THE POULTRY INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 2817, 29 November 1924, Page 3

THE POULTRY INDUSTRY.

ADDRESS BY MR, J. B. MERRETT FOXTON AN IDEAL LOCALITY. Mi- J. B. Merrett, the well-known Christchurch merchant, and proprietor of the N.Z. Poultry Journal, who paid a brief visit to Foxton this" week, delivered a very interestin": address in the Town Hall sup-per-room on Thursday evening, on the possibilities of poultry farming in New Zealand, and the suitability of Foxton climate for this purpose. The Mayor (Mr Johp Chrystall) presided, and introduced the speaker, pointing out that Mr Merrett was a man well-known in the poultry world, and was considered an authority on that question. Foxton people, i»he Mayor said, were fortunate in having an opportunity of hearing- Mr .Merrett deliver an address. The Mayor asked those present to accord the visitor a hearty welcome, which was done by acclamation;

INTERESTED IN THE DISTRICT

Mr Merrett, in prefacing his address, said that although he was resident in Christchurch, he yet had an interest in this district, having lived for quite a number of years in Rongotea. He had also held the position of reporter on the .Fedding Star. The fact of having been asked to act as agent in New Zealand for 'a United States Poultry Journal had suggested to him the need of such a periodical in the Dominion, and he had subsequently established the journal which is now well-known in this country. Mr Merrett said he bad been instrumental in introducing the egg circle in Masterton, introduced the system whereby eggs are graded for market and had been instrumental in establishing the New Zealand Poultry Association, later having sent the first shipment of eggs to the London market on behalf of the pcultryinen of New Zealand. As a result of the- better organisation, his opinion of the industry was MUCH MORE-CONFIDENT TODAY. -Mr Merrett said that as a. boy he had registered a vow to some day visit England, the lipme of his parents, and he had recently done so, also at. the same time taking opportunity to visit the Continent and America. He said he found it a great asset when visiting England to have been New Zealand born. It was not sufficient to have alone lived in New Zealand buj. to be able to "say one was bom in this Dominion was the “open sesame” to the greatest kindness that one could receive. The speaker pointed .out that the prospects for the industry would be poor if New Zealand produced more eggs than she could dispose of, but the export of eggs to THE LONDON MARKET

lias great possibilities and he contended that if Foxton had the “ginger” and fostered the poultry industry in this locality, the town could be increased to twice its size, and the population to twice its number through this industry alone. Petaluma, the speaker said, was a town of some six thousand inhabitants in California, U.S.A., the population of which was almost wholly employed in the poultry industry. This town could boast of possessing more money per head of the population than, any city in the United States. In drawing a comparison between the natural advantages of Petaluma and Foxton, Mr Merrett said that Petaluma was served only by a comparatively small stream as a waterway, by which the products pf the industry are transported to and across the bay to San Francisco. Foxton, on the other hand, had a bar harbour CAPABLE TO GREAT POSSIBIL-

ITIES, an excellent climate which poultry thrive in—warm winds, sunny coast, soil and subsoil of an ideal nature —and land at a reasonable price. The SOIL CONDITIONS ARE EXCEL- --- LENT, for the growing of the necessary green feed, and a local market — Wellington—easily accessible. The harbour was as ideal means through which poultry farmers could get their grain feed. Denmark, which country exported £5,000,000 worth of eggs' per year, and also Holland, have to obtain their grain supplies from Canada and South Africa, which is five times as far as New Zealand has to import her grain when buying from Australia. It wasNO BARRIER, the speaker contended, to go to Australia for our grain feed. The amount of grain feed could be reduced by one-third by a good system of combining green and root foods. Mr Merrett contended that the poultry farmers in New Zealand had not yet reached ' the - position of specialists, and our flocks of birds were compaVatively small, seldom exceeding two thousand to three thousand. The result of this was that the owner was obliged to do menial work, instead of reserving his time for the organising of the business. In Petaluma he had personally visited a farm of 30,000 birds, where the whole work of feeding the flock had been performed by seven men in one hour and ten minutes. This was brought about by THE USE OF MACHINERY, and specially constructed store houses. The poultry farmer in this country was detained from expanding and incurring heavy expense for machinery by the. possibility of uncertain markets, but he was there to deliver a message of confidence, and to point out that England offered an unparalleled market in the world for our eggs. , The speaker said that he had shipped to England a consignment

of eggs which were retained at a temperature of 33 to 34 degrees, and when they arrived at their destination the English experts pronounced them equal to fresh-laid, and they commanded the , HIGHEST MARKET PRICE. He had visied Tooley Street when in Loudon and had seen thousands of crates of eggs, which he was told were imported fi’om 42 different countries, most from outside the Empire. Mr Merrett spoke strongly ‘ for the fostering of the Imperial spirit, and preference in the Dominion. He said that British merchants complained that England took the bulk of our products, but New Zealand in return bought 75 per cent, of her motor ears and other machinery from America. English business men showed great enthusiasm towards trading with the colonies, and our system of purchasing our ini-, ports elsewhere was going to prejudice that spirit. Mr Merrett pointed out that the question of SUMMER PRICES was a vital one to the poultrysfarmer. Big prices in winter was of .no avail as the hens were then takingthe rest that nature enforces, and the percentage of layers is not nearly sufficient to be .remunerative. To ‘assure good summer prices it was necessary for poultry farmers to unite under one policy and to develop the export market. Good summer prices would be no injustice to our own purchasing public, any more thap good prices for other primary produce such as butter and wool. If poultrymen doubled their flocks it would mean cheaper eggs in winter for the local consumer, as tlie summer eg-g-s alone- would be used for the export market. Mr Merrett further emphasised the splendid export market to be found in England, and said poultrymen eould LOOK FORWARD WITH CONFIDENCE

to the future. He drew a comparison between nature’s endowment in New Zealand and the obstacles which competing countries such as Holland and Denmark had to contend with. He believed Foxton was a town with the possibility of a great future, and he urged the Councillors to give every assistance they could to the encouraging of the industry locally. THE PRICE OF WHEAT.

In answer to a question by Mr M. H. Walker, as to why the price of \dieat is in the virility of 8/6 per bushel for Australia grown, and whether lie eould account for the shortage in New Zealand at the present time, Mr Merrett said the position was brought about partly by the attractions offered by other forms of fanning with the high prices ruling at present for primary"'products. The Government and public are not giving wheat growers the support they should, aud did not want to pay 6/6 to 7/- per bushel for wheat. Tbe Dominion growers bad offered to produce wheat at 6/per bushel, up to 60,000 sacks, but the poultry farmers had reciprocated by asking them if they could not do it at 5/- per bushel! As a result they will have to pay 7/- to 8/- per bushel, proving that the growers’ previous offer was a munificent one. Poultrymen required to organise so they could buy well and in quantity. Mr Chrystall proposed a hearty vote of thanks to Mr Merrett, which was carried by acclamation.