CALL FOR INCREASE IN FARM OUTPUT

Press, Volume C, Issue 29516, 18 May 1961, Page 21

CALL FOR INCREASE IN FARM OUTPUT

“I want to encourage farmers to develop further their own properties.” said the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Hayman), speaking at the Lincoln College farmers’ conference yesterday. He said that as new areas of land capable of being brought into production became less it would become more important that development should proceed on existing farms.

“If you can get four blades of grass to grow where you used to have one and with that a balanced diet which can produce you two bales of wool where you formerly got one and 100 lambs where there were only 50, that is the answer to the immediate problem of increasing costs.” said the Minister. Mr Hayman said that farmers were not, however, going to get extra labour to do the .job. Immigrants might be brought into the country, but they would gravitate to the towns. Mr Hayman said that he did not think the country's standard of living could be maintained in a 40-hour week. “So all of us, backed by research, will have to do all we can to raise the standard of our farming and our management to compete successfully on the markets of the world.” Though farmers would have to accept the position that things would not always be as good as they would like them to be, Mr Hayman said, in the next 10 to 15 years there would be an increase of 1000 m in the population of the world. “So I do not think that we should ever contemplate policies of reducing production, but should rather plan for an increasing production.” “Folly”

This view was supported by Mr John Ormond, chairman of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board. “There are some who would say that because of the increasing volume of meat being produced around the world we should not develop our capacity as fast'as we have done,” he said. “That idea is folly. "Nonetheless it became clear when rationing ended in Britain in July, 1954, and private trading resumed that the New Zealand meat industry must enlarge its horizons in marketing. It is a measure of the enterprise of the industry and the work of the

board that in the short period of six seasons since the end of bulk purchase we have reached the point at which more than 30 markets are regularly taking our meat, and around 25 per cent, of total export volume has been sold outside the United Kingdom.”

It was possible to argue, said Mr Ormond, that because New Zealand was sending to the United Kingdom 18m lambs for.a total return not proportionately greater than that received for 12.5 m, this country had been stupid. "But I would ask you not to take that argument at its face value,” he continued. "We have demonstrated that we can produce three lambs where two grew before, and it followed that in developing and expanding consumer demand for this product the unit price had to be lowered. Although we would like to maintain luxury prices for unlimited quantities it is healthier that we can now produce a product undiminished in quality, recognised by the measure of pounds, shillings, and pence as better than any of its competitors, and market it now at a more competitive figure, while retaining profitability and extending our share of the mar. ket.

“Our increased production has in considerable measure driven our competitors in the imported meat trade out of the best market,” Mr Ormond said. “It is important that we maintain our volume of supply to the United Kingdom and retain the competitive position which the quality and promotion of our product have built up."