NEW ZEALAND BUTTER.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 16 June 1925, Page 8

NEW ZEALAND BUTTER.

LEAKAGE IN LONDON

SOME INTERESTING- POINTS

In die course ul : a talk to member* of the Auckland Advertising Club Mr. A. (i. Heighway explained the tie"’ marketing proposals of the Dairy Control Board, which become operative on August 1. and incidentally he mentioned several points in connection with New Zealand butter which are ot general public interest, "is Danish butter really better than New Zealand buttery” was a question put to him. He replied that Danish butter was a fresh butter. On account of the proximity of Denmark to the British market, the previous week’s output of the factories was landed every Monday. in casks, at the British ports, and it was at once distributed through the the shops and advertised 1 as fresh butter. New Zealand butter was a highgrade pasteurised butter, which had to be shipped half the length of the world it could get on the market. New Zenit con'd get on the markete. New eZaland could not send fresh butter to Loudon; iho article would not keep its freshness. The difference was practically that between the fresh factory butter sold in New Zealand, and the ordinary pasteurised factory butter wo goi here. The latter was an equally good -butter, though, of course, the question of taste had to be considered. In actual quality value there should he a difference of 2s to 3s per liundrcifweight between the Danish and New Zealand butter in favour of the former (for the reason stated), but the market difference under present conditions was up to 5s per hundredweight. Another point about which a question was asked was whether or not New Zealand butter could be put on the market without the use of such a preservative as boric acid. Mr. lleighway stated that both the factories and the board were considering this matter from different angles. At present the butter had to lie shipped many thousand miles, and probably kept in store for a- time before going on the market, and then the wholesaler might keep it for a time before passing it on to a retailer, who, in turn, might keep it under the counter for a time til] he got off his previous stock. It was deterioration after the butter left cool storage, when jt was in the wholesaler’s depot and under the retai'er’s counter, that the.slight percentage oi preservative used was intended to guard against. The board was inquiring about the. possibility oT ensuring refrigeration right until the butter was put before the consumer, while one or two factories were experimenting now with butter in which no preservative was used, so that they would have definite information to go on in the course of a few months. On tliiparhieu,lar Question. Mr. Heighway remarked that there was a suspicion that the recent British legislation about the use of boric acid as a preservative had been engineered by peop'-e largely interested jn the sale of Danish butter. He added that the only British buyers who had shown any hostility to the hoard's proposal, to regulate the marketing of New Zealand butter by personal supervision in London were the multiple shops, chief of which, were Tipton's Maypole. Home and Colonial, and Greig’s shops. It had been found that every year when the heavy shipments of New Zealand butter landed on the London market there was a steep depression in prices, and that the multiple shops then made a practice of buying largely at the tiepressed prices and storing the butter, to sell at an enhanced profit when the prices went up again. Tt was with a view of straightening out this annual depression in price by eliminating the speculation of the kind mentioned that the board had obtained authority to .regulate the market by withholding' a, proportion of the supplies at such periods. Naturally the mu'tiplo shops raised an objection, but the other .importers. having been assured that their regular requirements will he fulfil led. are perfectly satislied with the arrangement. So far as the producers were concerned, the who'e of the output would he consigned to the London market (and the usual advances made), and the factories would be paid a uniform price according to the grade of the butter shipped by them with a. bonus for superfine butter.