DAIRY INDUSTRY

Hokitika Guardian, 10 March 1930, Page 8

DAIRY INDUSTRY

WHAT OF THE FUTURE?

In his address to members of the Australian dairy delegation in Hamilton on Wednesday, Mr William Goodfellow said that it was estimated that Auckland Province would produce at the present rate of production a further 50,000 tons of butter in 10 years’ time, provided prices remained at a payable figure. The problem from a marketing point of view was where were we to find a profitable market for this ever increasing quantity of butter. It was true New Zealand was shipping approximately 15,000 boxes of butter this season to Eastern Canada, but that market could only be regarded as a temporary one and might disappear at short notice if the U.S.A. Government suddenly increased the tariff on the large quantity of milk and cream imported from Canada to U.S.A. If this occurred, the Canadian Government would be compelled to shut out Australian and New Zealand butter, as the milk and cream in question would be sufficient, if converted into butter, to supply the total local requirements.’ Other markets remaining open to us were not capable of development to any extent and the industry therefore had to depend almost entirely upon the United Kingdom to purchase the major portion of its exports of tatter and cheese. IF— If the Old Country would agree to tax foodstuffs, said Mr W. Goodfellow in his address to the Australian dairy delegation at Hamilton, there was no doubt in his mind but that the producers of both Australian and New Zealand would support a demand for a substantial reduction in the duty on all British manufactured goods. The result of such a policy would, in the first place, be to discourage foreign iimportations of dairy produce and thus , provide a wider market for Empire goods. It would also have the effect of greatly stimulating the sale of British manufactured goods in the Dominions, which would result in more employment in England and a greater consumption of Empire produce.