POULTRY NOTES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2848, 12 August 1916, Page 15

POULTRY NOTES

(By Chanteclbr.)

A Good Conundrum. At the meeting of the Canterbury Egg Circle, held last Saturday evening'to receive the report from the deputation who wailed On the' Hon. G. W. Russell, the president, Dr. J. Henry Crairshaw, gave the meeting the question, "WJiy is a poultryinan that protests against the invasion of Asiatic eggs lite a true patriot?" He set the members thinking and in half an hour relieved the cudg'ell«l brains with the clever solution. "Because he Scorns the foreign yoke." The Prica of Eggs. Spring prices of eggs may be looked for in a week or two. Already the summer price has set iii at Sydney at Is. 2d. This market is a few weeks ahead of our own,' as the egg supply increases in "Australia before the end of July. It is generally conoeded that Is. Id. should be a fair summer price for'first grades, and la. for seconds. If the bakeri are to be encouraged to preserve eggs, produters should. cater for their orders at a reasonable figure. It costs one penny a dojen to preserve Aiid one penny say, for interest and loss for six months, afiil with the rising price of other materials, the baker finds Is. 3d. 6a much as ho can afford to give. Many bakers will go Is. 4d. to Is. 5d., and take delivery of eggs as required during the winter rather than have their working Capital tied lip and the work and trouble of egg preserving. Producers could do well by preserving eggs at Is. 4d. Still they want the assurance that bakers will buy, and this assurance will never lie obtained while foreign liquid yOlks and whites can bo obtaiiied At a price equal tfif lOd. per dozen. ' It's up to bakers : to give the fdreigh article- the go-by, and it's up. to jftoduOors to supply a superior article at fi fair price. A Fair Price, Discussing the subject Of foreign eggs with, bakers, we find they are partial to the iobally-priduced article. The class of foods made up by good eggs advertised itself, while many, of the public fight ahy of establishments when it is known that the foreign article is used. To the credit of many bakers, they will not uso the: foreign eggs, affirming that ah increased business and improvckl quality of goods by local 'eggs is justification for them to leave the imported article alone. A Business Proposition. The question of using foreign eggs appears to be amply justified, though why one class of tradespeople can contravene ah Act with impunity, wider which another class is being convicted, is a problem someone has soon got to solve. Producers. ai6 oiily asking iv fair thing. They have no quarrel with tlio importatiofl of these eggs. Tho Customs tariff provides for them; what. they wish to | know Vis: "Why should : the Pure - Poods Act, bp. • Constantly 4ttid openly broken when it specially designed to ; protect an lhdustry?' T£e : fact' of the Act stating "that pastry./shall, include cakes, biscuits,' etc. Pastry shall- lii St. contain dried albiiiaent, yelks of . egg<l preserved with any preservative substance, etc.," is most 'significant. -\ "Wliy'llie Pure Poods Act should be requisitioned •to protect the public against the foreign article Is surely evidence of the doubt as to its purity. With that ph&se of the question producers i have nO concern. The A<st, is there, and it is manifestly unfair for it to be contravened. How and by what influence this irregularity lias come about it is not for us to disclose, but someone has got to set this matter right at a very €®ly date. An Aggressive Circle. To the Canterbury Egg Circle all ?,f ais - e , ia duo for its investigations into the subject of imported yolks. Last Saturda/s meeting was most enthusiastic. , havfc pUyed the game all along. They have exposed no individual ?£ Publicity to aD J- offenders, though highest legal authority "in Uhnstchu/rch has declared the usili" of preserved yolks illegal. The circle will be amply satisfied if-the Act is. put into lorce, and have pledged themselves to do tlieir beat to prtJdude and procure the eggs required by bakers. It is gratifying to kbow that in this campaign tho beat of good, feeling has been maintained lu-any of tho, bakers .'asserting they are. just as anxious to know "how th© : oat will,jump" as the poultrynlen -them-' selves. . 7.. | What the Invasion Means. J At tremendous expense the Government has 1 developed the poultry industry. It hag three instructors, who spend their time instructing farmers and others howto improve their- ilocks and increase production. The Customs returns for the past six months show ,£6132 <Jf foreign eggs were imported. On this, ohe-third duty, freightage, and agents' - .profits'brought tho sum up to about ,£IO,OOO, Which the bakers have to pay. What will the farmer do with his in a year or two if the foreign eggs are used ? The summer demand will hot be required for preserving, eggs, and eggs will go baok to a ;mere pittance. Thousands of dozens of eggs were, sold by farmers last summer at Bd. per dozen. With a decreased demand eggs will go back to the old days, of Bd. The working of tho Government is wasted. The plants of ptiultry producers would not be Irorth more than the materials used in construction. Surely no one wishes to see this state of affairs exist. Improve the Quality. The salvation of the position lies largely with the farmer. The quality of his eggs when they reach the market is sometimes shocking. Storekeepers and collectors should all share in the blame, as many of them hold tife egg 3 for weeks before forwarding to the market. Improved quality is what the baker is looking for. It is not the shilling a dozen that worries him, but the loss of bad and broken eggs that take off his' profit. Twenty pounds is tho fine in America for the man. caught selling-bad eggs. Bakers, and,-users of eggs-. should agitate to get this, Act into New Zealand. A second offence in America for selling bad. eggsmeans imprisonment. Many, 'thousands of pounds arewasted ifi-Netv Zealand 'annually iii the marketing of eggs, and bakers niay well regard the paradox of our''copcern, over 'c£lo,ooo worth of foreign eggs compared, with the .many more thousands lost through negligence; and sinful, waste. ; . '

. . . N.Z. UTILITY POULTRY CLUB'S NEW COMPETITIONS.

' The official results of the seventeenth week of the New Zealand Utility Poultry Club's twelfth egg-laying competition for fowls for tho wcok ended Tuesday, August 8, are as-follow liia'HT BBEEDfi. Total Total for to week; date. Verral tiros., B.L 26 392 Bracken Held Farm, B.L. 25 1 260 W.' Da,voy, W.L : 23. 343 J. B. Slcrrett, W.L 27 .. 392 It. G.' Shearman. W.L 29/ . 388 Horetaiulga Poultry Co., W.L. 30 321 H. Ball, W.L. 20 336 If. A. Ourrin, W.L. 32 389 Dalmuir Poultry Yards, W.L.... 20 373 Mrs. fl. Graham, W.L 27 325 J. Wordsworth, W.L. 25 237 H. E. lloss, W.L. 31 395 K. H. James, W.L 20 287 C. J. Norton, W.L. •„ 26 350 Alfred Eaton, W.L 12 315 M. 11. Walker. W.L 29 285 Green Bros. (No. 2), W.L 32 386 H. Leger, W.L. .30 351 J. Nancarrow, W.L 33 437 Casldor Bros., W.L 30 464 R. Pounßford, W.L. 30 379 A. W. Adams, W.L 27 <03 A. i. Phillips, W.L 31 447 T. Kennedy. W.L 16 2GO V. ,T. HUI. W.L 29 310 H. P. L. .Clayson, W.L 27 358 T. K. Conway, W.L 25 329 Hcretaunga Poultry C-o. (No. 1), W.L 31 , . 405 Eangiuru Kg'g K«nch, W.L. ... 29 414 S. Dick, WJj 28 338 G. Gee, W.L 30 335 It. 0. Yates, W.L 29 322 E. P. Amycs, W.lj ® oSO A. E. Wilßon, W.L 24 380 Mrs. J. Mills, W.L J4 M 2 A. G. Brailey, _W.L. 20 / 198 Green Bros. (No. 1). W.L 31 349 Atkinson Bros.. W.L. 27 381 A. A. Hoare, W.L. 31 337 L. T. Wright, W.L. 31 Te Anau Utility Stud, -L. ... 25 069 T. Jl'llrcraith, W,lk 32 269 R. A. LM4TUB, W.L "0 . 32J H. W. Bower, W.L. "I H. S. Woodnorth, W.L 17 M Hokowhitu Poultry Co., W.L.... 29 299

CflJder Bros., W.L 30 3^o .T. B. Merrett (No. 1), W.L. ... 31 355 Jack Green, W.L 31 . it! Totals 1342 17,104 HEAVY BREED TEST. Total Total for to week, dfttfl T. Kennedy, W.W 17 148 Green Bros., W.W 27 252 W. Knight, W.P.R 34 305 A. 8. Cobper, R.I.R 27 317 Miss E. Willis, 8.0. 23 408 O. ,T. Norton, 8.0 33 312 'P. E. Conway, 8.0 34 456 ,T. Nancarrow, 8.0 29 378 lliss.J, Janies. 8.0 31 419 T. Dowthwaite, SAT 3D 351 A. W. Adams, 3.W 32 219 Totals ■ 317 3565 SINGLE PEN TEST' , Total Total for to weak. dafcfl. A. JS. Cooper, R. 1.8 6 70 A. S. Cooper, H.I.R 6 89 B. H. James, Vf.h 5 M T. L, Wright., W.L ■. - 46 Rftngiurii Egg Ranch, WJj. ... 4 73 Green Bros., W.L 4 JO Oaldftr Bros., W.I; 5 86 W. Davoy, W.L. 5 80 .T. B. Merrett, W.L 5 28 A. E. Wilson, W.L. - « Mm. J. Mills, W.L 5 93 Atkiiison Bros., W.L. .: 4 71 B. P. L. OlajeoD; W.L. 4 65 J. Wordsworth, W.L 4 ' 16 Totals {6 . 927 FOR DUCKS. Tho New Zealand Utility Poultry Clnb's «e»bnth cge-layine test for ducke. Returns for tie seventeenth week.are as follow:— Total Total for to w. Week. da.ti. W. Knight, T.li 36 273 Heretduriga Poultry Co., I.R 32 493 H. W. Bower, X.B. ■39 539 Total B 107 .1305 The letters after Sach entry dendte tha breed, as nrtderß.L.. liroirn Leghorn: W.L., White Leghorn; 8.W.. SilTer Wjan. RJiR.i Rhode Island Red; W.W., Whit® Wyandotte; 8.0.,. Black Orpirijrton; W.P.Ri, White Plymouth Bock: 1.R.. Indian Bunnir.