COW TESTING

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 39, 26 May 1910, Page 3

COW TESTING

AN INTERESTING DISCUSSION. TARANAKI MEN~TAKE ACTION. The most important subject discussed by the Taranafci provincial conference ot the Farmers' Union was the testing of dairy herds. A motion that the conference take steps to initiate the formation of a milk-testing association on the lines of the Dalefield association was unanimously approved. In nWing the motion Mr. H. G. Sergei, of Eltham, one of the most progressive dairymen of Taranaki, fully explained the working of the Dalefield'association, and contended that taking samples on two days of each month was all that was required. Mr. J. Burgess (Warea), who seconded the .motion, said he had been following up a system of testing each individual cow one day a week night and morning. He had been pursuing that course for three years. In 1907-08 toe was milking 20 cows which gave an average of 21uy s lb of toutter-fat for the season. He culled heavily, and last season 28 con's gave l an average of 232y 3 lb—a. gain of 101b. This year so far the average was 2401'b, and he reckoned it would be 2431b or 2441b before the season was finished. Ju no case had he been out a single pound when his test was compared with the factory test, so it might be assumed that the figures were fairly correct. He reckoned it took about 1721b at 10% d per lb .butter-fat to pay for the keep of a cow, so that all the extra gain was profit. The time occupied in taking samples was about four hours once a ■week, and testing took about four hours once a month, the acid for testing cost Od, and the interest on the machinery could lie put down at about 10s. To cover tlio whole cost would- not come to more than 5s per head. If for 5s they «ould ipi'oiluce the results he had shown they must agree bhat there was nothing that would pay so well. The output for export would be practically doiibled, and by Imyiiig proper cows he -believed it quite possible that the average could be worked up to 3001 u. .Mr. Cleaver (Te Roti) dealt with the system of testing in Denmark, wflieh worked very satisfactorily. It would work out in Taranaki at about 2s Od per cow. Getting a qualified man to ?o round appeared to him to be better than the fanners doing the testing themselves. Mr. Mapp (Stratford) supported a remark made by Mr. Burgess to the effect that milk-testing could not be done by eyesight—to imagine that the quality could lie judged by the color -was a fallacy. He. dealt also with the Denmark system, and quoted figures which had appeared in a paper showing that a Danish cow yielded 1750 gallons of milK per year, and that butter-fat at Is per lb worked out at £3B 10s as the cow's ■output for the year. He did not know if those figures were correct, but if they were only half true the value of milktesting was fully 'borne out. Mr. Sergei suggested that the delegates- should bring the matter under the notice of the directors and shareholders of their respective factories. He urged that something practical should be done in the direction he advocated.