33

H.—29

Table showing the Grading-points scored by the Butter and Cheese graded throughout New Zealand for the Year ended 31st March, 1918.

Shipment of DAraY-PRonucE. At the commencement of the, season the outlook for regular shipping to carry cheese and butter to Groat Britain was by no means encouraging. The fact that a considerable quantity of these products made during the previous season was still in store made the position worse. It was then considered likely that larger stocks would accumulate in the cool stores pending the arrival of Homo steamers in which the necessary space could be allotted. Fortunately, extra cool storage had been arranged for against this contingency. The first shipment of cheese was made at the end of October, and at that time there was a total of 113,132 crates remaining in store. Up to the end of March seventeen shipments of cheese wore made by the various steamers loading at the different ports, but quantities still awaiting shipment had then reached 363,790 crates, and the stores all became more or less congested on that account. The first shipment of butter for the season took place on the 30th September, and a further one followed on the 13th October, but between the latter date and the 29th November -on which date a small shipment was made —no shipping-space was provided for this class of produce. At this time the quantity of butter remaining in store amounted to 361,617 boxes, and shippers were therefore caused a great deal of anxiety. By the middle of December stocks in store had risen to 445,317 boxes, but during January, February, and March eleven heavy shipments of butter were loaded for Great Britain, thus relieving the pressure on storage space to a considerable extent, although an accumulation of over 350,000 boxes was still in store when the financial year ended. Later shipments, however, have eased the position in this respect. \ TIMBEE FOB BUTTEB-BOXBS AND ChEBSB-OBATES. It is again necessary to mention a shortage in the supply of white-pine for the manufacture of butter-boxes and cheese-crates. Dairy companies and dairy-factory proprietors have in many

5—H. 29.

Butter. Cheese. Grading-points. Number of Boxes, j Percentage. £ Number of Oases. Number of Oas< IOS. Percentage. Percentage. 71 75 76 77 78 79 81 81$ 82 82| 83 83* 84 84$ 85 85f 86 86f 88 88| 89 89J 90 90| 9l" 91* 92 <>2§ 98 93| 94 94i 95" 95£ 96 50 23 80 134 K7 326 209 166 221 67 379 991 1,253 I ,409 3,901 7,659 15,257 4,989 7.690 21,265 54.109 97,623 81,274 87,957 111,069 105,918 104,162 66,545 48,539 23,569 15,882 4,029 1,872 0-0057 0-0026 0-0092 0-0154 0-0100 0-0375 00240 0-0191 0-0254 0-0077 0-0436 0-1141 0-1443 0-1622 0-4492 0-8820 1-7570 0-5745 0-8856 2-4489 6-2314 11-2426 9-3598 10-1294 12-7476 ] 2-1979 11-9957 7-6635 5-5899 2-7143 1-8290 0-4639 0-2155 [ t 19 60 67 317 416 90 20 755 57 232 566 2,010 2,625 6,422 9,649 18,249 9,818 27,309 . 34,530 73,844 91,350 110,913 105,375 92,441 60,679 39,566 20,957 12,365 5,656 2,151 798 89 186 95 0-0026 0-0082 0-0091 0-0434. 0-0570 0-0123 0-0027 0-1034 0-0078 0-0317 0-0775 0-2754 0-3597 0-8799 1 -3225 2-5009 1-3455 3-7426 4-7322 10-1201 12-5192 15-2003 14-4411 12-6687 8-3158 54224 2-8720 1-6945 0-7751 0-2947 01093 00121 00254 00130