WOOL CONTROL

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 39, 15 February 1945, Page 3

WOOL CONTROL

EXTENDED IN BRITAIN

WORSTED INDUSTRY AFFECTED N.Z.P.A. Special Correspondent Rec. 10 a.m. BRADFORD, Feb. 14. Hopes that the recent progressive improvement in the war situation might lead to a modest relaxation in wool and wool textile control in Britain are disappointed by two official decrees. One says that the proposed modifications of British wool goods export procedure —designed to allow new entrants to the export trade and permit competition for business in certain overseas markets—cannot be introduced at present, and simultaneously announces a substantial reduction in permitted wool cloth exports to the United States and South America in the coming months. The second decree intensifies raw material control here by extending to the worsted industry certain prohibitions hitherto applicable only to the woollen industry in the use of such unrationed materials as hair, cotton and rayon. Use of Synthetics Limited The net effect is that commencing in March non-wool fibres, including synthetic materials, may be used in wool textile manufacture- only under special license from the authorities, which will be granted only for what are officially described as "essential purposes." The regulation limits the use of synthetic and other nonwool fibres in wool textile production to officially approved purposes or to cases where manufacturers are willing to accept these materials as part of their ration in place of wool. Even in the latter cases fabric to include non-wool fibres must be approved by the authorities before a license to use non-wool raw material is granted. It is expected that few firms will accept these materials in lieu of wool as a large part of their attraction to many manufacturers has been that they were Hitherto additional to the wool rations. Maintenance of Quality These regulations will be viewed with gratification by Dominion woolgrowers, for the decisions demonstrate that, although, as indicated in Parliament some time ago, Britain is unable to adopt wool labelling legislation at present owing to circumstonces arising from the war, the authorities have every intention of maintaining satisfactory quality standards in wool goods. The ability to maintain such standards exists through complete control of the raw material supplies of the industry, for. although only the wool is State-owned, the permitted use of all other textile raw materials is effectively regulated. One principal purpose of restricting the use of non-wool fibres in wool textile production is to conserve the manufacturing capacity for essential wocl goods, the call lor which fully taxes available resources.