TOWN SUPPLIERS SHOULD HELP PAY N.Z. DAIRY COSTS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 15, Issue 28, 1 May 1950, Page 5

TOWN SUPPLIERS SHOULD HELP PAY N.Z. DAIRY COSTS

Efforts had been made for a long time to bring town milk into the general organisation of the dairy industry and to arrange by levy that it should pay what was called “its fair share of the cost of dairy research, herd recording, veterinary services and so on” the chairman of the New Zealand Dairy Board, Mr W. Hale, told a Bay of Plenty Ward Conference at Whakatane.

However, these had not been successful and the unsatisfactory position now continued where town milk suppliers were receiving services paid for by butter and cheese suppliers, he added.

Mr Hale said that some conflict had arisen at times between the interests of town milk and the manufacturing units of the dairy industry. He mentioned an attempt by the Whangarei Milk Council to obtain powers to manufacture and trade in dairy products. This had been resisted by the Board and the proposals were curtailed to retail trading. Efforts made elsewhere ip New Zealand for town milk organisatons to encroach on the functions of co-operative dairy companies had also been resisted by the Board. Mr Hale said that it had been agreed in principle between the Town Milk Federation and the Board that temporary supplies of milk needed for town use should be drawn from dairy companies, and where possible surplus milk should be handed to companies.

However, it had been found that in practice this agreement did not always work out satisfactorily. He said that there v/as a strong feeling amongst dairy companies that more milk than was required was being drawn for town supplies and were, he alleged, receiving a subsidy that was not justified, and profiting at the expense of ordinary suppliers to butter and cheese companies.