The Daily News MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1922. DAIRY PRODUCE CONTROL

Taranaki Daily News, 9 October 1922, Page 4

The Daily News MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1922. DAIRY PRODUCE CONTROL

At a meeting of dairy producers at New “Plymouth on Friday, Mr. W. Grounds, chairman of the provisional committee set up by the New Zealand dairymen to foi'tnu late a scheme for the control and organisation of New Zealand dairy produce, reviewed the whole situation on broad auu comprehensive lines, explaining the salient features of the Bill now before Parliament, which is to give effect to the committee’s proposals. 'The outstanding feature of the scheme is the control of the marketing of the whole of the Dominion’s produce sent overseas, and compulsory powers to this end are provided for in the Bill. Mr. Grounds explained that there was no intention of going past the Tooley Street merchants and their distributing organisations, so long as, in the Control Board’s view, they were working fully in the interests of producers. Further, that there was no intention of “setting’’ the market, but he believed there would _ be plenty of scope for regulating supplies instead of having them dumped, so depressing the market, as had happened last season. The proposed control board would, he said, set up an intelligence department for the purpose of obtaining information regarding the state of the Home and foreign markets and the possibility of widening and extending the markets for New Zealand produce at. Home and elsewhere. The Control Board would also embark upon a comprehensive advertising scheme at Home, informing the public of the quality, etc., of the New Zealand article, and by this means create a good will and demand for it before the competition from Siberia, other European countries, and the Argentine set in vigorously, as was anticipated would be the case in the course of a few i years. Mr. Grounds was asked I what provision was being made I for financing shipments of pro- j duce, over which at present there i was no difficulty because of the i offices performed by the London ; merchants. He replied that until | the Board of Control was constituted nothing could be done, but he added that with such marketable commodities as butter and cheese no trouble on this score was anticipated. To other questions, he replied that it was quite impossible at this stage to set out full details of the scheme, which would have to be evolved as experience dictated. In the minds of many present this savored too much of giving the board of nine members a blank cheque, with which to do as they liked with the valuable New Zealand dairy produce, and hostile criticism centred around this point, the .financial aspect, and the possibility 1 of alienating the help and support of the merchant houses which have, from the inception of the industry. been handling New Zealand produce. It was clear from the tenor of the criticism that confidence in the ability of some at least of the leaders of the industry to carry such a scheme to successful fruition was lacking, chiefly because of the failure of the schemes and experiments with which they had been associated in the past. Upon one point, however, all were agreed, and that was the need for improving the handling, shipping and marketing of the produce. This rfeed has been stressed by dairymen in Taranaki and elsewhere for years, and for that reason the proposals that are now brought forward should be examined carefully and without the prejudice that has unfortunately been imported into the matter, and for which, we must say, the promoters are not altogether blameless. We believe thaf Mr. Grounds and those associated with him are animated by an earnest desire to place the in-

dustry on a better footing and put their house in order in view of the competition that must come in the- course of a few years, and for that reason may reasonably look for .the encouragement and help of those in whose interests they are working. At the same time it may be that they are seeking at the outset too much power. It was suggested at the meeting by several men whose views are entitled to respect, that if the provision conferring compulsory powers in regard to the disposal of the produce were eliminated, the Bill would be acceptable to everybody. The promoters regard this provision as vital to the successful operation of the scheme, hut it appears to us that the Board, if set up, will have a great deal to engage its attention for the first year or so in arranging lower freights, a more regular shipping service, in initiating advertising campaigns, in perfecting its intelligence department, in extending markets, and—most important of all —in obtaining a knowledge of market conditions and the intricacies of distribution, and, even if invested with compulsory powers in regard tq the disposal of the produce, the Board would not be able to use them for some time at least, just as the Meat Board have seen fit not to exercise similar powers that they have been granted. So that it would not seriously interfere with the working of the scheme if the compulsory power were dropped for the time being, and then, later on, if the Board could show good reasons for possessing it, and that the scheme was working out satisfactorily in other respects, there is little doubt that the compulsory powers asked for would be conferred. Meantime, the dropping of the clause would probably bring about unanimity on the part of the producers, and to secure this the sacrifice would riot be too great. It would, moreover, ensure the harmonious co-operation of Tooley Street and the Board, and there is much truth in the remark made at the meeting that a friendly conference with the London merchants on the question of improving the whole system might do an immense amount of good. There is no experiment entailed in regard to organising the industry. In any ease, it is advisable for the proposed Board to walk very warily at first, for the producers cannot afford to make even one false step, as they have too much at stake. We, therefore, commend the suggestion to the control committee that they voluntarily drop the compulsory clause and confine their operations meantime to setting up the necessary machinery for the improved organisation of the industry.