FOOD SUPPLY IF WAR CAME

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 75, 21 December 1937, Page 3

FOOD SUPPLY IF WAR CAME

— Prees Association.)

Now Zealand Wheat Crop Not Sufficient THE PETROL PROBLEM

(By Telegraph-

. CHRISTCHURCH, Last Night. The necessity in the last two seasons of importing wheat and the diminution of wheat crops grown in the Dominion have foeussed the attention of th© Government on the possible effeot on New Zealand 's food supply of a war. If shipping was disorganised as it has been in years past by war and wheat was not procurable from overseas the New Zealand crop at the present rate of production might be insufficient by a big margin to supply New Zealand 's need. The organisation for national security which, under the control oY Oabinet, is secretly working towards an ideal of making New 'Zealand self-supporting in the event of any national emergency, has taken ofiicial recognition of the wheat position. It is stated that the decisions of the JMinister of Industrie3 and Commerce (Hon. D. G. Sullivan) to announce wheat prices for future seasons as early as possible so that farmers can plan their wheat acreage ahead is believed to have been pronipted by the realisation of the urgent need for the Dominion to be in a position to meet its own wheat requirements. Wheatgrowers have stated that if they know the price in advance a much greater acreage could be planted. Serious as the crop shortage might be in time of emergency when shipping facilities were not readily available to bring wheat importations from overseas, the position is said to have an even more serious side. The growing use of tractors on iarms has made fietrol an absolute necessity on very many farms. It is stated ' that were that petrol supply to be cut off it is a fact that on the present ligures New Zealand 's agricultural production must drop to a considerable extent on many farms where no horses at all are kept, and the number of tractors at pre_ent working would need "to be replaced by about 60,00U draught horses if farm production was to be kept at xts present level without petrol supplies in the country. On Year Book statistics it is claimed that in New Zealand tae number of draught horses is a long way short of the number that wo.uid be required if tractors were not used and as it is known that oniy a few months' petrol supply is kept in- New Zealand at one time a sudden eessation of lmportation of motor fuei would place the Dominion in an extremely serious posii tion in the production of foodstulfs. II is known that the organisation foi national security keeps in close toucu with petrol importers about stocks, so that if an emergency arose the presenl stocks might be rationed to serve the whole conununity, but even undei rationed use the stocks now in the j Dominion could not be expeeled ro lasl i more than a year. Tliesb t>ci.crs have ! , been a powerful agent, it is cerlain, in | furthering the desiro of the Govcr.u- i ment to have natural oilfielo's ctwcovered in this^ country and they l.avo alse been used as arguments for tho case of those who support the provisioa of t coal carhonisation plant iii the Dominion. At the moment, however, the positioi undoubtedly is that if imports were re stricted a wheat crop of tne sacne proportions oi this year-'s in New Zealand | would be insufficient to feed the country and even if it were sufficient production might be sadly curtailed by lack of petrol caused by the same hold:Up of shipping that would prevent the ' importation of foodstuffs.