when questioned at Hamilton, stated that the Walker method of testing casein was quite satisfactory, but as the dairy companies’ had adopted standardising it largely overcame the necessity for using the casein test. I have no doubt this pleased his audience, but no one knows better than Mr. Singleton that all the standardising in the world would not put the casein into the milk if it was not there. The whole trouble is that the Dairy Division does not want to make itself unpopular-with a. certain section by getting at the root of the trouble, or it could soon cure the evil by a system of grading before manufacturing. Speaking on this subject, Mr. Singleton states: "With the grading of milk on the basis of flavour and its suitability for the manufacture of cheese the Division is, of course, in hearty agreement. Differential payments in this connection are, however, not to be misconstrued with systems of payment based on the constituents of milk.” In other words, grading is/'all right as long as you don’t try to get at the root of the trouble. Mr. Singleton knows what is the root of the trouble, and he will soon have to choose between doing his duty or ruining the industry, and according to Mr. Mac Ewan, he will have to Jose no time or he will be too late.