90,000 BAGS OF POTATOES

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27365, 2 June 1954, Page 8

90,000 BAGS OF POTATOES

RECORD SHIPMENT AT TIMARU REPORT TO FEDERATED FARMERS (From Our Own Reporter) TIMARU,-June 1. More than 90,000 bags of potatoes had been shipped from Timaru. during April and May. It is a record for the district. Fine weather enabled, digging operations to begin earlier this year, Mr R. W. Wilson, chairman of the South Canterbury branch of Federated Farmers, said this today in a report to the annual conference in Timaru.

Mr Wilson said that because the North Island had a glut of potatoes at present, growers still digging were being forced to store their potatoes. “To reimburse them for this extra expense I would suggest that we approach the Potato Board and ask them to recommend to the Government that the increment on table potatoes be made available early in June instead of July,” he said. “It is too early in the season to determine how more tons of potatoes have to be dug, nor can it be predieted what consumption figures are likely to be. It is anticipated that all potatoes will be required this year,” Mr Wilson said. “The Potato Board scheme protects and covers the grower to some extent when there is an oversupply, but no provision is made for the grower who has lost his crop due to blight, flood or other causes. Ideas of an insurance scheme to cover these growers have been sponsored without success.

“All potato growers could eventually protect themselves if the Government allowed growers to place a proportion of tkeir returns from potatoes each year in a reserve fund, similar to a deferred maintenance scheme. In times of potato crop losses these funds could be brought back into revenue. At this stage they would be subject to income tax. To ensure that the scheme would be confined only to potato growers, it is suggested that the reserve amount could be paid together with the present levy. The merchant or the board could then transfer the reserve amount to the growers’ account,” said Mr Wilson.