The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1909 BUTTER AND CHEESE FOR ENGLAND.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2618, 28 September 1909, Page 4

The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1909 BUTTER AND CHEESE FOR ENGLAND.

For the fifteenth year in succession Messrs Weddel and Co., provision agents of London, have issued their review of the dairy produce season, and the publication contains much that' is of interest. The United Kingdom requires annually nearly 300,000' tons of butter and as she only produces 80,000 tons herself the dairies of the wide world are brought, into requisition to make the English bread more edible. Even with the assistance of overseas dominions Britain would still be very short of butter,- for at present foreign countries supply 180,000 tons as against 32,000 tons sent from the eolonies. Denmark, the wonderful little country where dairy farming has been reduced to an exact science, sept 93,000 tons to England last year, and Bussia, despite the appalling poverty which hangs like a curse over its peasantry, was able to spare 32,000 tons. Other receipts were: —From Sweden,' 13,000 tons; France, 19,000 tons; Holland, 10,000 tons; Argentina, 4000 tons. Of late years Britain has become more and

more dependent upon foreigners 'for her butter. Four years ago the foreign supply totalled 158,000 tons, and the colonial 57,000 tons; last year the figures were : Fore'gn, 178,0000; colonial, 32,000. Of the three sources of colonial supply New Zealand exhibits the greatest steadiness, Australia has been very spasmodic, ■while Canada shows a great falling off, the actual figures for last year being: Australia 16,000 tons, New Zealand 13.000, Canada 2000. The expansion of the New Zealand export butter trade was checked by the sudden rise in the price of cheese which made it pay relatively better than butter. Throughout the last four years this rise lias averaged about 10 s per cwt. higher than during the previous four years. This was mainly due to the deficiency in the Canadian supply. The variability of the climate of Australia prevents the same steadiness in shipments that marks the New Zealand trade. Drought, which unfortunately, too frequently occurs i n one <jr °ther of the three great eastern States of the Commonwealth, has during the last three years reduced its supply of butter to British markets by. more than fifty per cent. Canada lias for the last three years shown a most marked diminution in the export of butter to the Mother Country in contrast with the three previous years. This was brought about by two factors —one, the hot and ct’ry seasons, and the other, the large influx of population. The newcomers settled mostly in the North-west, and stocked their lands with cows from those districts of Canada which export dairy produce to England. Prices for butter last year upset all the forecasts of the experts. In view of small stocks record values were looked for, but the exceptional mildness ot the season in Britain arid Europe disturbed all calculations. Instead of pastures ceasing to grow after September they continued to grow through October, November and December with the result that dairy produce was much more plentiful than is usual at that period of the year. The outstanding feature regarding prices was the great loss made by those factories which pro ferred consigning their output to selling it forward. Australian butter is generally sent on consignment, while New Zealand shippers mostly follow the practice of selling forward, and consequently the season for New Zealand butter was a very profitably one to those sellers—in fact the most profitable experienced since the trade began—in consequence of the high c.i.f. prices secured. A very prominent aspect of the Australasian butter trade is the difference in prices between the value of Australian and New Zealand-but-ter, which is year by year widening. The average annual price per cwt. for Australian of “choicest” quality was lower than New Zealand for. tho last three years by 1/7 in 1907, 3/8 in 1308, and 5/- in 1909. On this point Messrs AVeddel and Co. remark-: —“It is well known that while 97 per cent, of New Zealand butter is classed as first grade, a considerably les s percentage of Australian reaches that- standard.. If the New Zealand standard of grading were followed in Australia not much over 80 per cent, of the latter would be placed in the first grade.” While British farmers produce litt'e more than a quarter of tho butter needed for Home consumption, they supply more than half of the eheeso required. Home production of eheeso is estimated at 140,000 tons, whilst last year 116,000 tons were imported. Of this quantity 92,000 tons came from oversea possessions, whilst only 23,000 tons were from -foreign sources. Dutch dairies are .responsible for the bulk of this, their output for last year being 14,000 tons. New Zealand sent 16,000 tons and Canada 76,000' tons. It will be noted that Canada is much the largest supplier of cheese to Britain, sending nearlj’ half of the total output. Since 1904, however, Canadian cheese exports have steadily declined, partly as the result of decreased -production, but more in consequence of increased Home consumption. New Zealand on the other hand has shown rapid increases over the same period. Thus in 1906 Canada exported 95,000 tons as against 5000 tons from New Zealand. Since then Canada’s total has decreased by 19,000 tons, whilst New Zealand’s has increased by 11,000 tons. Canada now holds first and New Zealand second place among the countries shipping cheese to the United Kingdom. So recently as 1907 Holland held second, and the United States third places, whilo Now Zealand was fourth. Five years ago New Zealand supplied only about 4 per cent, of the colonial and about 3 per cent, of Britain’s total imports of cheese. To-day New Zealand supplies 20 per cent, of the colonial and nearly 15 per cent of tho total. Australia, strangely enough, sends no cheese from her borders, and the fact would seem somewhat of a reflection upon the versatility of her farmers. Regarding the coming season it is anticipated that prices will bo on a rather lower basis than last year. This is especially the case with butter, for although the abnormally cola and wet summer experienced in Europe and the United Kingdom will reduce supplies in that part of the globe, the very favorable winter in Australasia is likely to result in record shipments from tho Commonwealth and New Zealand.