A NEW METHOD

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 663, 16 October 1933, Page 2

A NEW METHOD

TARANAKI EXPERT REPORTS ON EXPERIMENTS WITH TESTS. UNPOPULAR WIITH SUPPLIERS "During las't season, the 'Rahotu Cpmpany made a trial pf the feasibi•Iity of paying differential prices per pound hutter-fat according to the cheese yields as determined by fat ;a.nd casein tests on tk'e milk of individual suppliers. This irivolved the testing of over 2000 period samples of milk for casein by the standard analytical method," states Mr. P. O. Veale in the course of his report to the annual meeting o.f the Taranaki Federation of Dairy Factories. "The Rahotu demonstration has proved that the principle of differential payments per pound butter-fat* can be put into practice without any special changes in factory or office routine. It has alsp shown' that the main stumbling block to any such re,'form is the unwillingness of the majority of suppliers to undertaka it. Many personsi without any knowledge of the true cheese yielding capaci- ' ties of the milks criticised the resuits of the Rahotu trial as beinD unfair, •and refused to believe that there could he differences' in value amounting to about 2d per pound butter-fat as between some of the extremes. Hence, where the matter is decidd by a majority verdict, it is not surprising that the majority vote against a me'thod of payment which they believe 'will deprive them of some part of the returns they have enjoyed in the past. ' The Rahotu- demonstration proved this point very well, and has led me to ' the conelusion that a method of but-ter-fat paymept in which ,one man gets more or less p.er pound than his neighbour will never find favour in this over-democratic country, however much the different payments may be justified. Tool Unpopular. ) "Accordingiy, I am driven to the conelusion that the butter-fat system of payment can no longer help the cheese industry forward, and that the next logical step is to abandon it and to pay for cheese produced. "This can easily be done by analysing each supplier's period milk sample for fat and casein and finding .from a chart how much cheese per 100 -pounds of milk corresponds with the observed fat and casein tests, It is then a simple matter to figure each supplier's production of cheese for the period, and to- pay everyone for 'his production at a flat rate per pound of cheese. I have prepared such \a chart and consider that it should be acceptable - to all sections of the .industry, for the reason that it pays a supplier for exactly what he pro-duc-es. Criticism of the principle shoiuid not hinge around question of cattle breeds, or percentages of fat 'in cheese, but only upon the question of whether the cheese figures in my table are accurate enough to be taken ■as .a basis of payment, and whether the industry i's fair minded enough to spend a little money in order that they may be paid for what th'ey produce in cheese. Investigation Urged. "I sincerely trust that the sliggestion of one of the Rahotu directors will bear fruit — ftiamely that Massey College should look into my figures and state whether they do give correctly enough the yields of cheese ■at the different fat and casein tests, and if not, to propound something nearer the truth. Then, with either 'my chart or theirs, the way is open to a sound reform in payment for milk for cheese-making. "The Rahotu trial has cleared the way and shown the practicability of the testing and. calculations All that 'remains is for public opinion to appreciate that the reform rnerely means justice to all, and to adopt it accordingiy.