CANON BAGOT ON FACTORY DAIRYING.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 376, 12 June 1889, Page 3

CANON BAGOT ON FACTORY DAIRYING.

At a meeting recently held at the York Corn Exchange for the purpose of hearing the Rev. Canon Bagot's views on the factory system of dairying, that well-known enthusiast on dairy science delivered a very interesting address which is thus reported in the Agricultural Gazette :—: — Answering the question as to why they had assembled together Canon Bagot said it was to devise means, if possible, as to how best they could compete with the foreigner. Foreign butter had been gradually supplanting and pushing out of our own markets the home production, and the question was how should we get back a portion at least of this trade. • Our greatest competitor was Denmark. Danish butter was not put into the English market until 1871, and at that time it was in price 15s per cwt under superfine Cork ; " in 1875 it brought an equal price with superfine Cork ; in 1878 Danish brought Id per lb more than superfine Cork, and it had maintained its lead ever since How had Danish butter gained this advantage over home produce T By it 3 uniformity. In Danish butter there was uniformity in colour, uniformity in texture, uniformity in salting, . uniformity in packing, and uniformicy in the quantity of water left in the butter, or he might say uniformity in there being no water at all. By the method adopted in Denmark every dairymaid was taught precisely the same system. A dairymaid teacher in that country must go six months to the Agricultural College, and obtain a diploma before she could become a teacher. In English butter there was no such thing as uniformity. Every dairy differed from every other dairy., and no two lumps of English butter were alike. The uniformity of Danish butter, which was one great cause of its superiority in the market, was brought about by the factory system. Seven years ago when he travelled through Denmark there were not more than three or four factories in the whole country ; now there were thousands. The introduction of the mechanical cream separator had made the rapid growth of the factory system possible, and had revolutionised dairying. To illustrate the importance attached by the Danish Government to its retaining its grip of the English market, Canon Bagot mentioned that there was a Danish agent in Manchester whose business it was to report any discovery of inferior butter to the head of the agricultural department in Denmark in order that the offending dairy might be notified and cautioned. He also mentioned that at shows in Denmark butter sent in competition for prizes offered must be in the pos3es?ion of the secretary of the show three weeks before it was adjudged, three weeks being the time that might expire before it could be disposed of in the English market. A mechanical separator for three or four cows cost monej , bub it was comparatively little to the cost of building a dairy, and it reduced the work of the dairy about one • half. The district around York could not be called a dairy country, but there were many farmers who kept cows, and who had ibutter to sell, but who could not get •a proper price for it. What he wished to see was the setting up of a small factory In districts like that, where at first they would make up their own butter, but where by-and-by as small factories in■creased large central factories would be •established, and to these central factories the smaller ones, ceasing to make butter, would send their cream to be made into 'butter. He would have the farmers proceed cautiously. The cost of furnishing a small factory need not be much, and after a trial the farmers would see if they liked

to send their milk, and whether they got a better price. There were now 100 factories running in Ireland. They began only five or six years ago, and now it was no longer necessary to urge the farmers to adopt .the "factory system. Having spoken incidentally of oats being ab the price the best feed for cows, and in favour of sweot ensilage as food, and having recommended them to have nothing to do with Jersey cows, Canon Bagot said that the introduction ot the mechanical separator had been advantageous in the production of sweet cream, and he did nob see why in Yorkshire, with large towns near at hand, there should not be a good trade in the supply ot cream. At Olympia last year they had 20 gallons of cream per day sent from Limerick. From Limerick to Dublin the railway company carried the cream ab 2d per gallon, and the London and North-Western Company, for carrying ib across the Channel, and thence to London, charged 3d per gallon, so that they had ib delivered at Olympia at the rate of 5d per gallon for carriage. At Limerick Junction it post them 5s pee erallon, the carriage was sd, and at ' Olympia it was sold at from 16s up to £1 per gallon. Could they not with their great towns near introduce something of this kind in Yorkshire ? If they were getting 7d per pound for butter, then they were selling their cream at 6d per quart, and that cream was worth in the London market any day 2s 6d per quart. As to the keeping of the cream, they had no difficult}-. In very hot weather they had, of course, to take precautions. Generally sugaring was sufficient, and when this was done they sold it as sugared cream, and generally people pi'eferied sugared cream to unsweetened. Sugar would keep cream for eight or nine .days. If sugar was not sufficient they might add a little boracic acid. Why should they not develop this cream trade ? If they could put upon their markets in the large towns of Yorkshirr cream, not at 2s 6d per quart, but at Is 6d per quart, it would be used extensively, and if they could get even Is a quart in summer it would be far more than they now gob. He advised the farmer's wife not to oppose the introduction of the factory, system, for it would save her an enormouVdeal of trouble and of time which she might with advantage devote to the poultry and egg department. He believed I also that fruit farming on a small scale would often pay wel£ and he specially mentioned gooseberry growing as a profitable kind of fruit culture. He knew a farmer in Derry who had been realising £70 per acre for gooseberries. ik.s to the production of beef we should be able bo hold our own. With the increase of freights the difficulty of putting American beef in the market ab remunerative prices would increase. Several questions were put by Professor Hope, Major Legaid, Mr Walker, and ! others. ! The Chairman asked whether, supposing one farmer fed his cows on swede turnips, that would affect a whole day's make of butter in a factory. Canon Bagot said with regard to that point they had the following rule :— Cowf are notto be fed upon turnips or any food that will impart an unpleasant flavour to butter. If there was any unpleasant flavour the dairymaid would detect it. There were some rules which would apply to one district, and not to another. Of course they could not have a first-class butter if there was any unpleasant flavour about it. Professor Hope said, in reference to Canon Bagot's suggestion of the addition of boracic acid to milk, that he, from the point of view of a public analyst, should certainly condemn any milk which he found contained that ingredient. Canon Bagot replied that ho only spoke of the use of a boracic acid in connection with cream. He had sent a sample of cream mixed with boracic acid to a public analyst, who certified it to be pure cream. In the case of his own dairy, when they used the acid they always put a note to thab effecb on the can, and some of the best medical men in Dublin were the buyers of such cream.