FARMERS CONFER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 8 June 1938, Page 3

FARMERS CONFER

ANNUAL OTAGO GATHERING MINISTER ON GUARANTEED PRICES (By Telegraph—Press Association.) DUNEDIN, June 7. The annual Otago provincial conference of the Farmers’ Union was opened today by the Postmaster-General, the Hon F. Jones. The president, Mr R. H. Michelle, occupied the chair. At the request of the Moa Flat branch the executive has arranged for the Department of Agriculture to make a statement setting out steps being taken to combat the menace of the white butterfly in the South Island after which ■ the conference will consider the advisability or otherwise of urging that more active steps be taken. .The following remits were carried: — That this conference commends the good work done by the Dominion executive in preparing statistical data to show conclusively that rising costs (both on the average dairy farm and factory) have completely offset any material gain which may have resulted from the guaranteed price and urges the Dominion executive to keep this matter to the fore.

That this conference is of opinion that a conference should be arranged between the Minister of- Lands, the Under-Secretary of Lands and his various provincial commissioners and a special committee to be appointed by the Dominion executive of the Farmers’ Union and the Sheep Owners’ Federation with a view to reaching some satisfactory method of dealing 'with: (a) The question of goodwill on Crown leases; (b) the question of the amount of finance required by a practical farmer who cannot get adequate backing from stock agents or his parents. The Hon F. Jones, speaking on guaranteed prices stated that if the local price were permitted to vary in accord with the London price, the dairyfarmers would not have a guaranteed price, and the essential stability would be lost. While at present the local selling prices were lower than in London they could easily conceive occasions when the reverse situation would obtain. Uniformity in regard to local prices was important in marketing policy.