168 



GENERAL AGRICULTURAL NOTES. [Sept. 1896. 



about 153,374,000 gallons, of which the quantity consumed in 

 making butter and cheese during 1895 was about 76,000,000 

 gallons. The estimated weight of the butter made was 

 27,359,695 lbs., and of cheese 4,820,412 lbs. 



The yield of milk per cow is a very variable quantity ; in 

 some of the principal' dairy centres as much as 500 gallons is 

 returned as the yearly average, while in other districts the 

 yield falls far short of this. For the whole Colony the average 

 may be set down at lh gallons per day for every cow milked, 

 but the cows are only milking for about nine months of the 

 year, so that each yields approximately 350 gallons in the year. 



The quantity of milk required to make a given weight of 

 butter varies considerably according as to whether the milk is 

 treated by a separator or in the old fashion. A great proportion 

 of the butter now made is what is usually termed factory or 

 separator-made, and the average quantity of milk used per lb. 

 of butter produced is 2*6 gallons, or 26 lbs. 2 oz. For ordinary 

 hand-made butter the quantity required is about 3 gallons, so 

 that there is a saving of about 13 per cent, by the former 

 method in addition to the extra value of the butter produced, 

 the price in the Sydney markets during 1894 having been from 

 Id. to 2d. per lb. higher for the factory-made than for the* 

 ordinary kind. The number of persons employed in dairy 

 farming in 1894 was 25,774 ; of these, 12,055 were males and 

 13,719 females. Included in the total are 1,051 persons em- 

 ployed in the various factories, which numbered 395. The 

 produce of the factories in 1894 was 17,567,646 lbs. of butter 

 and 1,656,703 lbs. of cheese. The annual output of butter in 

 the Colony is now estimated to exceed the local requirements 

 during the summer months by nearly 75 per cent, and nearly 

 all the surplus is exported to the United Kingdom. 



No statistics respecting the manufacture of butter and 

 cheese in the Colony were collected prior to 1887, when the 

 quantity made was 16,106,000 lbs. and 5,780,000 lbs. respec- 

 tively. The course of manufacture since 1889 is shown in the 

 following table, which gives the quantity of butter made irt 

 each of the last seven years : — 



Year ended 

 31st March. 



Butter. 



Factory. 



Farm. 



Total. 





Lbs. 



Lbs. 



Lbs. 



\ 1889 - 







15,550,440 



| 1890 -• 







17,600,264 



1891 - 



8,049,656 



10,484,474 



18,534,130 



1892 



7,661,197 



10,701,700 



18,362,897 



1893 - 



10,141,066 



11,257,234 



21,398,300 



1894 



15,635,360 



10,755,484 



26,390,844 



| 1895 " 



17,567,646 



9,792,049 



27,359,695 



