Farming Column

Hokitika Guardian, 24 June 1933, Page 8

Farming Column

MILKING METHODS CARELESS TENDENCIES The views of dairy factory managers upon the new regulations adopted in the dairy industry to endeavour to improve the quality of the Dominion’s produce were outlined by Mr P. C. H. Petersen, of Cambridge, president of the New Zealand Dairy Factory Managers’ Association, in his address at the annual meeting at Palmerston North.

“As dairy factory managers it is our duty to do the utmost further to improve the quality pf our dairy produce, but it is of paramount importance that we should have the producer of the raw material, the dairy farmer, with us in our desire to make progress along the lines of quality,” said. Mr Petersen. “No Act of Parliament, no control board and no regulation can improve quality unless we .have the whole-hearted co-oparation of the dairy farmers.”

~ At the present time, he said, there were . many in charge of the. milking operation who :vyere totally unfit to hold such a position.' No matter howwell a shed might be fitted with facilities for carrying out the work efficiently, if the man in charge tad pot •the required know-lodge cf- the; yj-ork it would be quite impossible for hiln‘to produce milk in high quality. , Why the milking of ; cows should be regarded as a job anyone could do—a jo!) to be looked upon as- a sort of nuisance, which come,, around twice a day' and wag fitted.only for the oldest clothes one could find arid, those, in many cases, not even clean, Mr Peter-, sen said he did not know. Bad habits had been bred in the milking of cows and until the task on every dairy farm was regarded as one of the greatest importance managers would still have enough milk coming to the factories t 0 keep the quality of dairy produce down.

’fhe competition for the supply of milk and cream, wbiclv existed in many districts, Mr Petersen pointed out, was a very serious drawback and' it was gratifying that new regulations . pte-' venting a supplier from, changing during the season from ]cncf factory j'to. another; had been brought in, thus overcoming. one of the drawbacks .of competition for supply. The grading cf milk for cheese-making and registration of dairy factory managers would undoubtedly assist in the improvement of. the milk supply to cheese.'’factories, but.,it>,was. of,,equal importance' fhaf the man in charge of a dairy herd-and milking shed should be licensed.

. , The hope was expressed by Mr PeteT* sen that milk grading during the coming season would prove a success and it would fie. carried out in 1 the proper spirit both bv the diaijry farmer and the managers. He hoped managers would be rid of the farmer who always graded his own milk and cream and knew better than the manager what was good, bad, or indifferent milk or cream, or the one who came to the factory and told the manager that if the milk was not graded in accordance, with the, sup--plier’s views there were plenty of other factories ‘ which would accept his supply. •, . The forming of a registration board, and the registration of , all dairy factory. managers, would no doubt- 'assist in dealing with many, of the difficulties, and he hoped that in the noan future a registered factory manager would he regarded as a qualified atjd technically trained mail,, whose-judg-ment op the manufacturing . problems of the industry, would be accepted by the dairy farmers. Most of the factories .had some very fine equipment, and lie was sure the technical experience and skill were available,, among factory managers to ensure the production of quality much in advance of tliat pf today, -provided an improvement .-gpould be effected in the raw matelngl..;/,;- •

LARGE-SCALE BREEDING “A farmer who has for many years fattened pigs 011 a large scale writes in gloomy vein,” comments Mr T. A. Stephens, in the Farmer and Stockbreeder.

“Breeding,” he says, “is only for the small man ; one, two or three sows are safe enough, but with any larger herds disease, lie contends, is bound to get in sooner or later, and the profit of years disappears. He says he has never known anyone able successfully to breed from 20 sows, and has studied conditions in Denmark, where lie has personal friends, who all confirm this view. “Ir there was any truth in this theory, we should be starting out to increase our pig production under a severe handicap indeed'. I have bred pigs on a fairly large scale for many years—for over ten years my average was over 40 sows, and over long periods there were over .500 pigs on the farm. Only once have I had any outbreak of disease, and then my totallosses amounted to seven.

“A feeder who buys pigs in markets or anywhere lie can get. them, arid perhaps feeds ,<>ll. swill, does run risks. But a breeder who adopts reasonable precautions in sanitation, and isolates any imported pigs, does not run these risks. I know many herds that have never had an outbreak of disease of any kind.” . . .C'. Hr?

ECONOMIC MANURING. RESPONSE FROM FERTILISERSThe need ' for grazing off the extra ’keep' obtained •from fertilised is emphasised by (Mr H. Cecil Pawson, ot the . Armstrong College, staff, in m article contributed to an English farm paper. Keep i 6 never cheap, he says, -unless it can be converted into saleable produce at a remunerative price and -more h rrn than good may be done by inducing improvement through fertilising (unless the herbage is consumed.

The increased yield of herbage on ■land of a poor character which results .from . systematic, and • suitnble manuring is reflected, he po;nts out, in increased stock canning c paeity and also in better “doing”, on, the.part of the stock—whethe r cattle or sheep. The poor grazing land at Cockle' Park which originally carried a sheep to the acre and .was worth but a few sh'lrngs per .annum rental value has been ivmsfor.med by the application of a high- grade basic slag into land •on which the sheep stocking lias • been more th n. trebled and the live weight gains quadrupled. With the better grazing induced by a mixed stocking of; cattle and sheep the output is inereaeerj, while intensive manuring and rotational grazing 'develop the production still further.

Pfopqr manuri l and grazing treatment of -grassland gives rise to more nndatabh. and more highly digestive keep, richer in protein and mineral matte,., as Well as to an increase in dry matter production: in short, more and better keep, i?’ pasture we’l nourished bv ’regular, manorial treatment nie.ans.. too, an extended gr 'z’ng sea son, the. .hei‘b'’g,v starting earlier in the spring n.nd bating ■ lqnge r in the autumn. Th’s, however, is subject to the. limitations imposed by grazing management. Famrjcm -.bV, been well defined as on in f e"ference with nature, Mr Pewson odds. .It is de-Mr that we nr° n'*w demanding- more from our land in the shape of protein, mineral matter, etc., hv'..verson of developments such -as thp ' incr.e.asin.'T. .yields from our dairy Abwfi . and the increase in la mb pro-, duct'-on in. our . live . stock management impose a greater .strain • not o'' v on the animals but m the land. Miner 1 nvix'fures, have, their plage in certain ratjons. hut it . is' well to insist on tty* value -of feeding mineral's to «to.-k via the-iwpil and the keep •from the soil. .. Th,e qualitative improvement of foods like, .grazing berWe . and hay through: the use pf. there, fore ■ -of impovtance. F nl young, dairy, heifers the valve Of imnerd rich hav and grazing, to enab <*_ them to , build rp amn’e of Tfilheral ; matter can ..hardly. be overstated. 1. . .

In mv opinion. on-Hnd-tV»t K°'s been -improved <bv systematic clressiugs pVq-pha+e, there/ often arises con.f tion . when potash, added to the usual A,resting' of phosphate g v *s a b f 'tt‘ v ’ feeding sward'. On this shag improved grass there has been, a jfeig-, . increase ip not inf’-eq-uenty in sheep production, and the, supply of available potash is sometimes a l>miting factor in attaining thn highest degree of efficient management. •,. Nitrogenous ..artificial manures are especially usefiil- for sficuriiig.. a . n early bite, fo,- encouraging a quicker recovery 'from close, plean . grazing, and thus'..in obtaining a • more .uniform, distribution of growth- throughout the Fov .spring . dressings, where rapid improvement is desired on pool grazing land, there is much to be said under some conditions for .a dressing of a mixture ‘of artificial manure containing all three constituents. . The. production of cheap keep is, however, more than a matter of application of suitable Tnanurial, dressings. There is the utilisation ; of the prop.-A, .farmer must review h : s management from time to time, with n view. to determining whether he is using his grass to the best advantage. Some land on which considerable -improvement has been brought about by phosphates is used for fattening cattle which is more suited to rearing stock. On some farms more hay is produced than is economic, on some too little. While .modification in the propping of ja farm iis never, easv, there is often room for adjusting production to meet the needs of the particular farming system.

DAIRY FACTORY REQUISITES. Prices for New Zealand dairy factory requirements for next season show a . (slight falling off in quotations for some articles and a close approximation to prices of others quoted last year. Cheese crates and butter boxes are dearer; rennet shows a, rise of about. 10 per cent. ; cheer,e colour is about the same as last year. Cheese bandage and caps are quoted at about the I'la.mc as fiasT year. Parchment, paper is slightly lower in price, with German makers competing with the .Rnglish and Belgian article. Dairy -Aalt .is practically unchanged.