PHOSPHATES WANTED.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 April 1920, Page 5

PHOSPHATES WANTED.

NAUBU SUPPLY HELD UP. PURCHASE NOT COMPLETED. By Telegraph.—Press Association Wellington, Last Night. The lack of phosphatic manures for pastures and crops is causing real alarm among many farmers throughout New Zealand. Some of this concern was expressed al a mooting held at Maaterton thi* week, and men there present, asked for information as to how -o:>n it is likely there will be available supplies of phosphates from Nauru.

Mr. Massey was asked for tlm information. "I hope soon to be able," said Mr. Massey, '"to announce that the purchase. 3ms been completed. I understand that the xunpany insists on being permitted to complete its contracts, and that this is delaying the purchase arrangements, As to immediate supplies of superphosphates, T .have been communicating with the Australian Government for some time past, but have not yet been aible to persuade the Australian Government to allow the export of superphosphates to New Zealand.

"It may be necessary to get more equipment for dealing with the rock phosphates in this country, but that is not certain. My own feeling is that there ought to be separate plants in the principal provincial districts near ports at w"hich rock phosphate can. i>£. handled. I think it would be quite possible to get phosphates from Nauru before t'he purchase is completed, Wt until we are sure wo have the plant to deal with the rock this may not be desirable. I arranged with the managing director of the company that if any phosphates' were required, even if the purchase scheme fell through, we could have all that we needed, but in the meantime our capacity for dealing with rock .phosphate ia very limited "