AUSTRALIAN BUTTER.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 829, 30 May 1910, Page 10

AUSTRALIAN BUTTER.

NEW ZEALAND STANDARD AIMED ' AT.

Australia is now making efforts to bring lier butter up to tdie standard jcached in New Zealand. Mr. Tiider, the, Federal Minister for Trade, says ho can see no climatic or other reason to account for the difference in ,price between the two makes.. Mr. Lockyer, the permanent head of bis Department, is now recommending as: a- first step to improvement that the moisture standard be reduced from 16 per cent, to 14 per cent. Sixteen per cent, is 'the English figure, but the Australian Government apparently wishes' to go c;ie better. In New -Zealand the - lower prices brought by Australian butter are frequently attributed to tlie wide prevalonco of homo separation of cream in a hot: climate. Without exceptionally careful handling there certainly Beems_ room hero for considerable deterioration to occur. . However-this may be, attention at present is centred on tho percentage of moisture to be allowed. .. ,

; In Melbourne recently a conference .was lield between tho directors of- cooperative butter factories, representatives of proprietary firms, and factors* managers'of Victoria, and the State for Agriculture, to diseu-s the question of moisture in butter. The Minister said that for some time jomplaints had been received from the Agent-General as to the exocss of moisture in butter sent, there from Victoria, and some means should be devised to., stop this excessive moisture. Before the standard was lixed-there were no complaints; since the standard was fixed at 16 per cent, there 1-ad been difficulty. He hoped they would arrive at some definite decision.

Mr. J. A. Lucas, representing t l c Butter Factory Managers' Association, said-that at the conference a resolution was carried desiring that tho moisture contents for export hitter be allowed to remain as at present, viz., 16 per cent. The managers thought that to lower the moisture below that would harass them. Mr. Proud, 'representing the factory managers and co-operative factories, •aid that if the moisture contents were lowered it meant either an inereas.-o cost to. the consumer, or reduwd receipts for producers. If it were ieduced to 14 per. cent., factories would have tn aim at 12 per cent., and itwould do no gooii. Ai- the second International Pure Food Congress at Paris in 19(19, moir-ture in butter was recommended ,-s btMtii abrolutelv necessary. and it was'resolved that the standard be raised from -16 to 18 per cent.