Prospects seen for butter

Press, 10 May 1979, Page 21

Prospects seen for butter

PA Nelson i Increased butter exports to 1 the United States are a pros- i I pect after recent talks be- : I tween the leader of the Op- ( 'position (Mr Rowling) and I the United States Secretary t I for Agriculture (Mr Robert j Bergland). | New Zealand at present i made a “token shipment” of : i 150 tonnes of butter a year.; (to the United States, said Mr: (Rowling in Nelson after his; I I return from overseas. I During talks with Mr Bergland “there was a sug-j gestion of better entry for-I butter than ever before talk- i ed of.” : Although he would not dis- • close exact figures, Mr Rowling said it was a five-figure prospect similar to New Zea- I ■ land’s cheese exports to the I [E.E.C. (9500 tonnes). > Mr Rowling also came 1 (back from his trip convinced jthat there was high overseas market potential for other ; (New Zealand goods, especi- 1 ally manufactured goods. “There are always pros- ;

pects for New Zealand in the manufacturing field provided a high quality is maintained and they hit the top end of the market,” he said. “We are not into mass production and we cannot compete with Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. We have to use our own raw materials and do a lot more selling than we ;are doing now.” : Mr Rowling was critical of 'how overseas selling campaigns had been conducted. “Our salesmen, with one '.or two noticeable exceptions, have not been nearly active or aggressive enough in the field. I am convinced that we can sell more.” New Zealand had lost direction a little in the area of fabrics and there was still a tremendous avenue open for the sale of high-quality woollen products. “It is the whole story of New Zealand. We must get off our backsides and work harder — and that starts at ground level,” Mr Rowling said.