BUTTER AND CHEESE.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 May 1920, Page 4

BUTTER AND CHEESE.

'• ' i THE INDUSTRY IN TARANAKI; PHENOMENAL AUTUMN SEASON, MASKED INCREASE SHOWN, The phenomenal season experienced this autumn has been reflected by the returns of the dairying industry —the most reliable barometer in the Taranaki district. The question of the superabundance of growth on grazing and dairying land*, I and its effect on the production of cheese and butter, was mentioned by a Daily News representative to the secretary of' < the Taranaki Producers' Freezing Work* Company, who very willingly supplied the following figures, which show how marked j lias been the increase in production between the period usually regarded as the end of the flush of the season and the beginning of the current month.

The quantities of produce received by the company at its New Plymouth stores, up lo May Ist were.— Butter, 77,700 boxes (compared with 82,700 boxed last year), the decrease being 5000 boxes; cheese, 147,100 crates • (131,800), an im / crease of 15,300 crates.

At the beginning of February the de« crease in the quantity of butter received stood at 7300 boxes, so that between that date to the Ist of May the decrease on the season was lessened by 2300 boxes. Similarly with cheese, the increase in the quantity at the beginning of February as compared with last season was 9700 crates, the additonal increase during the interval being 5800 crates. Such an increase in the output after the flush of a season is once passed is an experience previously unknown to the industry in this district. In the case of certain individual factories the output at the commencement of the autumn was considerably on the down grade as to quantity but during the following weeks the tocrease that took place averaged even up to 20 per cent, above the quantity being made eight weeks earlier.

THE AUCKLAND SEASON. GOOD OUTPUT TO DATE. The anticipations of a successful dairying season are being borne out by the results of the autumn operation,, in the Auckland district (says the Herald) ■ine prospects for arecord output early in the season were anything but bright, owing to the extremely dry weather experienced during the spring and early •summer The early returns from the butter factories to the end of Januarv «ere considerably lower than the figures for the corresponding period of the previous seasons, but the rains in Febrnary caused the returns to improve and the increase in output has continued to the present.

During the current season to the end of April, the quantity of butter receive* at the Farmers' Freezing Company'* grading stores amounted to boxes. :,„ compared with 483,020 boxes for the corresponding period of last season, a decrease of 22,094 boxes. Usually the quantity received at the grading stores represents the total or put for the but owing to the acute shortage of butter in the South at the beginning oi the season much of the early output went straight into eon•umption. This amount is estimated at approximately 20,000 boxes, which makes the decrease for the current season to date approximately 2094 boxes. This decrease would probably have been overtaken last week had' supplies to the grading stores not been delayed owing to the railway strike. A total of 38,501 boxes was received nt the stores 'last month, as compared with 23,131 boxes for April, 1019, an increase of 15,370 boxes.

The output of cheese this season line been «1"i-?1iMv 01-ontr.r than that of last i-eason throughout the whole period. The quantity received at the grading stores to the e:id of la it month totalled 14:1.2f13 crates as compared with' 121„>.;3 "rates to the end of April. WW. nn increase of 10.740 crates. Buring Inst month 1,5.070 crate* were received "at the stores ar. compared with lo.ssn crct.es in April, mi!'. „,! increase of U'.IO orates.