WATERING MILK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 267, 1 April 1911, Page 6

WATERING MILK.

To the Editor. Sir,—A local appearing in your columns on Monday last, gave an account of a milk supplier to the Kaupokonui checjse factory openly admitting that he had added water to his milk, and giving, as an excuse, that the factory scales \vcre not correct. It may interest your readers somewhat to read what an ex-factory manager has to say, after 10 years' experience in different factories, having during that period been in daily contact with many classes of dairymen, having to contend with the true, honest man, to the low-down, crawling, growling and thieving milk suppliers, which are very often met with in the dairy business, not only in Taranaki, but in every district. The man who waters his milk and growls when his test goes down a point or two;, the man who weighs his milk at home and puts his foot on the factory scales, and cries out, with a growl, that he is not getting all his skim-milk or whey, and the man who is continually trying to stir up trouble amongst other suppliers and pick a hole in the factory manager's coat—such men are found in nearly every factory concern. Only that most managers arc prettj thick in the hide, much skin and hair would fly, but the rotten system, which the managers themselves have allowed to crawl in, is, in most cases, put up with by the managers in silence. Well, this should not be. My opinion is that the manager t)f a factory should be backed up by the directors of companies and given every chance to bring those milk suppliers who water their milk and are dirty in their habits and looking for trouble up with a round turn. The duties of a factory manager are many, I can assure you, and the worries are quite enough without having to | be always on the watch for the dishonest j milk supplier. The main responsibilities 1 of the manager are to turn out first-class butter or cheese —and the Correct quantity at the same time. The main drawback he has is, firstly, bad, uncared-for i milk, through the careless supplier, and' very often the man who dumps in the water, which is very often not of the purest. Now, water, as you know, con-J tains no butter-fat for butter-making and 1 no solids and butter-fat for cheese-mak-1 ing, and no pig and calf-fattening pro-' perties, for all the other honest dairyihen to cart home; and, further, it does not pay any dairy concern to run water through the separators. So the man who waters his milk works the factory manager .harder than need be by handling his extra quantity of -fluid, spoils the butter and cheese by nvxing (nearly always), impure water with good, natural milk, and robs his own pigs and calves, as well as his neighbor's, of his skim-milk and whey by adulteration with water, and, generally'speaking, he is a nur:, because he .gains no tiling.. Fearing that I am. trespassing on your valuable space, I will conclude by giving practical advice to all in the business. First, let the directors of companies back up their managers and assist them to capture the dishonest suppliers; second, when a capture i» made, instead of allowing the dishonest man to boast at dairy meetings of his dishonest practice, wade right in by having him fined, if possible, the highest penalty for which is- £50, for adding water to milk, and I am certain it will be many pounds saved to the factory and' '.the suppliers individually, and the managers, the .hardest worked and worried, of ♦he whole dairy industry will have a little better time.—l am, etc., DROUGHT.