COLONIAL BUTTER.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 12477, 12 April 1906, Page 9

COLONIAL BUTTER.

THE SINS OF AUSTRALIAN EXPORTERS.

With reference to the report m Saturday's Press cable mesfiago from London, to the effect that the quality of the bulk of tho colonial butter on offer in London was unsatisfactory, statcmente made by heads of the Wellington firms engaged in tho butter trade showed that it was practically oertain that tho m<\s-age reterred to Australian butter. The London correspondent of the Melbourne "Argus," writing under date of March 2nd, throws further light on tho matter. He tays: —'"Although supplies of butter from the colonies have been fairly light this week, tho trade has been far from good. The quality of tho Australian butters which have arrived recently is very disappointing. Only in a few of the very best brands of Victoria is the quality up to the high standard reached early in the season, and most of the. South Australian, Queensland, and New South Wales butters are very bad indeed. All of these, and many Victorians, show signs of heating at the time of manufacture ; they are mettled in appearance, and in some oases tho texture has been almost entirely destroyed. A box of Queensland, which was shown to mey<&lerday, was described by the consignee as the very worst Australinn buttor ho had "ever seen. It was a dirty grey in colour, being more liko putty than butter, and had apparently bein dropped on the floor in the course of manufacture. Somo idea of what it- -was like may be gathered from tho fact that the best price, offered for it was 28e per cwt, or 3d per lh. The only satisfactory tiling about it was that the oaso bore tho mark, "Not approved for export." It is a pity that etuff of this sort should bo allowed to be exported to London, end the Government ought to take steps to prevent the shinment of butter which is not approved. It strikes one as being rather farcioa! that the Queensland Government should prosecute the sellers of a perfectly palatable and wholesome mixture, and yet allow such horrible stuff as this to be shipped to London. The reputation of Oueen<='and butter is not very high, end it will not be improved by 'the exposure of some of the very poor parcels which have arrived lately."