BETTER PRICES

Taranaki Daily News, 17 December 1917, Page 2

BETTER PRICES

LOCAL VERSUS EXPORT RATES. When the New Zealand butter output for the season was sold-to the. Imperial authorities, it was arranged that the producers would share in any surplus over the f.o.b. price obtained for any butter sold to the general public in England by the Imperial purchase authorities. This factor is Iftely to cause difficulties over the supply of butter for the New Zealand market; in fact there is already dissatisfaction among the factories producing for the New Zealand consumer, because of the continued inactivity of the Butter Committee set up to deal with the purchase, to malie an equitable arrangement covering the output for the local supply. The export price of butter is Is ad per k>, plus 50 per cent, additional return of any profits made by re-sale at the other end by the Imperial authorities, which it is anticipated, will return a-bout threepence per pound to the exporting factories over and a'bovc the f.o.b. price. Obviously, unless there is some arrangement by which the factories catering for local production are to share in this distribution, they may be placed at a disadvantage of 3d per lb compared with those which export their output. The Prime .Minister has endorsed the principle of an equalisation scheme, though the levy system of last year is not favored hy him, •but so far neitfier Mr. Massey nor the Butter Committee has made a move towards securing an arrangement covering the interests of those factories which supply New- Zealand with butter. Their position of uncertainty may land the Dominion into a difficulty with its supplies, and there is also, I understand, a risk of tTie local price being raised or supplies being withheld so as to bring the position to a head. Cheese factories, which may be at work alongside the butter factories, .ire more happily situated, as they get the same price for cheese sold here as that exported.—Hawera Star.