FARM TRACTOR IMPORTS

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25579, 21 August 1948, Page 8

FARM TRACTOR IMPORTS

BRITISH DEMAND FOR U.S. MACHINERY

EFFECT ON NEW ZEALAND NEEDS

He had been amazed to read a report of a speech by the Deputy-High Commissioner for the United Kingdom (Mr A. W. Snelling) that plenty of tractors were available from Britain, said Mr E. T. Beaven, president of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce, yesterday. Mr Beaven returned this week from a visit to Britain and the United States.

During a tour of 1500 miles through rural England he had found that there was a very urgent necessity for the replacement of a lot of the crawler and heavier types of tractors, many of which were 10, 12, and 14 years old. For the replacement of these the British farmers were depending on the supply of United States tractor equipment.

“After reading Mr Snelling’s statement 1 am wonaerjng why the United Kingdom is buying such large quantities of wheel and crawler tractors from the United States, and why United Kingdom agents for American tractors are competing with us in*New Zealand for the availability of United States tractors, if, as stated, tractors of all types required by New Zealand are available from Britain,” Mr Beaven said.

Many of the farms he visited had British tractors of the two and threefurrow class operating satisfactorily, but his remarks applied to certain types of three and four-furrow wheel and crawler tractos. “Do the British farmers wish us to take all their British-made tractors, irrespective of suitability, so that they can buy United States tractors for themselves?” he asked. “I would suggest that as New Zealand is providing some of the dollars Britain is using, New Zealand farmers who export wool, hides, casings, rabbitskins, small seeds, and other primary produce to

America should have some right of selection of equipment which must be paid for from the dollar pool in the United Kingdom.”

New Zealand’s exports to the United States probably earned 30,000,000 dollars, which automatically went into the dollar pool. Mr Beaven’s object in going to Britain was to seek modern British equipment which could replace some what had to be bought from, America, and to introduce some harvesting equipment designed and manufactured in New Zealand. The British prototype was a sound unit, and interested the British farmers Mr Beaven interviewed. If field trials were up to expectations, arrangements would be made for the equipment to be made in Britain.