BETTER LIVE STOCK STANDARD

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 239, 6 July 1944, Page 6

BETTER LIVE STOCK STANDARD

Principle Of Compulsion OPPOSITION BY BREEDING SOCIETIES A report on live stock improvement made by a sub-committee of the council of the Royal Agricultural Society to the annual general meeting of the society in Wellington yesterday was greeted with unanimous approval in principle, .but met with considerable opposition in its proposal' to include in the necessary legislation the imposition of compulsion with Government control. Moving the adoption of the. report, Mr. G. IL Bethell, North Canterbury, said that the first thing to do was to get people interested in the idea of a better standard for the Dominion's live stock. There was no wish to usurp the functions of the brcedi-g societies, but there was a vast number of farmers not tied to breeding societies and they must be got at and their breeding systematized. Many approved of the principle of live stock improvement but doubted the method of carrying it out. The first thing to tackle was undoubtedly the improvement of cattle, but there was room in (he Act for all the different classes of stock. The proposals followed very closely the 1934 Bill, which was dropped. The “scrub” bull would have to be dealt with. None of the breeding societies had come forward with constructive criticisms, but that was what the proposals had been intended to bring. Some people had said that if the legislation was brought in only pure-bred sires could be used, and asked why a man with a suitable sire should be excluded from using it or selling it just because he was not a member of a breeding society. All people hnted compulsion, said Mr. Bethell, but: some means had to-be devised to get at the large proportion of farmers who were not members of breeding societies. “When we got back to normal after the war,” he said, “quality will be the determining factor in the world markets, and if we have not got the quality we will be sunk.” Mr. B. E. Keillor, Western District Council, suggested it might be possible to attain the required end by setting existing organizations in order. Big producers, with a self-imposed levy of 3d. a pig, had succeeded in raising the standard of their stock. From a condemnation rate of 14 per cent, they had attained a rale of three or four per cent. The imposition of compulsion . under Government control and the elimination of the unregistered sire were matters obiocted to by several speakers. Mr. L. R. C. Macfarlane. North Canterbury. said that immediately there was suggestion of control farmers were up in arms. They felt they had had enough of control recently and wanted a respite. Mr. A. L. Adamson. Southland, said he was confident that no improvement could be reached without an Act of Parliament. Unregistered flocks must he compelled to register and breeds must be improved by inspect ion. The president, Mr. L. J. Wild: 1. think the society Ims made progress backward in the last Ift years. Then, it approved the plan. Such improvement measures are in force in many countries.

A proposal, moved ns an amendment to the adoption of the report, referring the matter back to the sub-committee for further consideration and report to the next, annual meeting was carried, as was a proposal for a conference with the representatives of the breeding societies.