MAIZE YIELD

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 9, Issue 100, 17 July 1946, Page 2

MAIZE YIELD

BAY OF PLENTY CROPS DECLINE EXPECTED The fields officer of the Department of Agriculture in Rotorua, Mr C. R. Taylor, has stated that although it is impossible to give an accurate estimate of the maize crop this season, as harvesting is still in progress, it is generally believed that the return will be considerably down on that of last year. This is almost wholly attributable to the drought. The Gisborne district, he said, had yielded an average of 57 bushels to the acre but he thought that the Bay of Plenty would not even approach that figure. A Rotorua stock agent attributed the general decline in production to the taking over of crops by the Internal Marketing Division. Prior to .the State’s intervention in the handling of maize crops, private agents had arranged the harvesting and shelling to suit the demand and the grower was duly notified of these times. The arrangements for the harvesting, he said, were still

being undertaken by the companies but under the direction of the department and the organisation was consequently lacking. The net result had been, during the past few years, a general decline in production. During the past two years, this agent continued, his firm had had only a few bags of maize in stock, whereas formerly it had always carried at least a ton. The majority of the small amount allotted it had either been seed maize, which was too expensive for the average poul-

try farmer, or had arrived at the end of the winter, when it was of no further use as winter feed.