MILK PRODUCTS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 276, 10 August 1918, Page 10

MILK PRODUCTS

. MEETING OF MANAWATU FARMERS POSSIBILITIES OF THE .. o INDUSTRY . V A meeting, pi directors and other suppliers of (111117 factories in Manawatu. , convened by Mr. A.' Buchanan, was held on Thursday to consider the question of letu'rns that could \>e obtained from various milk products. Mr. A. Lancaster was voted to tho chair. Mr. Buchanan said that the object of the meeting was not'to deal so much with dried milk, but, to draw attention iff the value of other constituents of milk on present day .prices. He said his figures Were --basei on a rather conservative estimate, and were to show what could be obtained by proper methods of treating milk products. The meeting was a preparatory one, to enable them to consider the question before delegates from Auckland addressed them. There may be a difficulty in getting whole milk powder shipped in a satisfactory condiI tioii to the Old Country, and difficulty in keeping space for skimmed milk powder, and there was going to' bo Imperial control of prices. He said they had lost a quarter of a million pounds that they would'have obtained last season if they ,had treated their products otherwise. In support?,of seme figures he quoted, he said he had the opinions of some very hish authorities on milk products. Eβ considered that if they nad the commodities sold on present-day values they ■would work out at 4s. sJd._ per pound for butter-fat for cheese-making' and sugar of milk, or 4s. 7}d. per ppund for butter, casein, and , milk sugar. He considered- •\ that they must go in more for- co-opera-tion' on stringent business lines. Proprietary concerns had taken a good deal of. the "gilt" from milk products, and • would continue to do so unless the suppliers combined. Mr. Beauchamp had placed before (ham tho opinion of Mr. Jiuddick regarding the possibilities of dried milk, and he hnd been wisely conservative, while Mr. Pacey, of Auokland, Baid that people had been rather optimistic regarding what would be obtained from dried milk. Mr. Pacey ■ was the manager of the largest dairying company south of the Lino, and it.had to somei extent been associated with a proprietary : concern)* and that might possibly bias . his'opinions onthe dried milk proposals. It would be madness for each little company to put in expensive plants to lnanufaoture casein, sugar of milk,-and ottik. .products. , It would be necessary to have ! one large company to control matters, and a considerably less number of directors be required. < This would t mean a in expense, and probably i would enable them to obtain the services of men of greater ability. Hβ suggested that provisional directors be appointed, ; consisting of the chairmen of directors of the^ present companies, with power to add to their number. He suggested that'j the present plants should be valued, and the value of the sji&res based ' on. , the value of the plants of the

: companies, preferably on a pre-war ;■ • Ijasis. One of the Jnrge proprietary con- : terns had a laboratory, and this was proibably justified by results. It would be ■ impossible for each small company to do ; 'this. He considered that every farmer ■ in the district. could increase his Te- ]' turns by. 50 per cent, if. matters were ; treated in a proper manner. He quoted figures prepared on the authority of Pro- ' fessor van Slyck, Professor van Publow, Messrs. Farrington and Wall, and' Mr. Decker, the lattorof whom was thogreat- : est authority in tho world on cheese- ] irinking. In 100 pounds of milk (of a, . 3.8 per cent, test), 20 pminds wero iiscd I for cheese-making, in which , wero 7.61b, of solids. In the-remaining. 80 per cent. ihoro were—3.B pounds of , sugar, .28 of -.-whey fat, and .6 pounds of albumen. The i cheese (10'4-lOlb.) at IOJd. per pound was ! worth 95., the 'whey' fat 'at fi. 'H. per : .'(pound sd-, and the sugar at Is. 9d. per i jiound 7s. Bd., a total of 17s. Id. for : 1001b. of milk. On a basis of a 3.8 per cent, of fat'this worked out at 4s. 5Jd. j Tier pound. In 1001b. of milk used for I liutter making, pounds of butter at; ■ 3s. sd. per-pound would be 6s. -lid., tho' ■ Casein from the butter milk 6id", the : sugar from butter milk Is. 3Jd., casein : from the skim milk 2s. Gd., sugar from (. ' skim milk 6s. 10fd., a total of 17s. 7Sd. ■ On the basis of a 3.8 test of butter fat i this would mean is. 7Jd. per pound. !/ The commercial casoin included tho ali' ibumen and ash in tlio milk, in the same i , jivay as skimmed dried milk included ! eugarof milk, albumen and ash.-'Allow-ing 25 per cent, for the cost of mamifac- '. tnre, interest, and depreciation on plant ! and machinery, and the expenses of marketing, this would leave 3s. per pound for butter fat. Ho considered that 25 -per cent, was ample to allow for expenseo. In Teply to" a question, Mr. Buchanan i ' said that with an increase of bntter fat .there was an increase of the amount of ' casein. . ■ ■ i

Mr. Jewell said this was not so, as it iwas well known Hint the proportion of casein was greater iry the milk from floletejns, and they wcye not the highest- .. feting cows. , . Mr. Kyle said that the proportion of .casein did npt increase at the same rate ■as the butter-fat. At present payments ■were mnde on >thc proportion of butter M, but this .would not be the right ' thing to do in the manufacture of casein or sugar of mjlk. Mr. H. Vile said that the matter should be held over for consideration until after the next meeting regarding dried milk. He thought there was as : much in,tho manufacture of'sugar of milk, 'but they had better postpone consideration iuntil after the other meeting. Mr. Buchanan said that when he had . called the previous meeting regarding ■■ dried milk lie. had not gone fully into . the possibilities of casoin and 6ugar of milk, but having now obtained the figures he thought it right to place them' before the meeting. ■ :3lr. Jewell said they should hold over consideration until they heard the report •of the delegates who had gone to the ' Waikato to inquire into, the question, of dried, .milk. Tin question of cost of ■plant'would linvc lo he taken into'nnfiideration. Ho thought, they should ivnit until they obtained full particulars about dried milk. It had been agreed that the amalgamation 'of companies ■would have to be made before they went in for dried milk manufacture.. 1 The chairman snid there was a scheme i over the whole of the North Island for amalgamation. Mr. Buchanan said that co-operation would go further than over New, Zealand, but, would extend, indeed, over the whole Empire. There would ha nothing to prev.ent a large company manufacturing dried milk as well us oilier products. Mr. Kyle said they could make inquiries regarding the possibility of obtaining lnathineiy for tho manufacture of by-products if they could not gel: the machinery for manufacturing dried .milk. . ■ One of tho suppliers said that if, j-fter the war, they got an open market I hey might get as much for butter or as for sugar of milk. It would be a mistake to spend a lot of money on big plants that might not be required nfter the war. Mr. Buchannn said (hat , not only was snirar of milk being 'manufactured at Edemlalo, biit a factory for this purpose, at a cost of Mb,W was to be erected at Feathor.ston. In Northern Wairoa caeein was being manufactured from buttermilk.