FALLING PRICES FOR BUTTER

Press, Volume XCV, Issue 28180, 19 January 1957, Page 10

FALLING PRICES FOR BUTTER

Cabinet To Hear Report (From Our Own Reporter) WELLINGTON. January 18. A report on trade problems, especially those affecting the dairy industry, will be presented to the Cabinet probably next week by the Cabinet Economic Committee which has conducted a detailed investigation during the last few months. From October last until just before Christmas, members of the committee held a series of meetings with representatives of primary producer boards. These talks, however, were only part of a reappraisal, not yet completed, of the whole of the country’s trade problems. Shortly before Christmas, the Minister of Industries and Commerce (Mr E. H. Halstead) held a preliminary meeting with manufacturers’ representatives and early next month these representatives are expected to meet the committee. “Dark Cloud” The report on primary produce is being made because of concern over the butter market slump in Britain. It was stated today that while “trade generally is good butter is the dark cloud.” It was also stated that Britain was the main market for New Zealand dairy .produce but, at the same time, other markets must not be neglected. In the past, one of the big stumbling blocks fo the expansion of primary trade has been the dairy surpluses held by the United States. During 1956, there were big changes in some of the stocks held. For example, no stocks of butter were held last month while a year ago stocks totalled 50 million pounds. In the same period, cheese stocks dropped by about half from 252 million pounds in December, 1955, to 173 million pounds last month. Skim milk powder stocks, however, rose during this period from 16 million pounds to 19 million pounds.