1907.] Cost of Food in Production of Milk. 



329 



The yield of milk is generally very good, and the average 

 •cost of production for food is 3-66^. per gallon, of 3-52 per cent, 

 of fat. The highest cost is 4*41^. per gallon, and the lowest 

 2-95^., so that the variation is much less in this district than in 

 some of those previously considered. This is no doubt in 

 great part the result of the more uniform use of a moderate 

 weight of meals, and a more free use of home-grown foods. 



Castle Douglas District. — The members of the Stewartry 

 Milk Record Association all reside within a moderate distance 

 ■of Castle Douglas. The herds in this district are nearly all 

 much larger than those in Ayrshire, the average being between 

 50 and 60, all of which are devoted to cheese making. The 

 grass season here begins earlier than further north, but as 

 testing began on 2nd March, the consumption of feeding stuffs 

 was recorded for two months before the cows went to grass. 

 Both hay and straw were largely used, turnips being fed to 

 a greater extent than among the members of the Kirk- 

 cudbright Association, while concentrated foods, such as meals 

 and cakes, were less used. The average ration was composed 

 as follows : — Hay, 13-3 lb. ; oat straw, 14-2 lb. ; turnips, 40 lb. ; 

 mixed meals and cakes, 5-8 lb. ; and bran, 1 lb. The average 

 cost for food per gallon of milk produced was 3-92^. for 

 milk of 3-4 per cent, of fat. The highest cost per gallon 

 of milk was 4*81^., while the lowest was 3*22^. The price 

 at which milk sells in the neighbourhood leaves a very small 

 margin over these prices, for labour, interest, depreciation, &c. 

 The cost is probably unduly raised by the large quantity of 

 hay and straw used, a considerable portion of which would 

 probably go direct to. the dung heap and contribute little to 

 the food supply. 



Wigtownshire. — The Lower District of Wigtownshire Milk 

 Record Association began work on 2nd March, and a record 

 of the food used was obtained for two months before the cows 

 went to grass. Hay, straw, and turnips were more largely 

 used than in any of the other districts, but except in turnips 

 the ration used in this district does not differ materially from 

 that used by the other associations in Galloway. More than 

 half of the members used no hay at all, but those who did, fed 

 an average of 14-4 lb. daily per cow. With one exception 

 •all used straw, the average of those using it being 16 lb. All 



