A HOSPITAL FARM

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 304, 12 September 1918, Page 6

A HOSPITAL FARM

NEW PLYMOUTH'S EXPERIENCE In connection with the proposal of the Wellington Hospital and Charitable Aid Board to purehaso a dairy farm in order to secure an assured supply of good milk all the year round, the members of tho Special Committee have already had a number of fairly suitable properties submitted to them for sale or lease. One very suitably-situ-ated property in the Hutt Valley, which may, if properly worked, meet with the board's requirements, is to b'o personally inspected by the members of tho Farm Committeo on Monday next, and they hope to have something concerning the proposed innovation to place before the next meeting of tho hoard. The committee has been advised that the New Plymouth Hospital and Charitable Aid Board has a- dairy farm tinder its control, which fully supplies tho requirements of tile hospital and the homo, connected with the charitable side of its activities. The balancesheet of tho farm is exceedingly interesting in view of local eventualities. From its seventeen cows tho milk obtained was 13,194 gallons. Of that quantity the hospital took 9000 gallons and tho homo 4194 gallons. Charging the institution Is. per gallon, a credit balanco of £186 is shown on the year's working. Wages paid only amount to £256. When the report was written the stock consisted of seventeen cows, four heifers, and thirty pigs. From the above figures it will be seen that the New Plymouth Hospital, and Home consume about 33 gallons a day, whilst the daily all-the-year-rouiid requirements for the Wellington Hospital, Obiro Home, Fever Hospital, Children's Hospital, Seddon Shelters, and Nurses' Home is 100 gallons. The New Plymouth Board is fortunate in being able to show a profit whilst charging itself only Is. per gallon. Wellington. without anything to show a. profit on, pays Is.' o£d. per gallon, plus 10 per cent, (a war-time addition). It may be arranged'that a representative of the Wellington Hospital Board will visit the New Plymouth Board's farm to investigate its working, possibly as a guide to the lines on which the proposed hospital dairy farm will he run in this district.