DAIRY RESEARCH

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 135, 8 May 1940, Page 9

DAIRY RESEARCH

WORK OF INSTITUTE. REVIEW BY DIRECTOR

Speaking at the opening of the dairy factory managers’ week at" the Dairy Research Institute, yesterday, Professor W. Riddet, the director,, gave a review of the work of the institute during the past year, touching briefly also on certain lines of investigation which, he said, would be explained in the various lectures by members of the staff of the institute who had been engaged in these researches. It was believed that with the continued work of Dr H. R. .Whitehead on starters in cheese-making very substantial progress had been made with this problem, and it appeared that it now rested with , the persons handling the starters in the dairy factories to apply the knowledge, gained by others. DEFECTS IN CHEESE. Openness in cheese and slit openness made by certain organisms that got into the milk supply, which trouble was accentuated by starter difficulties, had been investigated during tile year by Dr I. 11. Sherwood, who had gained his doctorate. (Applause.) He had continued his search for the organisms (which was rather like looking for a needle in a haystack) that created the gas to bring about openness. During the year Dr R. M. Dolby had given much attention to the cause of cracked rinds in cheese, and much time had been devoted to the study of the methods of cheese manufacture to suit particular starters, Professor Riddet commented. Further, a lot of attention and careful work had been given by Dr T. 11. Vernon, under factory conditions, to the study of the temperature humidity and air movement in cheese curing rooms, with their effect on cheese and also the checking of mould growth and the effects on the general quality of the product. The desirable amount of movement in the air in cheese curing rooms had been given particular attention.

Dr C. R. Barnicoat had returned from the University of Minnesota, where lie was awarded a doctorate (applause) since the last annual gathering, and ho had given time and attention to the standardisation of colouring agents for cheese, Professor Riddet proceeded. Further, some attention had been given to the control, of cheese mites. On the butter manufacturing side, Professor Riddet continued, a great deal of effort had been expended in the investigations into the control and elimination of landcress taint in cream and butter. The fundamental work was done actually at Palmerston North, and when that was completed—a great deal sooner than had teen anticipated—DrF. H. McDowell went to the Tauranga Dairy Company’s factory and continued his investigation's there. Investigations were made as to how long it took for the taint to reach the milk after the animal liad eaten landcress, and also the effect on the animal itself. KEEPING OF BUTTER. The effect of metals on the keeping qualities of butter was another problem which had been investigated, the speaker proceeded. Dr O. 11. Barnicoat had followed up that work here, continuing certain lines of investigation lie had undertaken in the United States, to find out if there were any useful anti-toxin which could be used to prevent butter going “off” in storage due to this cause. He had investigated practices which had been used in bygone days. Further, Dr Barnicoat had carried out experiments on the .effect of light on butter. These factors did not show any immediate effect in the butter when it was graded, but they did have a great effect when butter was kept for a long time.

Influences on butter of certain churning practices had been studied by Dr. Dolby, Professor Riddet proceeded. In the past two yearn the institute had received from different . parts of New Zealand samples of butter which were examined for their fats. This work was still being carried on. Just recently, continued Professor Riddet, there had come on the market a material made from rubber which was sold for wrapping butter, in place of the usual parchment, and it was stated that this material prevented the butter becoming discoloured and retained the rich creamy-yellow colour. Experiments were now being carried forward to see if this material did what was claimed for it. Mould control in factories was another subject being investigated by Dr. Vernon, said Professor Riddet,. who explained that the sensitivity of mould to different paints had been studied and also the effect on them of ultra-violet light and ozone. The influence on the animal of food of certain types was also referred to by the speaker who said that for some years animals had been fed on definite foods, or combinations of thorn, and the effect on the quality and quantity of the milk noted. These experiments 1 were still being carried out. Milk had been analysed throughout the season and the results were now being worked out. This work aopeared to indicate that the “plane of nutrition,” whether an animal was overfed and thus above this plane, or underfed and thus below it, had an influence on the milk, and it seemed that in New Zealand more animals were underfed than overfed. The work was of a complicated nature and was of probably greater interest actually to the dairy farmer than to the dairy factory manager.