LONDON BUTTER PRICES

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19339, 1 June 1937, Page 9

LONDON BUTTER PRICES

DOMINION'AND DANISH MARGIN GROWING LESS ■JUSTIFICATION OF POLICY (Per Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, last night. Recent price-trends on the London dairy market, have shown one outstanding feature of groat interest to the Dominion—the gradual reduction and, ultimately, the leiuporjirv elimination of the margin of Danish butter j trices over New Zealand. This is claimed by the Dominion marketing authorities as a partial justification, at least, for the new

methods adopted in handling deliveries of butter on to the British markets, and an answer to the criticism made earlier in the year, that the new policy was antagonising trade mid reacting unfavourably on the market.

“ \Ye cannot claim that the reduction of the margi’n is entirely due to our policy,” said Mr. G. A. Duncan, aeting-Diroetor of Marketing, when commenting on the position, In a telephone interview with The Press today, “but it is only fair to say that both the general trend of prices and the narrowing of the margin is till indication that there eannoi be much wrong with our marketing policy. “It must surely be a fair indication that there cannot be marked hostility to, or boycotting of our butter, as was suggested in February, when the price happened to be- low. Regularity of Supply “It is the, desire of the department, with the new system, to ensure that supplies should come on to the market as regularly as possible, extended over as long a period of tinyear as is feasible,” Mr. Duncan said. “In the past, the buyer could not be sure thut he would get certain quantities at stipulated periods, because the factories here sold outright and altered the destination of the butter altogether. This new system has been made possible,’ of course, by the guaranteed price plan of the Government. “There has been some criticism that the scheme entailed holding the butter in store for too long a period. Actually there lias not been much delay in this respect. What lms occurred lias arisen from a desire to spread the shipments more evenly. “The scheme will have a tendency to reduce the formgr wide fluctuations in price and has eliminated speculative f.o.b. buying, which ;o often left the agents and I lie customers high and dry, and probably accounted for a loss of custom as well. That is why our plan is quite attractive to the agents at Home.”

Air. Duncan mentioned another improvement. which he said the guaranteed price plan had brought about on the market. The butter now being sold was markedly improved in quality. The system of payment adopted, giving quality premiums on grade points,- had definitely led to an increase in high-scoring butter and cheese.