MILK CONSUMPTION IN N.Z.

Hawera Star, Volume LIII, 6 November 1933, Page 4

MILK CONSUMPTION IN N.Z.

A lady graduate of Otago University who has returned to Dunedin after a tour abroad, gave an address to dairymen in the southern city last week. In the course of her speech, which dealt largely with the value of milk as a food, she expressed the opinion that New Zealand was neglecting a "wonderful opportunity” in ignoring the domestic milk market. She declared that New Zealanders had "probably the worst teeth in the world,” and she attributed that state of affairs largely to the fact- that the- people of this country are very light consumers of milk. SimiI lar statements have been made on good authority previously, but so far no one in authority in the dairy industry has seen a call to action in the revelation |of such facts. The concern that is bei ing experienced by dairy farmers on aci count of the possibility of quota rc- ( strictions may yet, however, cause a demand for an investigation of the possibilities of the home market for milk. The dairy industry is just beginning to see that there are possibilities of de- • velopment of a mamet for cheese in ! this country. Efforts arc now' being i made to supply and sell a higher grade ! article on the domestic market, though * it is to be regretted that nowhere yet | has there been showm a proper appreciation of the need to encourage coni sumption by well-planned publicity. There is similarly great scope here for ' stimulating the consumption of liquid 1 milk. The Governor-General recently referred to New Zealand’s low per j capita consumption- and other authorities have -shown that it could be at least doubled by proper organisaion. Though the reasonableness of that contention is generally admitted, no great enthusiasm has so far been shown; principally, of course, because everyone realises that a groat deal of organising work would have to be done and no one sees how it could be done. However, when it is remembered that milk marketing Fas now been placed on a national foundation in England, where farmers have been slow to recognise the benefits of co-operation, it should be possible for New Zealand to visualise success in a similar sphere of industrial planning. It may sound far-fetched at the moment, but it is possible to foresee a day when the New Zealand dairy industry will set up a milk marketing organisation of its own to stimulate the sales of milk, cheese and butter w'ithin this country.