SOVIET BUTTER

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 92, 20 April 1931, Page 6

SOVIET BUTTER

"A period of fierce competition is before us." This was the conclusion arrived at by a delegation from the New Zealand Dairy Board, six years ago, after a thorough personal investigation of British and Continental dairy production and marketing conditions. At that time, with a prescience that is hard to reconcile with subsequent false steps taken by the board, the delegation above referred to reported: "We shall hear more of Siberia in the near future. Here our most serious competition may develop." This prediction is now approaching fulfilment. According lo a cablegram published to-day, butter from Soviet Russia will be arriving in much larger quantities this season, although not so large as before lire devolution. British imports of Russian butler in 1923 were nil; in 1.925, the year of the delegation's report, they amounted lo under 5000 Ions; in 1930, they had expanded to 10,600 tons, although that figure was less

than the imports of the preceding four years. Now Russian competition in the British butler market is likely to assume larger proportions Lhan in these recent years. What then should be New Zealand's dairy export policy in such'circumstances? Surely it should be to improve the relations already existing between the Dominion's producing interests and the British distributing and consuming interests. Those relations, we venture.to believe, are susceptible ot still further improvement to the advantage of both seller and buyer. New Zealand can 'and must supply its main overseas market with ihc quality and service it demands. Mistakes have been made by the New Zealand dairy export industry in abortive price-control and certain equivocal designations of cheese. But a fuller realisation by producers and those in authority, among them of the fact that the last word is generally spoken by the buyer will eniable New Zealand to meeteven Russian competition, for sentiment goes for something if price and quality arc attractive.