POULTRY NOTES

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3006, 17 February 1917, Page 15

POULTRY NOTES

(By Oiianticleee.)

How Can We Improve: the Quality of Eggs? \ ■ Most members of our egg circles will consider that tho lust word lias been Baid on tho quality of eggs sent to market under egg-circle rules. Wo regret, to say that they are mistaken. Wo have had opportunity of making comparisons and wo find that some egg circles are far too indifferent to their methods of marketing. ■. : (1). Grading is badly dono. It is. impossible to get a salesman to work up. a - satisfactory- connection with. badlygraded'eggs. 'The 2oz. standard for first- ; grado eggs should be enforced all over the Dominion. Some producers wjJJ. include small eggs in their consignments of first grades, and there is notliing so obvious to the purchaser as the undersized egg. We know of members of circles who are over-conscientious about the grades. They go to no end of trouble in their work. There are others to whom the agents have constantly to complain for unfair dealing. The public soon get to know the good gfader and ask for his number, while they specify that the eggs of the unfair grader are not to be sent; " . (2) Cleanliness— Nothing is so easily determined as the need of cleansing eggs. The eggs that can be taken from the nest spotless should bo left as it is. The eggs that are stained and dirty should be cleansed. Dirty egg are an abomination. They_ are disgusting to 'refined' tastes, and if we want to increase the value of our products we should-certainly pay great ij£ixi,to the cleansing of our eggs. ■ • - (3) Freshness.—'The need for freshness is urgent. Wo know of one producer who markets his ejgs . three days a week. It is impossible to get enough of his eggs. Buyers soo aget to know their value. It is not always_ expedient to market eggs as often as . this member doos, but eggs should go to the market at least once a week. A great deal can be done to Tctain freshness. The eggs .should be stored in a cool place and not exposed to a hot temperature. Above all, they should not be exposed to the sun. Evaporation Tapidly takes plnje and the ingress of air soon destroys the flavour and works for decomposition. The air soon deteriorates, the fresh flavour is lost, and finally the eggs is '(i) Density—We use the word "density" to explain tho need for a good firm egg. Many of the eggs now coming to the market are too liquid in form, too■ vapid. They will neither,fry nor roach. The sickly, pale yolks reveal the. want of density. Poor feeding is usually the cause. Not a. shortage >.of food, but indiscriminate selection. Something needs to l>o dono to arrest this great weakness in the egg market. Some people will' not havo poultry farmers eggs, demanding the richly-flavoured and ,highly-coloured fresh, egg that comes direct from the country. Wo know of no food better than maize to add to tho quality of eggs. It gives a lino colour and improves the quality of tho egg all round. Exercise, green feed, and free range are helpful to a better quality egg. • If wo want to improvo our markets let us give the consumer a better article. We pride ourselves on tho choice food an egg represents for human consumption, but we can maio further advancement ■ before attaining anything like what a 'first-class market demands. '

The Question of Feed, PouUTyraen Kavo inucli to leara on. the question of feud. We have become so wedded to tho virtues of wheat, and taken so much for granted, that little has been, done to investigate tho value d many other foods. The question of wiwat-groiving in New Zealand seems P'-ucarious, and it may bo in a few years wo shall find this cereal beyond _ our power' to-purchase .What substitutes can wo find? Oats 'have long been, kiiv.vn for their value as a ponltry food, bui it is difficult-to get good oats for tho purpose. Tho fine plump Sparrowblll has gono out of date and has been supplanted. by tho Garton.* Oats can bo used to jreat adwintago if slightly bruised—not ground, ;but.„ crushcd .or broken so. that tho. extraotidh of tho.kernel.ns. made easy. Maize, too, has ft claim. Against this food wo find a standing prejudice. The fattening tendency of tho non-layer has been attributed to maiuefeeding. To-<lay wo find tho layer will not fatten on any food. Maize is to re obtained cheaply from other countries, so that in the event, of our being deprived of wheat wo can fall baolc on a large quantity of maizo. Lucerne is a valuable food, but it needs pollard and bran for a suitable mixture, and this offal is dependent on -wheat. The Government stations are doing eood Gervice in experimenting- in foods, and it is to bo hoped they-will continue along this line. It is of vital importance that tho values of foods, especially thoso grown in. New Zealand, should be experimented with and their values mado known.

Table Poultry—An Adjunct. Poultrymen do not make full use of the possibilities of the tablo poultry market. They have their interests solely oentred on egg production. It is generally believed that the White Leghorn does not make a good .table bird. We have seen' good Leghorn cockerels, five months old, sell in the.early spring at. ,11s. per pair, and thousands aTe now being sold at 6s. to 7s:-per pair One producer Tviio lias hitherto sold nil his ™ale birds as' soon as he could detect them was influenced to keep them this year for the niarket. Imaginei his surprise when, out of a flock of iOO he cleared £2,7 after paying for their - food, lhe extra labour for feeding -was not considerable, while the i 27 practically raised his pullets to a laying age. Why should Leghorn cockerels be discarded? Why not increase the production of the country by keeping them for four to five months? One pleasing feature about the table poultry » tlie increased value of hens. During the moult and early m the year they do not realise a sreat: deal but if kept, till'late autumn they sell at an excellent. figure.

ECC-LAYINC COMPETITIONS. ,S D of So 1 g:ff iTSf ary 13, are as follow:— LIGHT BREEDS. Total Total. for to ■week. date. Verral Bros., B.L. f Brackenfield Farm. B.L 26 Ml W. Davey, Wi. J® iS»J. B. Merrett, WjL. "s E. .G. Shearman, W.L. 11-, I™' Heretaunga Poultry 0o„ Wi. 15 1042 H. Ball. W.L. ....... 26 1218 M. A. Cuirin, Wli. 28 1286. Dalmuir Poultry Yards, W.L. .. 18 1129 Mrs. H. Graham, WJj 19 I®U. ■ J. Wordsworth, W.L. 16 "56 H. E. Boss, 20 11". R. 11. James, W7L. - 18 944 0. J. Norton, W.L 19 U® Alfred Eaton, WL 19 11JJ M. H. Walker. W.L. .£.« ' 22 1054 Green Bros. (No. 2), W.L 12 1173 H.- Leger, W.L. 9 1119 J. • Nancarrow, WL 25 12» Caldcr Bfos., W.L. 15 1230 R. Pounsford,- WX. 14 1129 A. W. Adams, W.L 9 1169 A E. Phillips, W.L — 14 1114 T.' Kennedy. W.L. 10 1012 V. J. Hill. W.L 15 I}M B. P. L- Clayson. W.L 14 1139 T. E. Conway, W.L 16 1105 Heretaunga P. Co. (No. 1). W.L. 6 1150 Rangiuru Egg Ranch, W.L. ... 15 1190 S. "Dick, W.L 26 1202 G. Gee. W.L 15 1042 , n C. Yates, W.L 24 1035 ■ P. An.yes, W.L 15 1092 A E. Wilson, W.L 4 1080 Mrs. J. Mills. W.L : J3 1334 A. G. Brailey. W.L 20 949 Green Bros. (No. 1). W.L 19 1097 Atkinson Bros.. W.L 22 1165 A. A. Hoare, W.L 17 973 L. T. Wright, W.L 16 1169 Te An.ni "Utility Stud, W.L. ... 20 1191 T. M'llwraith, W.L 13 ' 1081 ■R. A. Lazarus, W.L 18 1116 JI. W. Bower, W.L .22 1098 Hi fi. Woodnorth. W.L 9 1032 Hokoivhitu Poultry Co., W.L. ... 15 995 Caldcr Bros., W.L 19 1269 ,T B. Merrett (No. 1). W.L 19 1178 Jack Green, W.L 19 1249 Totals 852 54,868 HEAVY BEEED TEST. Total Total for to ■week. date. T. Kennedy, W.W 13 791 Green Bros., W.W 23 948 W. Knight, W.P.TJ 16 1004 A. S. Cooper, R.I.R 12 957 Miss E. .Willis, 8.0, 8 1016 •unisaausmfisx

O. J. Norton, 8.0 14 1042 T. E. Conway, 8.0 10 11M J. Nancurrow, 11.0 18 lUs<j Miss J. James, JJ.O 16 1007 T. Dowtlnvaite, fi.AV" 8 1004 S A. A\ r . Adams. S.W 22 912 Totals . 160 10,891 SINGLE PEN TEST. . ' Total Total for to irook. date. A. S. Cooper, E.IJI. 0 1H A. 6. Cooper, 1t.1.R. 6 21K It, H. James, Wi. 6 239 T. L. Wright, ■ W.L 5 178 liangiuru Egg Itancli, W.L 0 147 Oroen, Bros., W.L 3 226 Cilder .Bros., W.L 5 237 W. Davey, W.L. 5 226 J. 8., Merrett, WJL 5 144 A. E. Wilson, W.L 0 41 Mrs.; J. Mills, W.Jj 2 239 Atk ! nson Bros., W.L 5 203 B. P. L. Clayson, W.li 5 211 J. Wordsworth, W.L 5 172 Totals 52 2,641 FOB DUCKS. Tho New Zealand Utility Poultry Club's seventh ege-laying test for ducks. Returns for tho forty-fourth week are as follow:— Total Total for to week. date. W. Knight, I.R A 1054 Heretaunga Poultry Co., 1.E.. ... 14 1184 H. W. Bower, 1.8 2 1246 Totals 20 3.484 The letters after each entry denote the breed, as under:—BJj., lsrov;n Leghorn; W.L., White Leghorn; S.W., Silver Wyandotte: 8.1.E.. Rhode Island Red; W.W., White Wyandotte; 8.0., Black Orpington; W.P.8., White PlymouWl Rock; 1.E., In. dian Runner. According to Dr. Guelpn, of-Paris, meat eating encourages baldness.