Peanut-Growing Plan To Go On

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31462, 31 August 1967, Page 22

Peanut-Growing Plan To Go On

(N.Z. Press Association) WHANGAREL August 30.

fat spite of the diacouraglng remarks of the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Taiboys), trials on growing peanuts in Northland would continue as planned, said Mr R. J. Jones, of Auckland, the manager and a director of Eta Foods, Ltd.

In Parliament last night, Mr Taiboys said peanuts

were a tropical crop and did not appear to have a place in New Zealand’s economy. Mr Jones said today: "I do not think Mr Taiboys is aware of what is going on. “His remarks were discouraging. My company believes the project to be well worthwhile and should be encouraged.”

Import licensing had reduced the availability of peanuts from overseas and this had encouraged his company to try to grow them in New Zealand, Mr Jones said.

“We are establishing trial plots to prove a point We want to know whether peanuts will grow in New Zealand,” he said.

The company planned to plant eight to 10 acres bf.peanuts in Northland in October.

Four acres, in two 2-acre plots, on differing types of' soil would be planted near Dargaville, about another acre would also be sown in the Kaikohe district and other plots would be sown in the far north, the exact location

of which had. not yet been disclosed, but . was thought to be just south of Te Paki station.

Mr Jones said peanuts were grown in Dargaville in the 1950-51 season and, in spite of a very wet season, the crop grew “quite well.” If successful, this season's crop of New Zealand peanuts would be used for both table nuts and for processing for dll and by-products. One of the by-products was a high protein stock meal, he added.