BUTTER AND CHEESE.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 March 1916, Page 2

BUTTER AND CHEESE.

THE SEASON'S OPERATIONS. Mr. J. G. Harlcness, secretary of tlie National Dairy Association, states that the shipment of 888,225 boxes of butter and 401,115 crates of cheese have been made to London this season (says the New Zealand Times). Adding to the cheese 20,000 ciates sent to West Coast ports of the United Kingdom, tho exports of cheese to the Mother Country reached 421.115 crates. There is still a large quantity of cheese in store ready to go forward as soon as the shipping space is available. On the whole, production nas been fairly good, but hardly up to expectations. Dry weather has interfered with the milk supply of the Dominion, and particularly in the Wairarapa, so fur as the North Island is concerned; but in Ttiranald there has been a marvellous output consequent upo.i the abundance of grass and ampla rainfall throughout the season. His difficult at the present moment to draw any comparison between this season and last, because the producer has not been able to get all his make of butter and cheese away with the regularity of former years. The shipping conditions have been abnormal. Milk producers have undoubtedly concentrated more upon the manufacture of cheese than butter, and besides, notwithstanding the exceptionally high prices ruling in the butter market, cheese, at current , rates, and even when spread over the season, fcas been a very much better paying -proposition. With regard to prices, current rates in London for New Zealand cheese are 102s to 104s per cwt. and butter 162s to 164s per cwt.

On March 19 of last year the prices were: Butter 144s per cwt. (132s on February 2G of the same year). On March 21, 1914, butter in London was 109s to 112s per cwt., and cheese the same date 02s to 03s fld. Prices for both commodities were then considered to be on a good paying pasis for producers, taking the time of the year—the opening of the European produce season—into consideration. The New Zealand dairy farmers this year have done better than ever in the history of their corporate existence. They have to thank the war for that; in other words, adversity has been their friend-i-the adversity of the Australian dairy farmer with a sadly diminished output and the adversity of most of Europe, which is plunged in war, and hag no time for butter and cheese-making at home on the old scale, but has to largely depend upon other countries to furnish them with these articles. Siberian butter has been shut .out to a large extent by the Germans, and also by the ice in the White Sea. Denmark lias been able to sell butter to Germany at fabulous prices, and although prices and production of English cheese have been stupendous, still the demand for that ration for troops has been and still is insatiable, notwithstanding heavy shipments from this country, Canada and the United States, and also tho huge make of English cheese. The New Zealand dairy farmer is making one kind of his cheese at about 2d per pound under ruling rates for the Imperial Government, represented by the New Zealand Government; also cheese and butter freights have gone up, and other insurance and war risk rates have advanced. Also other incidental expenses are greater; still the margin of profit, especially to the elieosc-maker, i; great, and promises to remain so, at any rate until the end of the war.