MARKETING OF DAIRY PRODUCE

Taranaki Daily News, 22 December 1924, Page 11

MARKETING OF DAIRY PRODUCE

(To the Editor. 7 Sir, —Like other dairy farmers throughout the country, I am anxiously awaiting the return of the overseas delegation of the Control Board to learn whether any constructive effort is going to be made to improve the position of our dairy produce on the Home market. In a recent visit to the Old Country I took a great deal of time to enquire into all possible aspects of the position. It became clear to me that the task confronting the producer is not an easy one. Certain things require to be done, and only the producers of this country, as a united bewiy, have either the power or the inclination to tackle this task. Among the many things I noticed, these two facts stand out most prominently: (1) The need for regulating the supply of New Zealand produce upon the London market, and protracting the selling season; (2) the need for advertising our produce throughout Great Britain in order to inform the consumer just what its merits are. On the first point it is plain that New Zealand will never build up a permanently stable trade and hold the goodwill of the distributors until she can market her produce the year round. Consumers want butter and cheese day in and day out throughout the whole twelve months. At present we have been supplying and selling all our produce in the course of nine or ten months and leaving the market bare for two months. In the months when our supply has been greatest our prices have been lowest. Retailers and wholesalers who have built up a goodwill for New Zealand butter through nine or ten months suddenly find themselves unaible to supply what their customer requires. They then have to persuade that customer to have some other country’s butter, and when New Zealand is once more available he has to persuade him to go back to Ne.w Zealand. That break in time is fatal to our achieving any big place on the Home market, and the first effort of the Control Board, in my opinion, should be to endeavour to so regulate our national supplies as to bridge that gap of time in Britain. This necessity has been realised by the Danes, who, under vastly more difficult conditions than ours, give Britain a year round supply of butter. We can achieve the same end by encouraging a longer producing season, and undertaking judicious storage. Permanency of connection in trade is vital to any attempt at effective marketing. The advertising of our produce must be undertaken in order to develop popular knowledge of New Zealand goods. We have, as a country, a wonderful goodwill in Britain to day, and we should capitalise that to our products by undertaking a definite advertising campaign in favour of our butter and our cheese. The results of publicity to supplement improved marketing arrangements would, I am satisfied, surprise producers. These two points would help the distributive trade at Home very considerably; and in fact they were points mentioned to me time and : time again by the distributors whom I . found quite well disposed towards New Zealand produce, but they said, “It is , your place to advertise your goods, and give us regular supplies. Do that and we will do the rest.” I found no antagonism on the part of the distributors to any attempt on our part to improve matters—quite the contrary. We can help them and they realise it. —I am, etc. WILLIAM: BOYD. Matangi.