SIX THOUSAND ACRES OF MAIZE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 6, Issue 5, 16 September 1942, Page 4

SIX THOUSAND ACRES OF MAIZE

ARMED with greater and more practical powers than ever before the Primary Production Council operating* in the Bay of Plenty has been given the task of meeting an allocated demand for potatoes, pig meat, poultry meat, eggs, dairy produce and MAIZE. The last item with memories of the two year old appeal, still in mind and the melancholy tale attached to its collection and marketing, is not likely to arouse the warmest feelings of co-operation, but the fact remains that the Dominion to-day is in a positionwhich makes the importation of primary products impossible,, and is thrown entirely upon her own resources. Not only must she meet her own growing demands of consump*" tion, but also she must now supply direct an army on active service closer to her shores than ever before. The main item is however maize, of which this district, the Bay of Plenty* is asked to grow no less than 6000 acres. The cereal not only supplies poultry food, meal and corn products but it is also required for the manufacture of starch and other protein bearing commodities. Two manufacturing units in the South Island and one in the North must be supplied with maize in the absence of rice from overseas and the; only method of meeting this demand is by concentrating on wider growing areas. A visit by Mr R. G. C. Ffitch, of the Internal Marketing Department, last Saturday gave growers the assurance that if the maize were sown the Government would take steps to guarantee and ensure the plucking and, marketing. The question raised at the meeting of the Rangitaiki suppliers, regarding mechanical pluckers, is one which might well be taken notice of. We understand that this ingenius device, when twin-plucking, relies on a wider, sowing of the maize rows than is customary in this district but where it is operating on a single: row it can cover approximately 5 acres per day. Already one of these latter machines has been placed on order by a local contractor, who hopes to have it available before next season. The appeal is definitely classed as a war effort, is urgent, and must be met if we are to. ensure the normal running of our industries. Once again the Beacon has been appealed to, to give the position the publicity it needs, and once again we are privileged to be able to do so. But at the same time we are: minded of the doleful result of similar publicity for which this paper was responsible in 1940. The position today however makes it imperative that all industry piimary and secondary should be bent towards the same urgent purpose, and that is—the successful prosecution of the warIt is only reasonable to suppose that with such issues at stake the Government is in deadly earnest when it appeals for greater production. That being the case we feel that in spite of the setbacks of previous years the farmers can once again be relied upon to rise to the situation and. meet the demand.