Scope Of Department’s Management Services

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29366, 19 November 1960, Page 9

Scope Of Department’s Management Services

YYANY farmers are not aware of the comprehensive and integrated farm management and farm programming service available free of charge to any farmer or any commercial firm or institution connected with farming on a simple request to any office or officer of the Department of Agriculture, said Mr R. C. Stuart, economics farm advisory officer of the department in Christchurch. this week.

Mr Stuart said that so a high class farm management advisory could be given by its officers the department over a number of years had assembled physical and financial facts from a large number of farms operating under ’ various systems’ of farming throughout the superintondency. This material provided standards of performances and by a simple comparison of similar data from an inquirer’s farm on the same land class some of the weaknesses in the individual farm could be quickly located and measured. This was leading to a most constructive method of farm advisory work and could be called “comparative agriculture.’' . Sources Information had been collected flor this purpose from farm management and land utilisation surveys, the department’s 'farm improvement groups and its farm recording scheme. It provided comparative carrying capacities and potential: meat, wool, butterfat, and milk, etc., output per acre and per stock unit: land utilisation patterns and fertiliser practices and so on. How then did the department’s farm advisory officers tackle a farmers’ problems? A full inspection was made of the farm and all relevant physical and financial details. This usually consisted of an examination of wool and lamb sheets and annual accounts. A comparison was then made with the district standards and performances. Then in co-operation with the farmer a programme was drawn up for the ensuing year or years paddock by paddock. If necessary the programme was interpreted in the form of a budget—it was costed out to give some guidance on the likely economic results. The complete programme budget was contained in a simply designed form which the farmer held as a guide and farm advisory officers would, where it was considered desirable, make follow-up visits in the following year or years. If he so wished a fanner might use the programme as evidence in his negotiations with his bank manager or stock and station firm—for example where extra money might be required.

Mr Stuart said that firms, accountants and financial institutions freely acknowledged that they were not in a position to take an active part in analysing a client’s farming technique and pointing out inefficiencies, limiting technical factors and so on. The department was equipped both from the technical and economic angles to help solve or give expert guidance to farmers, interested institutions or accountants on the practical and frequently complex problems arising out of farming. This sound service was available free of charge on request to any departmental office or officer. Courses The department intended next year to conduct courses throughout the Canterbury superintendency to meet the needs particularly of stock and station firms, accountants, banks and other financial institutions with the dominant theme of “farming as a business}’. It was hoped that these courses would not only establish closer relationships between the department and commercial firms but might lead to a study of the limiting factors to more progressive farming in some districts by more effective credit facilities. It might even be possible, following the recent observations of Dr. Peter Sears, to discuss the question of organising a land development trust along the lines of the first New Zealand unit trust.

The department had been a warm supporter and member of the committee sponsored by the New Zealand Society of Accountants to study the standardisation of farm accounts. This committee hoped to publish a report before the end of the year. If farm accountants and farmers adopted the proposed standardisation procedures it would be a big step towards establishing a firm base on which farm advisory officers could more easily and quickly work in framing future farm policy.