Register

Anchor butter

Swap ideas and tips or ask advice about being a veggie.
Posts: 359
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:48 pm

Anchor butter

Postby cherrytree » Sun Nov 04, 2012 12:38 pm

I bought some Anchor butter this week from the Co-op as it was on offer. I don't often buy it although I like it but it is usually quite expensive. Anyway I was idly looking at the packet and realised to my sadness that it isn't a New Zealand product any more. It says quite clearly "Produced in the UK". What a shame. Does anybody else remember the TV jingle that used to accompany the ad? "Fresh as a buttercup, as golden as the sun, New Zealand, New Zealand brings health to everyone". Another illusion shattered.

User avatar
Posts: 488
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:17 pm
Location: East Anglia, UK

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Suelle » Sun Nov 04, 2012 12:56 pm

It could still be NZ milk.' Produced in the UK' just indicates where the butter was made - not the source of the milk.
The blog which does what it says on the tin:

http://mainlybaking.blogspot.co.uk/

User avatar
Posts: 488
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 10:17 pm
Location: East Anglia, UK

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Suelle » Sun Nov 04, 2012 1:02 pm

Suelle wrote:It could still be NZ milk.'



However, it isn't!! :o :shock:

According to wikipedia, it's been made with British cream since August this year!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchor_(brand)
The blog which does what it says on the tin:

http://mainlybaking.blogspot.co.uk/

Posts: 359
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:48 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby cherrytree » Sun Nov 04, 2012 1:53 pm

Thanks for that Sue. I didn't hear that on the news.

User avatar
Posts: 396
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 5:55 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby kavey » Sun Nov 04, 2012 1:55 pm

I realise there's nostalgia at play here but... I wouldn't buy butter from NZ anyway!

Indeed when I learned (many years ago) that Anchor was from NZ I stopped buying it.

We have excellent dairy in the UK and nearby European neighbours too, so there's no reason to have it flown in such an enormous distance. I'll happily buy products that aren't produced in the UK or Europe, or aren't produced as well here.

But butter is something we do well, not to mention great butter from Ireland, France and other neighbours.

That said, now it's produced in UK from UK milk, maybe I'd purchase it again.

Site Admin
User avatar
Posts: 4191
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:56 pm
Location: Bushey

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Sakkarin » Sun Nov 04, 2012 2:34 pm

Thanks, news to me too. As with New Zealand lamb, the suggestion was always that with Anchor butter you were getting a superior product, the lambs and cows relaxing and frolicking in the Antipodean sunshine while ours languish in crates eating their own spinal material and chicken droppings. Now I know it's British I will treat it with the same disdain I treat all other British butter.

Posts: 359
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:48 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby cherrytree » Sun Nov 04, 2012 4:14 pm

(To Kavey) I use products from everywhere and certainly don't discriminate by country. For instance when I made my Christmas cake on Friday I used President French butter; for everyday spreading I like Kerrygold,and use Scottish Pride from the local creamery for everyday cooking and for a really special occasion have that beautiful butter with salt flakes in from Isigny I am old enough to remember the gorgeous mountains of New Zealand butter that the ladies in Sainsburys used to pat up with amazing skill into perfect shapes. Nationalism doesn't come into my calculations. However I do feel a certain amount of gratitude to New Zealand. They sent thousands of men to help the country in two wars and by their very situation in the globe rely on trade for their existence. Anchor used to have a distinctive "sunny" taste and I'm sorry that dairy link with a far away country has been lost.

User avatar
Posts: 4357
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 5:58 pm
Location: Clayton-le-Woods

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Renée » Sun Nov 04, 2012 5:01 pm

Anchor was one of my favourite butters, but I haven't bought it recently.

What you said is very worrying indeed, Sakkarin, but does that apply to organic butters?

Site Admin
User avatar
Posts: 4191
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:56 pm
Location: Bushey

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Sakkarin » Sun Nov 04, 2012 5:22 pm

Well that shows my complete ignorance in these matters, I couldn't tell you the name of an organic butter! I do find French butters taste better though, but that may be psychological, inate snobbery!

I used to use Kerrygold soft when it was 100% butter, but they changed the recipe a few months back so that it now contains non-butter gunge like all the other "soft spread" butters.

I don't know if that was because their soft butter ended up being more expensive to produce, but I have not bothered with it since the change.

User avatar
Posts: 221
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 2:39 pm
Location: Cambridge, UK

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Mrs Vee » Sun Nov 04, 2012 5:40 pm

Sakkarin wrote:I used to use Kerrygold soft when it was 100% butter, but they changed the recipe a few months back so that it now contains non-butter gunge like all the other "soft spread" butters.

I don't know if that was because their soft butter ended up being more expensive to produce, but I have not bothered with it since the change.
I use President soft-spread butter; it's the only one I've found that is still just butter without the gunge.

(BTW - loving the new Christmas smileys!)

Site Admin
User avatar
Posts: 4191
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2012 1:56 pm
Location: Bushey

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Sakkarin » Sun Nov 04, 2012 5:52 pm

Aha, I will look out for that!

User avatar
Posts: 396
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 5:55 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby kavey » Sun Nov 04, 2012 8:40 pm

cherrytree wrote:(To Kavey) I use products from everywhere and certainly don't discriminate by country. For instance when I made my Christmas cake on Friday I used President French butter; for everyday spreading I like Kerrygold,and use Scottish Pride from the local creamery for everyday cooking and for a really special occasion have that beautiful butter with salt flakes in from Isigny I am old enough to remember the gorgeous mountains of New Zealand butter that the ladies in Sainsburys used to pat up with amazing skill into perfect shapes. Nationalism doesn't come into my calculations. However I do feel a certain amount of gratitude to New Zealand. They sent thousands of men to help the country in two wars and by their very situation in the globe rely on trade for their existence. Anchor used to have a distinctive "sunny" taste and I'm sorry that dairy link with a far away country has been lost.


Nationalism doesn't come into my calculations either - hence my inclusion of buying Irish, French etc. I just try to reduce miles travelled on the produce that is available (to same quality or higher) here. If it's not available (to same quality or higher, or at all), then I'll happily buy imported from farther afield - think mangoes, pineapples, vanilla and many spices, rice and many other ingredients.

:)

User avatar
Posts: 755
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 9:05 am
Location: Newport, South Wales

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Wokman » Sun Nov 04, 2012 9:02 pm

I can't say I remember that jingle cherrytree, but I do like this advert:



I tried looking for the advert you mean, but I didn't find it so maybe somebody else will have more luck :crossed

Posts: 359
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:48 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby cherrytree » Sun Nov 04, 2012 9:52 pm

It was probably fifty years ago! It keeps going round and round my head. Anchor butter was a high quality product though and one of its advertising strengths was that the cows were out all year round. They certainly aren't here. The taste of NZ butter was such a distinctive one too. I'm really sad that such a fundamental change to a product was made. Either they should have stuck to it being made in NZ or should have given it an entirely new name. I feel I have been duped.

User avatar
Posts: 70
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 5:13 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Emerald7 » Mon Nov 05, 2012 12:42 am

"However I do feel a certain amount of gratitude to New Zealand. They sent thousands of men to help the country in two wars and by their very situation in the globe rely on trade for their existence.


My MIL says that too, and I have followed her example by buying apples from New Zealand when we cannot buy British. (But can do without asparagus from elsewhere in the world thank you when it is not in season here.)

Posts: 359
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:48 pm

Re: Anchor butter

Postby cherrytree » Mon Nov 05, 2012 10:17 am

I quite agree about asparagus, but the NZ dairy industry is a key aspect of their economy.It's the covert action of the company that has annoyed me.

User avatar
Posts: 4139
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 2:02 pm
Location: Stoke Newington, London

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Stokey Sue » Mon Nov 05, 2012 1:11 pm

I don't like Anchor butter - and my memory seems to be different from others, in as much as 50 years ago I am sure it was cheaper than European butters such as Lurpak (Denmark), Wheelbarrrow (Holland) or French butter such as President or Claudel (French was always the most expensive)

The cheapest nastiest packet, branded, butter was Kangaroo from Australia - that really was vile

Funnily I don't remember much English or Irish butter until Country Life and Kerrygold came in (very late 60s I think), though I think places like Home stores sold it under their own label,

The butter I really like is the German/Austrian butter - sometimes sold as Alpine butter in UK supermarkets, or French - they do have a different taste to other butters, not very keen on Luepak either

For baking/cookinmg in I'll buy the cheapest unsalted - which is often Country Life, and it is quite nice. Or the Lidl one which varies, but is often the Alpine style (though packed in Wales)

User avatar
Posts: 4357
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 5:58 pm
Location: Clayton-le-Woods

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Renée » Mon Nov 05, 2012 5:20 pm

I like the Austrian butter, too and seem to remember that Sainsbury's stock it. I like Yorkshire butter, too.

User avatar
Posts: 4986
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:30 pm
Location: Provence

Re: Anchor butter

Postby Joanbunting » Mon Nov 05, 2012 5:42 pm

I always disliked Anchor and especially Lurpack - always reminded me of candle grease.

I really only like unsalted butter, except in special recipes, like caramel flavoured things. Loads of good butters to be had here but my two favourites are Isigny and the churned butter from the alps that our cheese stall sells - it comes in a big barrel shaped lump as I remember butter from childhood. I use whatever is cheap from the supermarket for cooking but you have to be a bit careful because the cheapest stuff sometimes has a lower fat content - added water I guess?

Return to Veggie Chat

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest