CHEESE PURCHASE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3192, 17 September 1917, Page 6

CHEESE PURCHASE

Si r __As the Government contemplates purchasing the output of cheese for the forthcoming season, permit me, through, the medium of your columns to a»fc those responsible if the same M erenee. in price (viz;, id. per lb.) as last season, will bo paid for second grade cheese, and. If so if it is the intention of the trovernment to allow the dairy companies a. representative on the grading statt at each port? As things were last season,, this difference of id. per lb. is simply daylight robbery of the dairy companies,, for in ordinary seasons 99 per cent. PL the second grade oUceso sent Home on. open consignment obtains as high a price, as first grade, and many instances are. on. record where it has. realised more than first grade. Thus .is accounted for by the fact that it is simply impossible, for any grader to judge cheese tor the. multitude,.and for different mar«ta. Now, I would be safe in asserting that flavour' is accountable for 99 per cent, of our second grade cheese in New inland, and when it is taken into account that graders differ to. the extent of b«eral points in grading same cheese independently, you will «e. where pinch comes in when a consignment sent to grading port, just »«| stgiada by half a point (and that a» judgment of an individual. . Henco t claim that it is only fair hah the dairy companies should hav? a representative at .every, grading, port. Also, 11 r. Editor, I should, like. to have last season's grading returns compared with previous vears, »''«'' generally understood that last year v.a«. a record as far as second grado vas concerned. The impression among dairy factory managers is that they are making dices"to suit the New Zealand giaders, but whether they (the gradersj knowwhat is required at Home is douotful, as very few have had the opportunity of gaining any knowledge of the Homo markets. In normal seasons every factory manager goes by his Home reports, irrespective of whether the. consignment waa graded first or second m New Zealand. Since the Government commenced to take the output, no Homo reports have been received, and dairy companies are forced to accept the New Zealand graders decision as final. Trust it will not be long before the Hairy factory companies of New Zealand awake to the fact that tuey aro being done down.-I am. etc