HAMMERING AT OLD TOPICS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 833, 3 June 1910, Page 8

HAMMERING AT OLD TOPICS.

'BY MESSRS. REAIvES, AND CUDDIE. I MENACE OF .TUBERCULOSIS. ' ißy Telegraph—Press Association.* Dunedin, June 2. At a. meeting of the South Island IDivii'y Association to-day,. .Mr.. .Reak-es, Chief Government Veterinarian,' delivered an address on tile subject of tuberculosis as affecting cattle aiid pigs. Mr. Reakes stated that the disease in this country had reached a point when it was necessary that some definite mea : suro must be adopted in order to cope with it. In New Zealand the percentage of tuberculous cattle was very much lower than was the case, in most of the older countries, particularly Great Britain, but it was evident (from statistics available and from the results of the inspection of cattle at meat export slaughterhouses and abattoirs) that the disease was making steady progress. The percentage of • tuberculous cattle had increased at the rate of 1 per cent, for three years up to March 31, 15109, whilo ivu the case of pigs the progressive increase had been at the rate of 2 per cent, per annum. How to Cope With ft. The methods adopted in endeavouring to cope with the disease consisted of the careful inspection of animals during life, and a§ a result of this method a considerable number were' culled out and destroyed every year. • This', however, .was only dealing with the disease at one end, and it was obviously futile to concentrate their energies solely on the destruction of diseased adult cattle when every year they were raising a -crop • of 1 calves, fed upon unpasteurized ( skim milk, much of was.- contaminated by tuberculous germ-?. Consequently a large proportion of these calves wquld, no doubt, become infected. The fact of the whole supply of the factory or creamery being mixed together made it possible for a few diseased c»>ws to contaminate the whole output of the separated milk or whey. It was necessary, if the disease was to be coped with effectively, to take measures to prevent it being disseminated amongst calves and pigs by feeding them on these contaminated dairy by-products, and this could be done by the process of pasteurisation. A Hoary Illustration Revived. After quoting instances to' show the danger of using unpasteuriscd milk, Mr. Reakes stated that, at a dairy factory in the North Island, where it was known that some of the herds supplying it. were affected with tuberculosis, the whole of the; skim milk from the factory was used for feeding-calves and pigs on one plaoa... .11l -1908.'. the pigs from., this place were so badly affected with, tuberculosis that the' percentage'; of diseased animals .varied (in different;lots slaughtered under inspection)from's9.; per.;cent; to 100 per ebiit.v in 1909 the', owner-, installed a rough-and-ready pasteurising plant at .'the factory, and .as a result the proportion of-tubercular pigs tnen dwindled to 10 per cent. As the season went on successive, large batches of pigs were slaughtered:, without a sin'gle one being found affected with tuberculosis. 1 .Chances of an Export Trade. 4lt was pointed..out that,' in Denmark, the;'export trade 'in. bacon and pork was worth some-:fivo and ' ahalf millions per ahiium. There was no reason why New ■ Zealand dairy farmers should not .go in "more largely for pig raising than - was the case : at present, and,-if it could be ensured that the food supply of pigs was kept uncontaminated ;by disease germs,,! it! should be possible •to develop. aprofitably export trade, as well as to supply*' all the needs of our own country. Under, thef-proseuh/Condi-tions a. proiitable export trade was not possible, and the New Zealand dairy farmer was prevented -from*. making the money which-,he should to make. The Loss in Condemned Animals. * Mr. Reakes' then',.quoted from a letter which he had received-from a prominent exporter, of meat from New Zealand, in wliiclr.this fact .was strongly emphasised, arid proceeded tcr • state:-.that the direct loss to the community generally," consequent.', on, thej condemnation;/for , .tuberculosis of' cattle and" pigs, amounted last year,' to upwards' of X' 38,000.

. : Jn. addition. to : tljiS/ the in•direct loss; resulting" from 'the depreciation of. the . conslitutio'ns and milk-yield-.ing' capacity of the affected- 1 but u'ndeieeled cow's, and the-. weakened constitutions of their prrtgeiiyl ;whole question- was 'one which-''should he tackled effectively and thoroughly, -and he had every confidence that dairy factory owners* would co-operate witji tho Government in its efforts to bring about a satisfactory state of affairs both in the interests of human life .'and the health of live sbc:kV'' v ' ' r ' • Mr Cudtiie's Address."'' w "' Mr. Cuddie tlien spoke on the practicability of pasteurisation. After . referring to its value in regard to the but' ter industry, he quoted the results of experiments made in regard to the treatment of skim , milk and wliey, and to the lpw. expense involved. -Tho speaker went on to. describe, an apparatus suitable for the purpose which' had been manufactured in' Wellington. - Tliis- • apparatus was fixed up between ' the skim-milk tank, and the skim-milk pump, and sfeani from the exhaust was turned on. It was found that the milk could'be handled from one separator at. the rate of 400 gallons per- h-mr, using only twothirds of the exhaust steam. When h\*o separators were used, . and , bOl) gallons were put through,-it required the whole of the exhaust steam to heat it to the required temperature. The, cost was practically nothing. They weva .still Carrying on work, and were satisfied that, in a great many cases, the cost of doing the work would annuut to little or nothing. He admitted, however, that some difficulty might be found at smaller creameries or cluese factories where the-boiler pressure was low. Apart from the better food value and the prevention of disease, this method was having a beneficial effect 011 the milk supply, as it brought about a bettor state of affairs in regard to skim milk 'and whey tanks and, in some cases, it had done good as regards milk cilia. It would also help considerably in the quality of butter and cheese and, if adopted in the factories in the south, owners would have great cause to be satisfied.