452 Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. [10 Aro.. 1918. 



packed in Australia for export, and these required 61,488 tons of 

 shipping space. I suppose it was because the hospital authorities in 

 England and France found it difficult to utilize the skins, and desired 

 to be rid of the work of skinning rabbits, that the Imperial authorities 

 this year at first refused to enter into fresh contracts. Eventually, how- 

 ever, they agreed to accept skinned rabbits. With the removal of the 

 heads, j^aws, and skins, more carcasses are packed for shipment in a 

 crate of reduced size, sio that one steamer will now carry nearly as many 

 rabbits as two did formerly. Had the present arrangements obtained 

 last year, the rabbits exported would have occupied 36,616 tons of space, 

 and thus a saving of 25,072 tons, or roughly, 46|^ per cent., would have 

 been effected. 



Eruit. 



Perhaps it will be with fruit that most will have to be done in the 

 direction of tabloiding. In every house dried fruit, in the shape of 

 currants, raisins, and sultanas are required. The drying of grapes 

 and currants brings about a reduction in the original bulk of about 

 66 per cent., varying, of course, according to the variety and degree of 

 ripeness, &c. Apricots and peaches show a still larger reduction — 80 

 per cent, to 85 per cent. — pears, about 78 per cent ; and now more atten- 

 tion is being given to the drying of apples, in the case of which the 

 reduction in bulk is in the neiglibourhcod of 85 per cent., this larger 

 percentage being partly in consequence of the removal of the skins and 

 cores. It is interesting to recall that last year arrangements were made 

 in Tasmania for the drying of 1,000,000 cases of apples. Some atten- 

 tion has also been given to this industry in our own State. 



Sugar Beet. 



This product is nearest on the list towards meriting the title of 

 this paper. It takes about 8 tons of sugar beet to produce one ton 

 of sugar, and the success achieved in that industry augurs well for its 

 future. 



Dairy Produce. 



With the tabloiding of dairy produce every one is familiar. _By 

 means of the dairy cow grass, herbage and fodder are turned into milk, 

 and subsequently butter and cheese are produced, butter fat repre- 

 senting less than 4 per cent., and commercial butter about 4^ per cent, 

 of the milk, whilst cheese represents roughly 10 per cent. During 

 recent years great development has taken place in the production of 

 condensed and concentrated milk, dried milk, and casein. The pro- 

 duction of concentrated and powdered milk in Victoria in 1910 was 

 3,004,842 lbs.,, and for the year 1916-17, 33,280,635 lbs.— more than a 

 tenfold increase, in addition to which 467,168 lbs. of casein was made. 

 Eor the first seven months of the financial year just closed the Produce 

 Division of the Department of Agriculture inspected for oversea ship- 

 ment 291,213 cases of condensed milk, and 15,484 cases of dried milk. 

 This quantity was produced in addition to supnlying local require- 

 ments ; and it will be realized that the conversion of milk into the form 

 that enables it to be kept for a long time and transported over dis- 



