N.Z. OYSTER EATING

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29178, 12 April 1960, Page 26

N.Z. OYSTER EATING

“Wrong Utensil Used 9 New Zealanders and Australians are in the habit of eating oysters with a,pastry fork instead of the correctly pronged and barbed utensil, according to art American, who is in the Dominion on a campaign to correct this. He is Mr James T. Townsend, chairman of the Community Plate Company, Sheffield and Oneida, in the United States, who said he found that in every hotel in which he stayed in Australia and New Zealand a pastry fork had been placed where an oyster or shrimp fork should have been. The Oneida community, which remained today at about 12.000 people, about the same number as 40 years ago, was originally formed by a religious group dedicated to attain perfection in living. They first went in for dairy farming, then drifted into various industries, such as fruitcanning, soap-making, and then to the making of traps—from mousetraps to elephant traps. In 1901 the group began to concentrate on silver ware, directing their aim of perfection on this product. , m In his own home, Mr Townsend uses a favourite pattern of cutlery made 40 years ago. The pattern of popularity of designs, disclosed by market research changes frequently in the United States but England, Australia, and New Zealand were,more conservative, he said.