SPREAD...TASTE...ENJOY, ANCHOR AD, 1966 |
Would you believe that ANCHOR BUTTER has been around for over 130 years? Yes, the fresh,
creamy butter that has always been a favorite in the Philippines is the
creation of English farmer Henry Reynolds, who settled in New Zealand and established a dairy factory
at Pukekura in the 1880s with the help of American David Gemmel who also
provided him with a butter recipe.
Reynolds invested in
modern dairy machinery and turned out butter blocks made only from the
finest milk from Waikato. It was said
that he used an anchor as a logo after seeing an anchor tattoo on the arm of a
sailor who had been his regular supplier of milk. That was how ANCHOR BUTTER came to be in 13 November
1886
Initially , the factory managed to churn out only 45
kilograms of ANCHOR in one year, but
as his butter gained widespread popularity
and recognition. It was even
awarded a gold medal at the Melbourne Exhibition in 1888. Business boomed and
he put up more factories—8 in all by 1896. He sold his products also in London
where he had also built a cool store there.
Reynolds sold his lucrative business to the New Zealand
Dairy Association in 1896, which was instrumental in the promotion of NZ of
dairy products in the United Kingdom. Up
to 90% of New Zealand’s dairy exports were being sold in UK, where ANCHOR became a best-selling butter.
ANCHOR, “the leading brand of the choicest butter
from the loveliest dairy pastures in the world” and “fresh as a sea breeze,
pure as the sunshine”, was ready to expand globally, and was pushed into new
markets like America and Asia.
It was in the mid 1960s that ANCHOR BUTTER became available in the Philippines. As it was
distributed here, the ANCHOR had a
premium image and sold at a higher cost. It found a niche among the uppity
class, even at that time, Filipinos were
into margarines and pseudo-butter that were decidedly cheaper. It was sold in
blocks wrapped in paper, and cheaper ½ and ¼ pound block sizes.
ANCHOR BUTTER print ads began appearing
in weekly magazine in 1966, but placements were intermittent. It was only in
the 1970s, when the local NZ Dairy distributor assigned ANCHOR to a full-fledge agency, J. Romero & Associates, which
created ANCHOR’s memorable TV
commercial.
It was a simple series of product application shots---a
pat of ANCHOR BUTTER sliding on a
hotcake, or on toast, interspersed with eating and reaction shots. What made
the commercial appealing was the jingle, sung by the chanteuse Nelda Navarro:
“Fresh, ANCHOR BUTTER
The cream and sunshine butter
Spread…taste…enjoy…
Fresh, ANCHOR BUTTER!”
True to its classy image,
Englih-speaking radio and TV personality Leila Benitez, provided the
voice over, extolling the virtues of the pure, creamery New Zealand butter with
a diction so polished and perfect. The vintage 70s jingle would be resurrected
again in the 1987-88 campaign “Butters Better” campaign.
IT'S WORTH THEIR LOVE. ANCHOR Butter Ad, 1981. |
ANCHOR BUTTER would have sporadic advertising on print and TV in the 1980s, especially as it became the No. 1 selling butter in the Philippines in 1981.
In 2001, the New
Zealand Dairy Group which owned ANCHOR
merged with Kiwi Co-operative in 2001 to
form Fonterra Co-operative in 2001. It is a New Zealand multinational dairy
co-operative owned by around 10,500 New Zealand farmers, the largest NZ company
that supplies for approximately 30% of
the world's dairy exports.
WATCH THIS 1987-88 ANCHOR TVC 30s
USING ITS 1970S JINGLE SOUNDTRACK
Copyright Fonterra Brands Philippines, Inc.
source: https://www.facebook.com/Viewonthe3rd/
Fonterra, which, in Latin means “spring from the land”,
continues to market ANCHOR branded
dairy products in the Philippines today, that has come to include not just ANCHOR BUTTER, but also powdered milk,
cheese, and culinary butter.
SOURCES:
Fonterra Website: https://www.fonterra.com/ph/en/our-brands.html,
accessed 5/28/ 2019
Anchor Butter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchor_(brand)
Anchor 1988 Commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSAeaiQiOBY
Copyright Fonterra Brands Philippines, Inc.
source:
Birth of Anchor Butter: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/birth-of-iconic-anchor-butter-brand
Anchor Butter 1936 Poster: https://teara.govt.nz/en/ephemera/39134/anchor-butter-poster-1936