MILK IN SCHOOLS

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 454, 23 June 1937, Page 3

MILK IN SCHOOLS

EXPERIMENTS WITH POWDER Use Where Fresh Not Available Wellington, June 22. “Milk powder will not be used in any place where there is fresh milk available,” said Hon. P. Fraser, Minister of Health, when referring in an interview to-night to ithe milk-for-schools scheme.

“It is correct to say that in many parts of the country the milk-in-schools scheme, which is benefiting daily' about 80,000 children in the Eiominion, is meeting with difficulty as far as supplies. l are concerned,” added the Minister. “One of th? reasons for this has been the untoward season, and the other is that the milk suppliers of various country towns were not prepared for increased demand on their supply. The result was simply that the winter milk was not available. It is expected that in a few weeks these difficulties will be overcome to a very large exitent. “The practice set by the Department in obtaining milk, wherever possible, from certified tuberculintested herds, with pasteurisation in addition, has been adhered to to the present. It is true thait the question of substituting dried whole-milk where fresh milk is not available is under consideration, but at present developments are only in the experimental stage. “Various whole-milk powders, including malted-milk powder, are being examined by the Health Department and samples are being analysed. and reported on. These substitutes will not be used unless it is established that ithey are good, wholesome food, approximating as far as possible in nutritive values to fresh milk. “In a native school in Tokaanu Dr H. B. Turbott, medical officer of health for Waikato, is supervising the provision of whole malted milk. 1 am informed that it is impossible to find supplies of fresh milk for native

children here, so whole malted milk was substituted. I feel there is every reason to believe the trial will be successful from a nutritive point of view, but quite definitely milk powder will not be used in any place where there is fresh milk available.”