MILK VALUE OF A COW.

Mr Chew Chong, writing to the Hawera Star on this subject, says:

In a recent issue of your paper, I noticed & communication from your Eltham correspondent, giving an instance of v certain milk supplier of the Eltham Co-operutive Factory," who had for the past Boason netted on the average £5 4s per cow for milk alone. He also mentioned that, as a result of last season's operations, the company had been enabled to pay 3d per gallon for all milk suppliod. I would like to place before your correspondent and the milk suppliers of the above factory a few facts concerning the resultß achieved by some of the farmers supplying my Jubilee Butter Factory. One person, who has only milked sixteen cows, received for his milk £100 3s 9d; which, added to the sum of £44 (being valuation of calves and pigs), gives us the splendid average of over £1) por cow. Total number of gallons obtained during the season was 7105, and großh returns £144 3s 9d, which is equal to 4'870d, or a little over 4d per gallon. Mr J. Sullivan, of my Hunter Road farm, lias realised over £263 for his milk, equal to £5 9s per cow. His calves (42 ia number) sold for as high as £2 per head. The following figures speak for themselves:—

Total No. of gallons supplied, 20,344 gross receipts as above, £343 5s (1d— over 1d gallon.

Now, last season the calves of the cooperative milk suppliers did very badly, owing to tho scouring properties of the whey; thorefore, when reading the reports of the various co-operative factory secretaries, we should make allowance for the great difference in income, ariaing- from tho inability to rear good saleable calves on whey 1 hear of several cases where the suppliers of tho local choose factory sold their calves for five shillings a head rather than rear them. Anyone disputing the above facts can inspect my books for themselves any lime by applying to mo at the store, Eltham. I maintain that 3d per gallon for milk in summer, and 4d per gallon during the winter months, with skim milk returned, is fur moro profitable to the farmer than tho 3£d realitiod by the various co-operutive choose factories in this and other districts.

18,118 gals milk @3d gal £226 9 6

2,226 gals milk @4d gal £ 37 2 0

14 calves at £2 £ 28 0 0

28 calves... x. a. £ 44 14 0

£ 7 0 0

£343 5 6

Taranaki Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 9768, 5 August 1893, Page 2