OUR DAIRY FACTORIES

Otago Witness, Issue 2894, 25 August 1909, Page 20

OUR DAIRY FACTORIES

| * ANNUAL LIST. • The annual list of dairy factories of New Zealand has just been' issued by the Government*. In actual registrations up to April 30 it sturo-s an increase, of three in the number of cheese factories over last year's number^, and a decrease in butter factories, private dairies, and packing ! houses. The . figures for the two years are { as follows:—

Since the compilation of the list (says the Dominion) numerous other factories s have been registered or established, and the ' actual figures at the present date would show an increase of about 20 cheese factories and an increase of about four or five butter factories. This net increase of butter factories, small as it is, must be considered encouraging in view of the strong craze for cheese factories that has . prevailed in the recent vacation. The factories, etc., are distributed as follows: —

-The.- Isrgejtf .output jof butter from one company last season- came from the New Zealand Dairy - .Association of Auckland, wno" prefdrfced 1068 tons at Ngaruawahia i (from 475 suppliers), sag 352 tons at Puke- j : kphe. 1 The' next jsiggesC butter output was ' from the Taieri and. Peninsula Company — ] ' namely, '430 . tonsr -at Oamaru and 1200 -tons at, Dunechn.;' Th©"fiim.edin output was -at ■the rate" of- oho- ton for each supplier,* there being- i2QQ .supoiiers." The output of the '■ New Zealand Farmers' Dairy Union was . 627 .tons, of- Elthara 800 tons, and of Canterbury Central 850 tonß. . In cheese the big- producers were T. L. JoH Co-operative 1471 tons, and Edendale i and Brydone 900' tons* '

THE BREADSTUFF® AND PRODUCE MARKETS. Friday. The cabled information upon the Home market records a continued dull market caused by the opening of the European harvest season. Australia has receded in value in sympathy, while locally the. market is umJoubtecUy somewhat inclined to drag. Writing from London, under (late July 9, "Beerbohm" reviews the position as follows: — ■ "The market may be said to remain in much tShe same position as Ira-fore; that is to say, that, the prospective supplies, until the period when new wheat will be obtain:, able in abundance in Europe, ara scanty enough to keep the price cut a higih level, whilst the more , distant level depends so much upon the' weather and upon other contiwgencies, that it is not easy to ex,pre96 any definite opinion in this respect. Meanwhile the market is inclined to quietness, the general disposition being to buy onfly from hand to mouth, until at any rate, some T-eiiable opinion cao be formed in regard to the 'next harvest. The fact that the various option markets quote new crop deUverie&. at a discount of 4s' to- 59 pet quarter, and that new American and Canadian; wheat is offering at this discount^ shows, of course, that the market opinion is in favour of a -decline in the autumn, *Yir2reTi. Ib is- eccpec^oc! *&xa.lr £&rmers in general will be wiDingl sellers wheat at the unusuolly jbigH prices niling. It is, however, we believe, a fact tliiat, while the world's visibfe fiumjlv is practically the smallest on record, the world's invisible supply is also at a dangerously low point, and will admit of -no delay' in tihe harvesting of toe new crop, the demand for Which will be, to all appearances, enormous. This depletion of invisible, or reserve stocks as they may be called, is the chief reason whj one is iaolined to doubt whether the effects of the advent of new wheat upon the market will be so sudden or so severe as many seem to expect. On the otter hand, if the hajrveefc isa this country, in France, and in Gennaaiy should be decayed hy rain, the effeois would be serious indeed, because in such a case Germany would have to continue buying foreign wheat for a longer period, and, move important stiH in its effects upon tiue market, France might also become a buyer. Thus we are entering- upon a period of transition between the old and new seasons, whioh x is usually one of quietness and watchfulness. " With regard to he new season itself, there are, we think, already ujiimistakeabl© signs that the. requlp&m&nte of European importing countries will be greater than in. the season just drawing to a close, whilst, on the other hand, the indications arc that America's exportable surplus will be smaller than last year, whilst the position, in regard to wheat sowings in ATgen■tine has now become so serious that in all probability Argentina* surplus will aJsobe smaller ihan it has been in the past season. With the world's stocks at a low point, which almost suggests danger, it is not an omen of good to the constiituitional 'heai»' that two of our chief sources of supply Should be thus prospeotively failing them, .Russia, on the other hand, seems likely to be blessed with abundant crops this year, according to all our reports, a>nd India, as we see, is shipping freely, and is likely to continue to do so through the autumn. To sum up the position, we should say that supplies in Europe will continue to be inadequate until September, and that the aufcmn ahipnienits, in view of the small surplus expected in America, are not likely to be at all excessive, in view of the large requirements." At the same date (July 9) the weather was reported -to be ungenial and unfavourable for crops. Wheat, however, was expected- to yield well uj> to the average. That this anticipation has been realised the cable has in the last few days assured us. The following tabfc shows the condition of the crop in Great Britain on July 1 for some yeans past : — Wheat : 1899, 95.8; 1900, 89.5; 1901, 87.6; 1902, 94.0; 1903, 83.0; 1904, 82.0; 1905, 97.5; 1906, 94.0; 1907, 93.0; 1908, 87.9; 1909, 95.3. The Australian cablegram records that Sydney has fallen from 5s l£d to 4s lid, while Melbourne and Adelaide have each eased to 4s 7d. Taking the Commonwealth as a whole, some 4,000,000 bushels remain available for export, 750,000 bushels being obtainable in Victoria. The degree of shipping, however, is solely governed by the Home market, and has for some time past, with the easing which has obtained there, undoubtedly been considerably restricted. The probability is that export from now to the new crop will be infinitesimal; { The review by the. Sydney Mail of the same date is as follows: — _ " The week opens with a weaker wheat market. Holders have eased in their ideas from"~lad to"~2d per - bushel, while buyers' notions are in the vicinity of ss, and not ~ very definite at that. The weakening is due to the much easier feeling in London. Russian offerings have been very heavy, and the orop there is a large one. i Australian cargoes 'have in consequence been neglected, and this knocked back Adelaide and Melbourne and, of course, I Sydney had to ease in sympathy. Another faotor which has operated in favour of buyers is the official latest figures of stocks held in Victoria, which State is shown to have considerably more wheat available * than was previously supposed. On spot old wheat is quoted to-day at 58 Id to 5s l£d, according to position. Very little is heard about the new ctop, which, however, i is nominally worth about 3s 9d in the ' country. The growing distriots mostly re- j port a continuance of the favourable con- ' di tions. " Flour has been meeting with no better demand, and the almost unprecedented dullness of the trade for this time of the year is beginning to cause anxiety- to some millers. The convention price was reduced yesterday to £12 per ton, and it has yet to be seen whether this will help sales at all." " ■ Locally the wheat market is in a somewhat moribund condition, holders and prospective buyers having very different opinions aa to the value of wheat at the present time. The position has eased since about a month or less ago, when 4s 6d on bushels was easily obtainable. As a matter of fact sales at this - figure and even a fraction above, were made up till 10 days ago, when an easing- became apparent, and holders who refused offers of 4s 6d cannot receive options in some districts higher than 4s 3d. In many oases formers are nob prepared to accept the lower figure, and are sending their stocks to store. While the holders are remaining firm in their demands, millers will not purchase unless at

'a reduction. Business is therefore at a ' standstill, and will remain so till millers are forced to purchase.' The association's tariff for flour is : Sacks, £10 15s; 100's, £11; 50's, £11 10s; 25's, £11 15s. The shipping price is £10 10s, f.0.b., and the^lnvercargill price is £11. The association's price for pollard stands at £4 10s. Brai? is stationary at £3 15s per too. "7 A similar condition of lack of life' obtains in the oat market, whioh in fch© «bsenoe of business stands nominally at last 'week's rates. Prices cannot" go any .considerable sum lower and leave a satisfactory margin to the farmer. There is absolutely no outside demand for oats at present. The North Island secured its requirements earlier in the season, and Australia has good prospects for her new crop. The following • shows the oat position in England on July 9: — "The market has been very quiet on most days this week, and all descriptions have declined in price. Plate afloat to London «Ald at 18s l^d to 18s 4£d, against 18s 6d to 18s 10£ d a week ago, and 3d less money was accepted for June-July. The spot market at Mark Lane has also ruled quiet, but there is not much change in prices. The ..French hwketa have .been very quiet in tone, although' leEb money .would ■ hare" been taken j 'the recent rains" have been very beneficial to the growingcrop. In Germany, ' intwithstaadrng the ecitroily of supplies, £ha marfce*s axe quiet - end- prices -Joiner, tin consumptive demand being very small. -In the U.K. cuop proaprices are reported to be generally unfavourable, wireworm having done a good deal" of damage, whilst it has also suffered seriously from other insects. The condition of the crop in the U.S. on July 1 was 88.3, against 8517 last year, and 86.8 the 10 years' average. The following prices represent the nominal value of different lines: — A Gartons, probably Is 10£ d could be secured for f.o.b. ,6.i. shipment, but B grade lie* between Is 8d and Is 9d. A grade sparrowbills stand at about Is 9£d, and B grade at Is 9d. Oatmoal remains at £10 10b per ton, and peaxl barley at £14 10s. The heavy supplies of country butter continue, and an easing is apparent in dairy pate. The mild winter has allowed a heavy growth of early spring grass, the result of which is shown in the glutted butter market. Straw and ohaff continue in fair supply,, and late rates still obtain. Onions of local growth have firmed somewihat as a consequence of the importation .of supplies from Melbourne, and are nowquoted at from £4 Ids to £6 per toff. The heavy supplies coming forward _ in eggs continue-, and 'as a consequence prices have receded to lid per dozen, at which price there is a good demand. Detailed quotations are as follow:— Chaff.— Prime oaten chaff. £2 12s 6d to £2 15s; medium to good, £2 5s to £2 7s od; light and inferior lots, £1 15s per ton and upwards (sacks extra). Potatoes. — Prime UD-to-Dates. £3 10s to £3 12s od* ; medium io'good, £3 2s 6d to £3 ss; inferior. £2 per ton (sacks in). Butter-— Dairy pafe, 8d to^d ; milled, 6d to B£d ; separator pats, ' 9£d ; bulk, 9£d ; Taieri and Peninsula } ats, lljd (id rebate for cosh) ; Taieri and Peninsula bulk, Hid. Cheese. — Home shipment, s|d per lb; looal lots, 6d to 6id per lb.' Straw. — Prices are easier. Oaten, 27s 6d to 30s per ton ; wheaten, £1 5s per ton (pressed ex truck). Clover hay, £2 10s to £2 15s p&r ton. Onions.— Melbourne, £8 to £8 10s; Canterbury, £5 10s to £6 per tpn. Eggs. — Fresh, lid to Is per dozen; stamped, Is Id. Bacon.— Rolls, 8-id; flitches, 7d ; .Lams, B£d ; bacon pigs, 4|d ; porkers, 14£ d.1 4£d. Poultry.— Hens, 3s 6d per pair; roosters, 3s 6d to 4s; ducks, 3s to 3a 6d; best, 4s 6d; turkeys— hens sd, gobblers 8d per lb. ' FRUIT REPORT. The market has been particularly bare of oranges, and current prices have firmed 50 per cent. There will be no big shipment of Island fruit fox a fortnight or so, and in the meantime supplies of Australian grown will have to be accepted. The Ulimaroa, from Sydney, brought 400 cases of mandarins, oranges, lemons, passions, and Sevilles ; the Victoria, from* Auckland, brought. 60 cases of oranges and man-da-rins ; the Warrimoo, from Melbourne and H;ba,rt brought 780 oases of apples, orangee. lemons, and pines; and by the Tofua and, Tarawera came 220 cases of bananas .and 250 cases of oranges. On Monday tfie Moura ia due to land a shipment of Suvan bananas. Quotations are as follow: — Oranges.— Rarotongan repacks, 12s to 13s; Sydney, 7s to 8s; Sevilles (good demand), 6s to 6s od; Poorman Bushels, 6s. ■ Mandarins. — Queensland, 7s to 8s;" Sydney—choice 7s 6d to 8s 63, medium 6s od. Lemons. — Market moderately supplied. South Australian, 10s to lls; Malduras, 12s; Sydneyf. 7s to 8s case. ' , I Bananas.— Ripe, 2id to.2id. • Pinee. — Choice Queensland (rough), 11s to 12s; Queens, up to 14s. Apples. — Choice cookers, 21d to 2Jd; medium, ljd to lid; windfalls, 5s to 7s cwt; Hobart, choice scarlets, 9s to 10s 6d; Stunners, 7s 6d to 9s 6d; French Crabs, 8s 6d; Stones, 8s case; local dessert, 2id to 3d. Pears. — Few offering. Victorian, 12s. Vegetables.— Cabbages, Is 6d to Is 7d per sack. Cauliflower, 2s 8d to 4a 9d per sack. Pie melons (basely supplied), 7s 6d to 8s per cwt. Pumpkins, 4« 6d to 5s 6d per sack. Vegetable marrows, 6s to 6s 9d; scarce. j Passion Fruit.— Half -gins, 6a to 7s; . Packetß, 6s 6d to &. Honey.— Choice) 4±d to 4Jd per lb; 101b tins, 3s 6d to 4s; choice sections, 6s to 7« pet dozen; medium, 3s to 4s 6d per dozen. Peanuts.— Java, 3d; Japanese, 2£d to 3d. Preserved ginger, 7£d per lb. Walnuts.— Good demand. Prime quality, s£d to 6d. Barcelona nuts, s|d to 6Jd, Brazil nuts, 7id to 84d per lfi« IMPORT MARKET. The loss of the s.s. Maori, and the consequent absence from the market of the usual monthly shipment by this boat, has caused a shortage in Jgyes' fluid, salt herrings, and split lentils, and prices for these commodities are d%htly higher. Van Houten's cocoa is in limited supply from the same cause. An advance is recorded in t!h© price of turpentine, which ia now quoted by merchants at 3s 9d to 4a. A slight further advance is anticipated, - '

* The seasonable demand for egg preservalives has commenced. The c.6. Cornwall brings a shipment of CrossnekPs preservative. The same steamer, which arrived afi Sydney on August 18, will bring a supplyof lib and 21b jars of golden shred marma> lade, and is expected at this port about the) middle of September. Private cable advice reports that the new; season's currant crop has been seriously] affected by heavy rains ami? blight. A strong advance in Ihe quotation fog Sicily almonds is announced, the price now* beingr 3b 2d. ~ Present quotations for clothes pegs are* as under:— Per box, 4ej 10-box lots, 3s 10d;| 25-box lots, 3s 9d. A larger area than usual is being put down in wheat this season, particularly in the South Canterbury district, and tbia has created a brisk demand fof. bluestone, whioh is being sold at 30s per cwt for quantities. Further -supplies are coming by- the Corn* wall.

if ijfjfffl -i Auckland „ „ 5l 13 48 2 12 126 Tarstnaki ." .. 61 43 218 — 10 342 Wellington .. 34 29 31 2 45 131 H&wke's Bay ... 18 5 — — —- 23 Nelson .... 7 5 7 1 10 30 M&rlborough ..2 3 .*» \ g Westlwid. . - 4 1 -T- — — 5 CifcaterWy .-^ 9 11 i 23 13 56 Otago «ad -Southland 7 42 8 2 28 80 Totals 193^152 308 30 116 799

±a\ja» AOUU> Butter factories .. .. 193 Cheese factories . ' .» 152 Private better .« 1( 308 Private .cheese ,„ .. 30 Mitts .. „ V. .. -.. J-16 196 147 347 46 122 Totals .. .. w« n 79b 855