Farm Opportunities At Bonn

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31086, 15 June 1966, Page 22

Farm Opportunities At Bonn

If New Zealand wanted a worth-while share of the Western German agricultural market when the European Economic Community had fully evolved its agricultural policy, it was up to New Zealand to be alive in its representations, said the Trade Commissioner designate to Bonn (Mr M. Roberts) in Christchurch yesterday. “There is no good our saying ‘we used to have trade,’,” said Mr Roberts. ‘That won’t cut much ice.” Mr Roberts met representatives of the Canterbuy Chamber of Commerce, and the Canterbury Manufacturers’ Association in informal talks about the new Bonn trade post. Mr Roberts thought New Zealand might be able to do something useful in the development of a market for farm machinery in Western Germany. He said that Western German farmers used a method of milking that we would regard as inadequate. The cowshed was taken to the cows in Germany, instead of the cows into the cowshed, as in New Zealand.

“This line of thought might perhaps sell some dairy machinery that has been developed in New Zealand over the years,” said Mr Roberts.

He said that some New Zealand dairy equipment was displayed at the German Green Week Fair. The development of farming techniques in Western Germany might give rise to the use of New Zealand types of dairy machinery But it meant that we might have tb do a fair amount of work tb develop this trade. When asked by the president of the Canterbury Manufacturers* Association (Mr C. W. Mace) if he thought New Zealand could export manufactured goods to an indus-

trialised country like Western Germany, Mr Roberts said that provided New Zealand bad the right kind of goods, he could not see any reason why not He said the costs a man hour in West Germany were high. The increase of productivity in Western-Ger-many was dependent almost entirely on the labour content Mr Roberts said that in-

ternal pressures for higher wages were being felt throughout industry in Western Germany. “It is expected that their rate of growth will slow down considerably.” Mr R. H. Stewart said he thought that Mr Roberts’s major job In Western Germany would be to keep New Zealand agricultural products in the forefront. But having trade representatives in an area gave manufacturers tre-

mendous strength in trying to expand. Mr Roberts said that the balance of trade with Western Germany was now in New Zealand's favour. “We have a good export trade, mainly agricultural products, of about £l4m," said Mr Roberts. “It is one of our major sources of supply of quite a wide range of industrial equipment and materials worth about £9m."