CURRENT COMMENT

Waipukurau Press, Volume XXII, Issue 22, 21 February 1927, Page 2

CURRENT COMMENT

IMPORTED FLOUR. • <♦>. AND DE AB BREAD. ~A meeting at Christchurch, of merchants, millers,, wheat-growers and others interested in business associated with wheat-growing passed a resolution urgently requesting the Government to prevent the importation" of low-priced flour, which depresses the price of New Zealand-grown wheat. It was the general opinion of the meeting that the /dumping duty should bo 25/-. One speaker said that if this would not suffice to exclude Australian flour the Government should use other jneans. That is to say that any means should be used to increase the price of the people’s bread, and put large profits into the. pockets of the merchants,, and all others doing business connected with wheat If the millers and merchants could induce the agriculturists of the Dominion to grow enough wheat for the requirements, they would have a more reasonable -case to place before the Government; but in spite of State guarantees, price-fixing, and other encouragement by way of Customs duty, the Dominion does not produce enough wheat for itself, or else it is held back from mar-, ket, so that prices may soar with dear bread as a consequence. That the Government kept out foreign wheat and flour far too long •is proved by the price maintained for months for the 41b. loaf—dearer than in war time. Everyone desires to aid the farmer, but few have any time for the merchants and others in business who get in somewhere and take a cut off the loaf. ,( We don’t want Australian flour here,” said one business man at the Christchurch meeting. “It is,’ ’he added, “an unjust hurdle for our growers to face.” To say nothing of the merchants,’ millers, and business men! The Government’s first duty is to prevent any 'serious kind of hurdle being put up by these gentlemen between the many thousands of New Zealand people and their bread. We are and always have been in favour of reasonable encouragement to wheatgrowers, but when it means 14d the 41b loaf, and if no means were taken to prevent it —possibly 16d, —it is time to do as the Government has lately, no doubt reluctantly done, and bring in outside wheat to ensure a cheaper loaf for the people. Since this course was taken the 41b loaf has dropped from 14d to 13d, and that is at least a penny too high. If the growers had maintained production to the extent of the Dominion’s requirement there would have been little heard of importations from outside; but they have reduced their output and apparently want, to secure famine prices for their limited crops by shutting out all other supplies. No Government could agree to allow any such position to arise.