Improving the Butter

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 992, 7 June 1930, Page 31

Improving the Butter

SITUATION IN VICTORIA New Zealand Methods Praised

“MO branch ot larmmg pr PI attention during the last an interesting article in “The “It may be said that none an economic standpoint,” coi some jiraise for New Zealand “Herd-testing, selection, and pasture improvement have all helped the dairy farmer to obtain more a head, and often far more from a lesser number o£ stock than was produced formerly. Yet while this side of the industry has made remarkable progress, it cannot be said that this has been adequately reflected in the manufacturing side of the business. There lias not been a corresponding increase in the quality ot the butter produced, and any advance made has not been noticeable in the prices obtained on the overseas market. Artificial rather than other means have largely enabled the business to be carried on satisfactorily to producers. “The trouble seems to be that the factories as a whole have not kept pace with the progress that has characterised the primary side of the business. It may he suggested that carelessness on the farm, in the care ancl cleanliness of the separators and in other directions has retarded the development of the secondary side of the business. If this view is accepted it may be said that, factory staffs cannot be exonerated from any part they may be associated with in the grading ot the cream and in insisting on suppliers carrying out their obligations to the factory. OVER-COMPETITION

"London prices are the one basis on which comparisons can be made. It is on that market that butters from the Commonwealth and New Zealand come into direct competition with produce from other countries. Taking these prices as a criterion it is significant that almost invariably New Zealand produce has maintained a very distinct superiority in values over butter from the Commonwealth, and it is equally apparent that other States are supplying the market with highergrades than those forwarded by a number of Victorian factories. Apparently there are instances in which factory managers are permitting cream to be put in that is not of a Quality to make the choicest butter. It may be, too, that there is what may be best termed an unhealthy competition for cream between rival or competing factories, which possibly are being forced into the position of having to guarantee and pay choicest prices regardless of the quality of the cream received. “At a meeting held In Victoria recently It was stated that supervision was better in New Zealand than in Victoria. In the Dominion super-

visors at the factories see the cream delivered and if it is not regarded as satisfactory it is the duty of officials to visit the farms concerned and endeavour to trace where the faults lie.

It is not sufficient for those in charge of factories to report that when butter leaves a factory it is sound, and that the deterioration that lakes place happens in transport. “Cream that is on the border line may be used, and when manufactured the butter may be quite sound when judged by the usual means of taste and smell. The changes that take place during transport are largely of a bacteriological nature due in no small measure to the condition of the cream used. A butter that is apparently perfectly sound when graded may, when opened up, be found to be faulty. Not until such time as the causes ot these changes are ascertained can there be any appreciable improvement in the standard of Victorian butter as a whole. EDUCATING THE FARMER

"In matters of this kind there is always a tendency to regard the dairyman as the arch offender. The fact is ignored that the farmer is merely the supplier of the raw product. The reputation of the factory is built up largely by the degree of care exercised in manufacture. Consequently, if faulty cream Is allowed to be mixed "ilh a choicer grade at least a degree of the blame should be transferred to those responsible. It is in this connection that the factory or group of factories can do much to reduce the risk of faults occurring. Payment for the cream on the basis of its true value or the rejection of the commodity when necessary is one means of overcoming the difficulty. It matters little whose ci earn is rejected if

oduetion has received closetdecade than dairying,” states Australian.” has made more progress from ttinnes the article, which has netliods of dairy hygiene. in the opinion of the grader it is unsuitable. “On the other hand, the New Zealand method of sending officials out to the farms to instruct the dairymen in ordinary matters of hygiene connected with his business has much to commend it. It is by no. means a ! difficult matter for those in charge of j factories to tabulate a list of sup- j pliers whose cream is not delivered tn , satisfactory condition. Such faults j are traceable and when these causes have been brought to the notice of the dairyman and means of prevention suggested, there should exist no further hesitation in refusing supplies that are not up to the standard required. The risk of a supplier transferring his business to a competitor is not worthy of consideration. If a factory is better without the grade of cream offering, it can in no way be beneficial to a competitor to receive the produce. “It has been shown in New Zealand that the strict adherence to a policy of accepting a thoroughly sound cream has been the means of creating a reputation for the finished article, which is reflected in a higher market value.”