WHAT BUYERS WANT

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18467, 4 August 1934, Page 16

WHAT BUYERS WANT

N.Z. PRODUCE IN BRITAIN TIPS TO PRODUCERS A private investigation into the problems facing New Zealand produce on the English market has been made by .Mi' K. .1. Terry, of Auckland, who is at present visiting Britain. Mr Terry lias forwarded an account of his impressions in the hope that they will be of interest and assistance to New Zealand producers. “1 pointed out to merchants,” he writes in referring to butter, ‘‘that the average New Zealand dairy-fanner would not understand why English butter realised a higher price than New Zealand. They were somewhat surprised and said, ‘That you must know. ’

‘‘l said, ‘Oh, yes, but I want, you to tell me.’ One remarked that to-day (June 12) New Zealand had very little cause for grumbling. The finest New Zealand butter was worth 80s and Danish 80s. The Danish was subject to a 15 per cent duty, and New ’Zealand came jn free. “It was admitted that not all the Now Zealand butter was realising 80s per hundredweight on that day, but that was not the fault of Srnithficld, but of New Zealand. They pointed out that there was never a real glut of very high quality products, and that the great secret of the Danish butter was its even grade. Practically every cask of Danish butter was similar. They also stated that if Danish butter were shipped 14,000 miles it would not realise as high a price as would New Zealand, because Danish butter did not hold in the cold store as well as New Zealand. That was probably one of the reasons why Denmark endeavored to clear her market each week.

“They all agreed that if the Now Zealand cows were on grass all the year round we should make a noise about it and tell the butter-consuming world. They 'pointed out that every year shops and posters advertised that Danish butter was new season, grassfed, therefore, if wo could go one better and claim that New Zealand cows were grass-fed for a much longer period, or all the year, we should most certainly make as much of the distinguishing feature as possible. “I pointed out that many people in New Zealand considered that if the butter were put up in packets, say, pound packets, the public would know that they were purchasing New Zealand butter. One of them said ‘As you know, the outside of a 501 b. block of butter after freezing and the slight exposure it. has had to air is not quite as good as the inner portion. Half an inch may be affected, therefore isn’t it reasonable that if you increase the surfaces you multiply the trouble?’ Their opinion was that it might be quite a good tiling to have pound or half-pound wrapped packets of butter, but Ihe packing and wra’p■ung should be done in Great Britain. They were generally of the opinion that a dairy country such as New Zealand should never have put whey butter on the market, and that if we were to continue to market it, it should be restricted to certain uses. “It was pointed out to me that. Denmark was selling quite a quantity of tinned cream in Great Britain and they said they did not see why we did not compete in this line, as the fact of distance would not deteriorate the cream. The same remarks would apply to dried milk in its varied forms.”