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Story: Scots

Highlander sweetened condensed milk

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Highlander sweetened condensed milk

Most of New Zealand’s Scottish settlers were Lowlanders. But the Highlands provided the symbols of Scottish identity in New Zealand. For more than a century, cans of a popular brand of condensed milk have been adorned by the figure of a Highlander (believed to be based on the drum major of a Southland pipe band).

Using this item

Nestlé S. A.

Reproduced with permission of Société des Produits Nestlé S.A., Vevey, Switzerland, trademarks and copyright owner.

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How to cite this page

John Wilson, Scots – 1840–1852: organised settlement, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/ephemera/214/highlander-sweetened-condensed-milk (accessed 11 June 2026).

Story by John Wilson, published 4 March 2009, updated 1 August 2024.