FARMING AFFAIRS

Lake County Mail, Issue 13, 20 August 1947, Page 2

FARMING AFFAIRS

This column is supplied weekly by Federated Farmers’ of New Zealand. The information given is i official, but any views expressed are those of the Federation and are not necessarily those of this news- » paper. NEW ZEALAND EXPORTS / Although explicitly stated as being expressed in monetary values which had increased because of higher prices granted by the United Kingdom, the recent table of exports for the past year published by the Government last week appear to be wrongly yead by many members of the public. The impression has been created apparently that New Zealand exports have reached a particularly high figure and that indicates to some that all is well in our overseas trade, and so the Dominion is sufficiently well insulated to withstand outside economic repercussions. There has too been a recent statement by the chairman of directors of a national business organisation that bears examination. He claimed that talk of decreasing farm production was ridiculous and he quoted some un- . substantiated figures to prove his contention that the present apparent wave of prosperity in New Zealand was real * and lasting. It is as well, therefore, to examine the actual position in detail—and from details extracted # ' from official statistical publications. And these statistics are tonnage figures of exports, not the artificial ’ picture of inflated currency returns. Statistics Compared According to the monthly Abstract of Statistics, compared with 1938, butter exports to 1946 have decreased by 28,900 tons and cheese by 4800 tons. On the moat side there have been increases. Beef has increased over the same period by 9600 tons, lamb by 42,300 tons and mutton by 27,200 tons. Pork, of course, being closely related to dairying, has decreased by 16,900 tons. The total meat export figure, including veal and other minor products, shows an increase of 62,200 tons. The broad picture, therefore, is that meat exports have increased at the expense of dairy products. That decline is highly disquieting and shows that the return to the »dairy farmer isobviously unbalanced in relation to the other returns. But meat consumption in New Zealand is strictly rationed for the purpose of increasing-'exports. Farming Problems The over-all production picture, therefore, is not as pretty as the export figures show. It must be remembered that this analyses applies only to the years 1938 to 1946, a period of . intense food shortages overseas and a period during which the New Zealand farmer made an all-out effort to meet as much of that demand as possible. That effort, by reason of continued shortages of labour and materials, quite apart front psychological factors, is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain. Without a more sympathetic treatment of the economic aspect of Now Zealand farm production, it would seem that a period of general decreased farm production looms ahead. Wool, of course, has shown for 1946 a tremendous increase over , 1938 for the very obvious reason of the release of war-time accumulated stocks. In 1938, New Zealand’s total exports of wool were 121,100 tons, in 1946 they have sky-rocketed to 163,0100 tons. And small seed exports have increased in the same period from 2274 tons in 1938 to 7525 tons in 1946. But that export trade has recently been enjoying temporary advantages which by reason of the United Kingdom’s heavy earlier purchases might not be retained. The decline in dairy production is particularly disquieting for it is of

Published by R. C. Wilson, 25 Bath street, Dunedin, and Printed by Wilson & Ratcliff, Ltd., at their Registered Wednesday, August 13, 1947. Pointing Works, 25 Bath street, Dunedim Wednesday, August 20, 1947.