STATE VEGETABLES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 158, 6 July 1935, Page 10

STATE VEGETABLES.

'UNFAIR COMPETITION'

PRODUCE FROM PRISON. STRONG PROTEST BY GROWER (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, this day. Mr. William Copping, president of the JTutt Valley Producers' Association, has made a strong statement alleging unfair competition by the Prisons Department in selling vegetables grown at the Wi Toko prison on the open market at Wellington. lie says the Department has been competing for several years now with the legitimate growers of the Hutt Valley, despite aii assurance given by the previous Minister of Justice, Sir Thomas Wilford, when the prison gardening began, that on no account would the Department compete with the growers. . . Mr. Copping said that, despite this assurance, every year saw more and more produce from the prisons being placed on the market. He said from 100 to 130 sacks, comprising swedes, carrots, parsnips, silver beet, celery and lettuce, were being marketed twice a week. He raised several points, besides the overloading of the market. First, he arked, did the Department pay rates? What was the cost of marketing? In both cases, he said, the answer was "nil." He said 110 class had been hit by the depression so hard as market gardeners, who had thrust upon them all forms of competition, such as relief workers on communal gardens, and dairy farmers who had to raise their own produce. During his investigations, Mr. Copping said. he came in contact with a collector for a suburban relief committee, who was begging for produce. Was it not the duty of the Government to provide for ill-fed men, women and children? What were the chairmen of various relief committees Ci'oing? Did they know this marketing of produce was going oil while the Justice Department showed a profit of £10,000 on last year's working & He suggested that they should demand produce from the Government at cost price, instead of allowing the Government to compete | against a body of workers who were finding the economic situation very hard 'to deal with. Mr. Copping also complained of the injustice being caused to ex-servicemen who had taken up land, and now had the pleasure of seeing the Government's four-ton- lorry going to market loaded with vegetables in competition with then. •