NEW ZEALAND BUTTER.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVI, Issue 4852, 13 July 1925, Page 4

NEW ZEALAND BUTTER.

RE-BBANDED IN AMERICA. “CALIFORNIAN CHOICE.” The following statement made by Mr Reginald Back, manager of tne Union Steamship Company of New Zealand, at San Francisco, to a newspaper correspondent is a striking example in support of many allegations made of late that a goodly proportion, of the Dominion’s butter output practically loses all identity with New Zealand upon arrival at the marketing end. Mr Back says :— “Unfortunately, owing to the butter importens bringing New Zealand butter into the States during the winter months of the American calendar, the enterprising American butter operators are repacking the New Zealand product and actually shipping it out to various parts of the country as genuine Californian choicest butter. An injustice has been wrought upon New Zealand through the Californian butter handler not distinguishing the imported butter as a produce of New Zealand. Under these circumstances the public taste for New Zealand butter cannot be developed as it might be. There are only two ways of correcting this disadvantage under whicn New Zealand dairymen have been labouring in America. One is for the New Zealand Government to. start a small butter store in San Francisco, and the other step is to sit quietly until the shipments increase materially from New Zealand and importers specialise in New Zealand butter all the year round, the same as they are doing in the~Briti.sh Isles.

“The steamship company carrying the eNw Zealand butter to San Francisco endeavoured to block the rebranding of the New Zealand butter, but when remonstrated with by an indignant observer the representative of the American creamery concern ejaculated : ‘Why, the public have no kick to make. This is as good as our best fresh butter.’ This butter comes into America in 501 b squares, and is then cut up into pound and half-pound squares, packed-in neat' cartons with the brand of the local American creamery upon the package, and by the wording printed on the carton the American consuming public are wrongly led to believe that it is American butter they are buying and eating.”

Mr Back stated that the wording of the brand on. the imported, butter was so cunningjy arranged that the American operators just kept witfiin the edge of the laws guarding against the perpetration bf fraudulent practices in the handling of foodstuffs. Respecting • the threatened imposition of an increased tariff against New Zealand , and other outside butter Mr Back said: “For the interest of New Zealanders' it. may be stated that there will not be a further increase in the American impost duty on imported butter, not that, the country’s rulers would not like to see such an addition to the present tariff, but they realise that they dare not countenance any: such proceeding, as the cost of living in the country owing to the laist increases in the tariffs is just as much as the people can stagger under. That, in a nutshell, is the whole story.”