FUTURE OF BUTTER

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26123, 27 May 1950, Page 5

FUTURE OF BUTTER

PROFESSOR RIDDET CONFIDENT

Although the future world demand for butter was influenced largely by the availability of other sources of fat, the New Zealand dairy industry could confidently maintain and expand its present production, said Professor W. R. Riddet, dean of dairying at Massey Agricultural College, and director of the Dairy Research Institute, when he opened the dairy section of the Ruakura farmers’ conference at Hamilton last week. „ Professor Riddet said that although imports of butter into the United Kingdom were rising because of increased supplies from Denmark and the Netherlands, total imports were still far short of the high pre-war level and could not rise to that level so long as Soviet Russia prohibited exports from countries that were important sources of the United Kingdom’s supplies, but were now under Soviet control.

“On a price basis, an increase in the consumption of butter on an unrationed United Kingdom market would be undoubtedly influenced by the lower price of margarine,” continued Professor Riddet. “No person can reliably foretell the results of this until rationing is removed.” In the present state of scientific knowledge, margarine was believed to be as nutritious as butter, and on the score of price and nutritive quality there was no obvious reason why consumers should pay a higher price for butter than for margarine. Butter had stood the test of time, it was a “natural” product as opposed to a blended one, and was valued socially as a proper food to use. So long as persons were employed and could afford to buy butter, even at a higher price, they would want it. If unemployment set in, all prices would decline, and consumers would still buy butter. In examining the long term possibilities, Professor Riddet said that the chances were that prices of oil for margarine manufacture would increase. There was already evidence of this in West Africa. This, together with the prospect of a levelling out of the world’s living standards, meant That there would always be a reasonable price ratio of butter to margarine. “The price of butter, over a long period, may be expected to decline, after present shortages are made up, until a balance is struck in the prices for margarine and butter,” he said.

There was another aspect of fat consumption which should give New Zealand confidence in the future, he continued. and that was the ever-increas-ing population of the world. Consumption from countries where the population was greatest would, ac-! cordingly, relieve pressure on growing supplies of butter on the world’s market. In addition, it could be anticipated that as the ; ears progressed, some countries which were at present important exporters of dairy products, would not have available any surpluses for export, and might become importers. Canada and Australia were examples, said the speaker. Even to a greater extent, might the United States yet become an important butter importing country.

In the interval. New Zealand might have to face keen competition from other butter producing countries in supplying the world’s markets. “New Zealand need not suffer adversely from this competition, and there is no reason to believe that its dairy output at any practicable rate of development need be restrained on this score,” said the speaker. “With its unsurpassed climate for grass production, this country is capable of producing a greater output for each unit of land and labour than any country in the world, and on comparable standards of living. “We must, of course, be prepared for short periods of adversity from time to time during phases of readjustment, but it rests with our’ organised industry, under able leadership and with the unstinted support of its farmer suppliers, to protect itself against such occurrences.”