A HUGE COMBINE.

Hokitika Guardian, 23 May 1924, Page 4

A HUGE COMBINE.

V.AtRXIXG BY Ant AY ILFORD. BLKXHEIAI, May 21. Referring in the* course of his address last evoning to the necessity lor the Dominion’s producers developing any new market which would olTer them an outlet for their products, Mr T. M. Wilford. leader of the LiberalLabour '[’arty, asserted that very shortly it might he found that it would he difficult to market New Zealand and Australian products on the English market. The reason was that the oreatest combine in the history of the. United Kingdom had just been formed and had seem ed agencies for “the South American meat companies for distribution of their produce in the United Kingdom. Tl’.o capital of this grea i combine was C 8.780.000, and though for some reason the Dress of New Zealand, as far as he was aware, had not drawn attention to its menace, lie found when in Australia recently that the producers there were very seriously alarmed. The companies included in the great combine were Yestcy’s. the British and Argentine Meat Co., Eastman’s, Ltd. (except for 81 shares out of 21,000). Fletcher’s, Ltd., tlie Argentine Meat Co., the British Meat Co., Lonsdale and John Layton and Co., and Donald Cook and Sons. The combine was tlie largest and most complete organisation in the world, and beat tlie famous ‘-Big Five” of the United States into a frazzle, ft owned fifty-one cold stores and controlled and ran one ol the largest steamer Meets in tlie world pidly adopting Western foods and bad 2-100 shops, depots and market stalls, factories and market establishments throughout Britain, and it was going to distribute South American

produce wholesale and retail. Tho people of Australia were gravely alarmed over the possibilities of trouble with the United Kingdom markets, and the people of New Zeaalnd should iilso lie greatly alarmed as the only

way to get our produce oil the English

market would he to squeeze ill between the American ‘ Big Five” and the new

A serious factor of the new develop-

ment was that Great Britain had £•100.00!).'INK) invested in Argentina, and it was to. their interest to push the distribution of Argentine products. “But in the Fast,” continued Mr Wilford. -‘there are 000.000.000 people. They are not all a nuliket for our pro-

duce. for many of them are too poor to buy, hut nevertheless there is a wonderful opportunity to he grasped.” Tie said the people of Japan were riu pidly adopting Western foods and Western clothing, and Japan alone offered an enormous maikct for our huttor and cheese, condensed milk, wool

and meat. When he was in Japan meat was selling at 8s per lb. ‘1 sac that if this market could he exploit-

ed,” he proceeded, “there is an enormous future in it. hut because the proposal comes from me it is turned down. However, new markets will have to he found, for the foundation of our prosperity and our very existence depend on an assured market lor the goods our farmers produce.” Pointing to tlie fact that although New Zealand has so far made no use of tin* East as a market. Air A\ ilford exhibited a sealed tin ol butter purchased at Singapore. ’I Ins tin had been packed hv a Melbourne firm tor trade in Singapore. Penang and Bangkok'. Most extraordinary of all. it was branded “Pure Creamery Butter. Produce of New Zealand.” “Ibis." said Mr Wilford. “is the butter the Singapore people arc* eating. Me haven’t the foresight to send it to them, hut Australian firms think it is worth while to import our New Zealand butter to Australia, malic it up in tins like this anil send it to the • Eastern market.”