EQUALISATION FUND.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 August 1919, Page 3

EQUALISATION FUND.

PETITION TO PARLIAMENT. At the annual meeting of the Mangorei Dairy Company on Thursday the chairman of directors (Mr. A. Morton) made some pointed remarks on the matter of the butter equalisation fund. After referring to the terms of the purchase by the Imperial Supplies Department, he said that the unfortunate part of the whole business was the matter of the disposal of the output. The' quantity required for the local markets was one third of the total Dominion supply, and on this the producers were restricted as to the price they should receive for their goods. New Zealand had sent 800,000 boxes of butter home, and 400,000 wore required to supply tho local market. There would not bo any cause for complaint, except that the price offered locally was below what it cost to produes. While being compelled to sell their goods at a fixed price—and a low price —the dairy farmers had no protection in respect to the purchase of farm requisites, essential to tho production of butter These all had to be bought in the open market, and the farmers had to pay the high prices charged for them, and yet sell his product at a figure below the cost of production. That the dairy farmers were compelled to sell their butter at less than cost price, in the interests of a portion of the community, was unjust. This had been in force now for the past three years, and in spite of protests made to the Government and to members of Parliament, no steps bad been taken to remedy the grievance Under which the butter producers were suffering. Mr. Morton said it was impossible to produce a lb. of butter and sell it at a profit at the price allowed in the local .narket. Anyone could make a test, and it uould be found that at Is 5d it did not pay. "And if there was a loss," continued the speaker, "why should it fall on the dairying community!" There was no community that worked harder, or, suffered more hardships. He admitted there were many in the industry who were in good circumstances, wTu> had purchased their farms when prices were lower than to-day, and who had improved them and brought them into a high state of production. But what was the position of the men who were trying it at the present time ? He wis thinking chiefly, however, of another section of the community, of the settlers in back districts, who still had to hump their supplies on horseback to get to a facto: y, and who were absolutely dependent on what they got for their product They were under a very severe hardship in the matter. In spite of deputations to Cabinet and to the Minister of Agriculture, continued Mr Morton, before whom representatives of the industry had put the matter as clearly and forcibly as they could, there was still no remedy for the injustice. All appeals had been unheeded. The only course now, therefore, was a direct appeal to Parliament, and witli that object in view a petition had been prepared, and was ready for signature, praying that Parliament would redress the grievance and put upon the Estimates a dharge against the Consolidated Revenue sufficient to meet the difference between the export price and the price fixed for tho local market. More than half the community were as weU able to pay for their butter as were the producers. Some were not; but the conditions of the poorer working classes were continually improving. The rate of wages was increasing and had been ko for years and unemployment was practically non-existent in New Zealand. No one would begrudge supplying butter at a fixed price if it was to benefit the poor and needy; but there were very fev/ of that class in New Zealand. If it was necessary to restrict the price, it should be borne by the whole community and should come out of the Consolidated Fund.