The Feilding Star. TUESDAY,DECEMBER 4,1883. Cheese Factories

Feilding Star, Volume IV, Issue 78, 4 December 1883, Page 2

The Feilding Star. TUESDAY,DECEMBER 4,1883. Cheese Factories

In consequence of the aUeged failure of the Ashburton Cheese Factory, several southern papers having commented thereon, the Post has made a collection of facts relating to the case from the most reliable sources, and upon a thorough investigation they do not appear so discouraging as represented. As the information is deeply interesting to our readers, we will lay before them certain extracts which will be of use to those now prompting the factory in the Makino : "It is quite true that the result of last season's operations was a slight loss to the shareholders. Against this, however, must he set the fact that all the contributors made more money out of the sale of their milk than they have ever made by turning it into butter. Unfortunately, the company last year did not insist upon all the contributors being shareholders. This was only one of several mistakes incidental to the inauguration of a new industry, which wUI not be repeated. The price paid for milk last season was 4d per gallon of lOlbs, delivered at the factory. It has now been discovered that it takes nearly lllbs of milk to the gallon, and that, although these lllbs make as nearly as possible lib of curd, they do not make lib of cured cheese, which was the result at first calculated upon. The fact that cheese while maturing shrinks from 15 to 20 per cent, had been overlooked not only by the company, but apparently by Mr Bowron, who is mainly responsible for the estimates. The efforts expended fruitlessly to obtain the Government bonus for the first fifty tons of cheese exported and sold at a fair price in a foreign market constituted another cause of loss. The company appear to have good reason for complaint that they have not received the consideration from the Government which their enterprise deserved. When the bonus conditions first appeared, one of them was that the cheese should be made in a factory constituted upon the American system. This was generally understood to mean, not that the cheese should be made upon the American system as in contradistinction to the Cheddar system, but that the faotory should obtain its milk from the surrounding farmers, instead of keeping its own cows. Yet the company received an official intimation that because the factory was worked on the Cheddar, and not on the American system, they had no claim to the bonus. Not only was the Government obstructive, but the difficulties of transit were found to be insuperable. The freight of id per lb, which has been charged upon the small shipments already made, is very high, and will have to be reduced considerably if the export trade is to become permanent. It is somewhat strange that a consignment of batter shipped Home' by the Catalonia, which ..also took some of the Ashburton cheese, was taken at 90s per ton,, or about a half penny per lb. As regards .'the reception of their cheese on the London market the company have good reason to be satisfied, notwithstanding one very, poor return. The Catalonia consignment, just referred to, realised 63s per cwt., or 18s more per cwt. than the ruling price of the best, AniericaQi Two consignments, often

tons each, have since been sent Home by the Doric and British Queen, and good results are looked for. The company started the new season's operations last month. All contributors are now required to be shareholders in the proportion of one share to every 20 gallons of milk supplied. The price paid for supplies is reduced to 3d per gallon, with the proviso that after the payment of a fair dividend to the shareholders, any surplus will be divided among the producers in just proportion up to 4d per gallon. The contributors, although naturally objecting to the change, have accepted it in a friendly spirit, and the factory maintains its supply undiminished. By leasing the pig business, with the whey at a contract price, the management have been enabled to concentrate aU their energies on the manufacture of a good, even article of consumption, which under the reduced expenditure they fuUy expect to be able to sell at a profit at less than 5d per lb. Last year 6d would not have more than paid a fair dividend. The local market under the new regime wiU receive proper attention, and to provide for this a large proportion of small cheeses will be turned out. The balance wiU be available for export, subject to a considerable reduction of freight, which is an absolute necessity." From these facts the directors of the Makino factory will be able to avoid the errors of the Ashburton directors. An abiding faith in the Government promises, the acceptance of Mr Bowron's figures without question or examination, and allowing farmers to be contributors without being shareholders, appear to have been the causes of a partial failure to produce dividends.