Model Farm Dairy Opened In Otaki

Chronicle (Levin), 4 June 1948, Page 2

Model Farm Dairy Opened In Otaki

A model farm dairy was officially opened in Otaki yesterday. Situaued on the fertiie farm of Mr. C. |W. Stewart, Pukehou, Otaki, it is a , combinatxon of the ' most, modem ' trends m miiking sheas and sim- 1 iplicity. It has all the machinery :an'd apparatus for clean and hyg^enic miiking that ingenuity could devise, and yeu has a simplicity of construction that makes itx the ideal miiking shed for every farm. I Bullt for Mr. Stewart by its architect and ^ssigner, Mr. E. H. Moffatt, of Otaki, uhis is not the onxy dairy of its kind in the district, however. The first was built by Mr. Moffatt for himself and -since then 12 have been constructed. It is felt that Mr. Stewart's has reached the Ideal for every farm. From the outside the main differences in construction appear to be the remarkable depth of the shed itseff, a break in the roof of the building and a loading rarnp at the back of the dairy. The extra depth of the shed is constructed to give more coverage to cows waiting in the yard to be milkqd. It also gives more protection to the men working in wet weather. The break" in the outline of the roof gives better venthation and light to the bails themselves. It is built so that the edge of one portion is some three feet higher than the edge of ' | the other. The intervening space is j built-in with windows and ventila- i !tors. The advantage of the ioad-j ;ing ramp is apparent when heavy [ icans are seen being lifted on to a; ' truck with little or no effort, the stage being the exact height of the | tray of the vehicle. Inside the dairy there are many' variations from the ordinary theme of a cow bail. The ciean an'd ; spacious concrete yard is divided in .itwo parts, with gates fitted to make ifor easy handling of the cows. \ From the back of the bails the floor ihas one slope to the far corner of : jthe yard, where a drain coliects all | the effluent from the shed. i The bails are made for simple handling. The exit race is inside the shed, thus keeping the cows out1of the weather and eliminating any 1 draught. They have side door gates which can be opened by the ; milker without moving from his ; I stool. In each bail there is a rub- i ber hose so that the cows' udders may be Washed with running j water. A pipe along • the walis of ! the shed and race flushes any dirt, away very quickly. The pipes from ; the machines are enamelled anid | will be very easy to keep clean. • I In the dairy itself only the hold- [ ing tank can be seen. The pumping motor is instalied in a cup- ! board on the outside loading ramp j so that ho oil or grease can reach the milk. At one end of the shed another cupboard, built flush with the wall and also opening into the dairy, holds anj' medicines or 1 equipment which may be needed. A j water trough is built in th,e ya'rd 1 so that the animals can quench their thirst while waiting, and J another trough in the corner of the j bails holds water for swilling the floor down. Lights are instalied in j convenient place's. Built entirely oi ! concrete, the shed faces away from I the coid southerly winds, while the j dairy faces into these coid winds, thus giving it the necessary cool- ! ness during hot weather. The jcorners of the shed are rounded, I making for easy cleaning, while the! 'miiking equipment 'is the ordinary. L.K.G. machinery used by many'j farmers.

The Official Opening ! It was a dignified ceremony ! which took place at the bails yesterday afternoon. Led by Mr. Stewart, !Some 40 interested farmers and j visitors woun-d their way across the ! rolling pastures to the sheds a i little after 3 p.m. Some distinguished visitors were present, |among them the manager of the : Wellington City Milk Department. |Mr. E. L. Benseman, Mr. J. F. Hud;son, of the Dairy Division of the 'Department of Agriculture, the j chairman and members of ,the Rahui Dairy Factory Suppliers' .Committee, Mr. W. Taylor and Messrs. F. H. Monk, W. Jepson and !S.- Elliott, and the member for the district, Mr. J. J. Maher. In his opening remarks, Mr. Stewart welcomed all those pres•ent at what he termed "the christening." He expressed his pleasure ] at being able to 'speak to the gathering an'd said that the full credit Ifor the effort should. go to its de- , signer and builder. It reflected a igreat deal of credit on Mr. Moffatt, j-and he was very grateful to him for I his work. Mr. Moffatt had had very able assistants in Messrs. R. j Horn, J. Mqffatt, L. Whiteman and P. Balina and others. It was hoped by the Dairy Division that bails of that type would be erected throughout the country, he concluded. His office's calied him to many functions — the opening of bazaars, ciub rooms, rifle ranges and so on — but he had never beford been calied on to enjoy the unusual experience of opening a cow-bail, said Mr. Maher. Continuing, he spoke briefly of the need for clean, fresh milk supplies to the cities. He stressed the fact that the 'district surrounding Otaki had always been regarded as one of the most productive parts of New Zealand. He paid a compliment to Mr. Hudson and offlcerc of the Agricultural Department who took such a great l^terest in the work. In conclusion, (Continued on Page 3)

(Continued from Page 2) he expressed the hope that the dairy wouM. set the standard for New Zealand for good, clean milk. He extended to Mr. Stewart his best wishes for the venture. He ventured to say that the producers in the Wellington Province received the best price in New Zealand for their milk, commented Mr. Benseman in the course of his remarks. One reason for this was because they had a "fighting M.P.," he ad'ded, paying a tribute to Mr. Maher. He complimented Mr. Stewart on his effort and initiative and Mr. Moffatt on his work in designing and building the shed. This * type of milking shed achieved certain aims, said Mr. Budson. Firstly, the permanency of construction and simplicity of design. Secondly, the shelter it provided both animals and men from the elements. Thirdly, the rapid and simple cleaning methods which could be employed. When farmers possessed structures of this type, they took a pride in their jherd and the hygienic conditions ,made it possible to produce the quality of milk required. The design of the dairy would "take a Ldt of beating," he commented. Mr. j Moffatt was doing a marvellous job and a tremendous amount of good in the district. He gave all honour to him and his assistants for the work. Mr. Moffatt thanked the previous speakers for their tributes and gave an outline of the designing of the various sheds he had built. He told the gathering that he had spent over a year on the designs. He had been determined to better the conditions under which the men and animals worked. He emphasised the fact that he was a farmer and not a builder, and that it had been as hard for him as it was for any other farmer to change from the old methods of milking. Mr. W. Taylor joined with the other speakers in extending his j congratulations to both Mr. Moffatt and Mr. Stewart. Farmers throughout the country should, and would have to be prepared to modernise their sheds. As chairman of the Rahui suppliers, he wanted to say he was proud of the effort and would like to extend his congratulations to all concerned. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the gathering was invited to Mr. Stewart's house.