The Daily News. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1912. OUR PRODUCE IN ENGLAND.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 160, 23 November 1912, Page 4

The Daily News. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1912. OUR PRODUCE IN ENGLAND.

The new High Commissioner (Hon. T. Mackenzie is losing no time in furthering the interests of the New Zealand producer in England. According to the reports of Home correspondent*, he got in some good work on his way Home. At Monte Video, for instance, with the assistance of the British Consul the High Commissioner made some investigations to ocertain what opportunities there are for New Zealand fruit. "I found," he said to the London correspondent of the Wellington Post, "that there is a very real desire in Monte Video for good fruit such as we can supply, and I was told incidentally that there is probably a market there for our butter. On these points I have been promised some further information.'" At Gibraltar, agam, where the Kaikoura put in to discharge some New Zealand frozen meat for the use of the troops, Mr. Mackenzie was shown over the cold storage chambers, which are hewn out of the solid rock. They are very well arranged, and are capable of storing a great quantity of meat for consumption by the garrison. "I took the opportunity of

- v.'lto showed lis over iiow our meat was appreciated, and he replied: 'We like it very much indeed, but, of course, there is still .1 prejudice, and some of the men arc never satisfied unless they get their teeth into the local meat, costing Is per lb. I, however, get New Zealand mutton at 4%d, and we appreciate it very much."' Mr. Mackenzie was able to discuss the prospects of ,1 larger trade in New Zealand meat with Gibraltar. On the day after his arrival in London Mi-. Mackenzie visited the dairy show at Islington, where he was received by the president and some members of the council and shown round. He found a most extensive exhibit of dairy produce, with practical demonstrations of butter-making, and has come to the conclusion that it would be well for New Zealand next year to have an exhibit, inasmuch as the show is visited by a very great number of London people. One member of the council, discussing New Zealand produce, remarked: ''l have a herd of fifty cows, and yet I cat New Zealand cheese." Another, farmer said: "I hear your New Zealand butter is of almost wonderful quality. I ain told that when shipments arrive here they are eagerly sought for

and quickly distributed; that the quality is the highest that comes into this market." Mr. Mackenzie replied that it ought to tie the highest, but the troubli? was we did not realise the highest price for it. The Danish butter brought more. The farmer remarked that New Zealand was undoubtedly better than Danish; and Mr. Mackenzie rejoined that probably the reason was that New Zealand did not put her butter on the market so regularly as the Danes did. There did not appear to be any jealousy on the part of the farmers against the New Zcalanders supplying so much butter to the English market. The High' Commissioner remarked to one of them: "If Britain cannot supply her own requirements, the next thing to do is to purchase from your countrymen abroad." Mr. Mackenzie obtained some interesting information from farmers discussing their own business.. It seems that very little butter, comparatively, is made in England, most of the milk being sold for consumption. One farmer remarked that he had been offered 6y 2 d per gallon for his summer milk and 9d for the winter, but he was going to hold out for 7d aiid 10d. There were no Holsteins at the show to speak of, but many Shorthorns, Jerseys and Ayrshires, an<J the effect of testing for performances instead of for show points is gradually beginning to be noticeable. But this is very small compared with what New Zealand has already done in the way of selection. In the effort to develop milking strains in Shorthorns, the English farmers do not appear to be troubling much about pedigree. They take a good milker where they find it, and the results so far have been encouraging. With -his previous Home experience as produce expert and the special knowledge he gained during the time he was at the head of our Agricultural Department, there is little doubt that Mr. Mackenzie will prove "the right man in the right ■ place" so far as representing the interests of the New Zealand producer is concerned and will neglect no chance of furthering his interests in the Old Country.