THE CITY MILK SUPPLY.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 209, 3 September 1919, Page 11

THE CITY MILK SUPPLY.

(To the Editor.* j Sir, —In vie-*" of the :act that the Dairy Employees Union is making an application for an increased rate of wages, I am taking the opportunity of a riling you to place some of the facts iefore the public It seems to be an accepted fact that increased -rages are responsible for the high cost of living; in _v* opinion the cost of living is responsible for the nominally high wages ws . are receiving now, and the pre-war period. Some time ago the price of milk •was raised 2d. per gallon, the actual increase to the general public beinj; £1 j 12/2 for a 2S-gallon round, 16/1 going to | ■the fanner and 16/1 to the milk vendor, j _f a milkman was retailing sufficient milk j to bring in £19 10/ (not a very easy i proposition seeing that we have a big j short-age) he would receive 20 per cent j of the increase, viz., 3/. To give some idea of the shortage, men who usually took out 2S gallons had to make 22 gallons suffice. Under the present method of getting the city's milk suppry we win awaken up some morning to find that all the milk is confiscated for butter and cheese manufacture. It seems nobody's "business to ensure a plentiful I supply of this natural food. The present "Mayor and our "Deputy-Mayor seem to he against municipal ownership of the ■milk supply, so we will have to look to our "Labour councillors for support in this matter. We simply want to point oat that we are not responsible for the increase in the price of milk, and urge that municipal ownership is the solution. Under the present method of production and distribution the citizens neither know whether they "will get sufficient for their needs, nor what price they will have to pay.—l am, etc., J. fPTJB.TEUL (Secretary).