VISITORS FROM CEYLON

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 86, 30 September 1947, Page 7

VISITORS FROM CEYLON

STUDY OF N.Z. DAIRYING PROBLEMS TO BE STUDIED Future development of the dairying industry in Ceylon, from both the production and distribution aspects, is the main purpose of the eleven months’ visit to New Zealand of Mr W. D. E. Perera, senior veterinary surgeon, Department of Agriculture, Ceylon. He will spend one month in Australia prior to returning to his native country. Mr Perera, who arrived in New Zealand in the second week in September, is making Palmerston North his headquarters for the first four months. He has already visited Massey Agricultural College and the Grasslands Division, and will keep in touch with these institutions while making. an inspection of district herds and methods of breeding, feeding, and methods of extraction, processing and distribution of milk.

Mr Perera states that the demand for fresh milk for the 6,000,000 inhabitants of Ceylon far exceeds the supply, and much of the milk from the 15,000 head of dairy cows has to be made into butter because of difficulties oT rapid transport to the larger centres. With no system governing milk production,. the quality of the produce from the farms is not always good; and its quantity has to be heavily supplemented by imports of dried and condensed milk. Some years ago 1,300 head of Ayrshire, Jersey, Friesian and Red Poll cattle were brought from Australia, but they were not doing very well on the native grasses and such introduced crops as paspalum and lucerne. Consequently, herd management problems in New Zealand and Australia would also be studied, with a view: to improving the health and production of dairy stock in Ceylon.