Offer of 150 Acres Of Land Suited To Potatoes Received

Taranaki Daily News, 21 August 1942, Page 2

Offer of 150 Acres Of Land Suited To Potatoes Received

Land offered for the growing of potatoes in North and Central Taranaki totals 700 acres. Of this, 150 acres to date has been found suitable.

Giving these facts at a meeting of the Mangorei Co-operative Dairy Company Ltd. yesterday, the fields supervisor to the North and Central Taranaki Primary Production Councils, Mr. C. H. M. Sorensen, said that, although it appeared at first that 10 acres would be grown by farmers. it now seemed farmers would grow half the extra potatoes. Mr. Sorensen made it clear that farmers would receive a guaranteed price of £10 a ton, with the understanding that if there was a surplus the minimum price would be £7. However, because Taranaki would be one of the earliest districts for potatoes, it was not likely that the minimum price would be received. Potatoes were wanted quickly. Unless land could quickly be brought into production it would not suit the present scheme, continued Mr. Sorensen. Some land that was offered was covered in gorse and would not suit the present

requirements. | Much of the suitable land offered was i along the coast and had been in swedes, said Mr. Sorensen. Farmers would have to provide the labour for the potatoes they grew, but they would also receive the proceeds of the crop. Dealing with the suggestion that potato growing might be taken up by Taranaki schools, Mr. Sorensen said an area of half an acre grown at a school and looked after by the school children would possibly give as much return as an acre grown on a farm, • where labour was not available. A circular prepared by Mr. J. W. Connell, chief agricultural instructor to the Taranaki Education Board, Mr. D. Le C. Morgan, secretary to the council, and himself was being sent to the schools. The need for farmers to make every effort to produce more vegetables, eggs, pork and so on was emphasised by Mr. Sorensen, who said the farmer would have almost a guaranteed price.