N.Z. MARKETING SYSTEM.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 246, 17 October 1925, Page 16

N.Z. MARKETING SYSTEM.

DAIRY PRODUCE CONTROL. "CRAZIEST IDEA," SAYS CANADIAN. • From Our Una Corresoonileut.) VANCOUVER, September 23. A few months ago a delegation of New Zealand dairy experts visited Canada and endeavoured to prove lo the butter and cheese producers of Canada the extreme desirability oi adopting the system found successful in New Zealand of marketing produce oyerseas, and it was confidently believed that the New Zealand methods would be emulated by Canada in regard to sending supplies of butter and cheese to the London market, but it now appears that a suggestion made by the Agricultural Inquiry Committee of the Ontario Legislature to form a Do-minion-wide body representing the various provinces of the Dominion for the marketing of Canadian dairy products overseas has just been severely commented upon by Montreal's foremost , authority in such matters as "the craziest idea I ever heard of.''

Arthur J. Hodgson. of Hodgson. Rowson and Co.. past president of the Montreal Produce Association and the Montreal Board of Trade, gave an indication that Quebec will probably not co-operate in such a scheme having had previous experience of a disastrous kind in Government, control of butter and cheese exports. After reading a dispatch from Toronto, Mr. Hodgson condemned the idea from the outset. "There are 600,000 packages of New Zealand butter being held in London market now."' he stated when interviewed in Montreal, "and that butter is hanging over the market like a wet blanket. We do not know for sure who is holding it. but we surmise that it is New Zealand exporters subsidised by the New Zealand Government.

"I know a scheme like this has been tried with fruit and it was not a success. It will ne\"er succeed with cheese and butter. It was tried along similar lines by the United Farmers of Ontario, and they lost a tremendous amount of money two years ago.

"According to this dispatch the object of Ontario is 'to supply the British market with Canadian produce of suitable quality and in continuous quantity.' Why flood the British market? If we were to ship continuously every week that is what would happen. The greatest boon the dairy industry in Canada eyer received was when our big exporters built cold storage warehouses and held our produce until the British market needed it.

Hurting Farmers. "We have about two hundred thousand boxes of cheese here. Why ship this over regularly week by week to Britain? It would simply result in sending down the price of cheese from two to three cents a pound and that would be a dead loss for the Canadian farmer." Mr. Hodgson was of the opinion that the idea, which he said came from the Imperial Economic Committee of the British Government, might suit British interests, but added that even the British dealers were, sick and tired of Government manipulation of food products. "Let trade stay in its natural and legitimate channels." he declared, "and as for shipping under Government control who is going to pay the farmer? Is lie going to live out of his money for a couple of months?

"After the closest investigation the Government of Canada has agreed publicly more than once that the margin of profit in the dairy export business is as low as possible, and that the operating costs are kept down to a minimum. This was announced in

public by the Dairy Commissioner him self."

Turning to New Zealand, which is Canada's most formidable competitor in dairy produce. Mr. Hodgson said: "The New Zealand Government will have complete control of the export of that Dominion's dairy produce next year. I wonder what is going to happen? Tt would be very advisable on Canada's part to wait and see what T am predicting now. complete failure of the scheme. Quebec tried this plan once, in my own time, and it was quite unsuccessful. We are holding our farmers products until the British market can absorb them and the idea of shipping as much as we can weekly week is ridiculous on the face of it. We don't want flooded markets or Government control."