Summary of Special Report by the New Zealand Loan & Mercantile Agency Company Limited-London on New Zealand Butter and Cheese.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 3023, 8 October 1888, Page 2

Summary of Special Report by the New Zealand Loan & Mercantile Agency Company Limited-London on New Zealand Butter and Cheese.

Botter.—Uniformity in quality, colour, softness, and flavour, is most important. Mixed quilities should never be sent under the Bame brand—much less in- tho same packages, I Factory mahagersanddairymeu should exeroise the greatest care in this matter, Once a brand becomes known and buyers can depend upon-its uniformity, it will always sell readily as long as its reputation is maintained and consignments are made with some degree of regularity. Of course, regularity in condition on. arrival'is necessary, and; that depends partly on packing and partly: on. method of transit, In the matter of packing, carelessness appears to be often displayed by New Zealand shippers; -It is of course necessary to Bcald kegs before picking and wash , them with' salted water. Fine muslin clothes should alad be placed' between tho butter and the'thin layers of She .salt which should' always te found at the top and bottom of each keg, i' Kegs weighing COibs net, of ivhite or lightcoloured wood, bound with galvanised hoops find most favour with buyers. Pond's patent boxes, containing SOlbs may also be used, but they only sell readily when they contain butter of the best quality. Butter in rolls shouldnot be sent. It is useless to attempt to ship butter to London as ordinary cargo, and, as it is found that butter cannot be subjected without deterioration to a temperature under 25 degrees fabrenhcit or thereabouts, it is not desirable to ship it in frozen meat chambers, where the temperature ranges from 0 degrees Fahrenheit upwards, The cool chambers provided by tho shipping companies are therefore most suitable, but it is important that in these tho temperature should remain at from 25 degreos to -40 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the voyage.

Cheese—The most saleabledescription of cbeeso in the English market would be an upright chcddar shaped cheese, weighing from 56 to 701b, of an even color, not too dark, atiil mild clean flavor, •. Exception has been taken to some New Zeulitnd consignments, on account of the cheese having been kept too long before shipment, Fault-has also beon found with the crutnbliness which was sometimes so marked as to interfere with the drawing of samples, with the holey character of some, with the irregularity of quality found in the same mark, and even in the same packages, and with the occasional want of richness. Generally the flavor of New Zealand cheese has beon too strong to suit the English taste, but Ne<v Zealand cheese,, in good order, of rich quality, evenly colored, regular throughout, and of perfectly clean flavor, has been sold in London at relatively better, prices than consignments from the United. States nnd Canada. White cheese of prime quality sells well, but, if inferior, would probably fetch n somewhat lower price than colored cheese of the same grade. As far as has yet been ascertained the best range of temperature for cheese in transit is ; from 40 to 50 degrees, Fahrenheit. .It would be better to ship cheese in a separata chamber with a. current of cool air passing through it. The I remarks made jnconnectioii withbutter as to uniformity and regularity of shipment, apply witli equal force to cheese, Gars should bo taken in the matter of branding and each paokage should be prominently marked, The round wooden boxes used by Canadian shippers are probably the best form of package, and each should contain a single cheese, '