Look At Future Of Farming

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31780, 10 September 1968, Page 16

Look At Future Of Farming

The North Canterbury Agricultural Advisory Committee has asked its publicity sub-committee to look into the holding of a symposium to study development of farming in the light of changing circumstances.

Mr A. I. Bilbrough said that the farm casf which had been studied at an earlier sympo-

sium held by the committee for the benefit of business interests associated with farming had been very successful in spite of falling prices. The major part of the development was under way at the time and the farmer had been able to get sufficient stock on the property to create a buffer against falling prices. He said that he would like to see a case illustrated where a man borrowed to finance a new woolshed and then found that he could not get enough stock on his property to meet his charges. Should such a man be assisted to sell out now or be given more money to carry on? Bigger properties, he said, had an over-all lighter cost structure. A lot of people who were in trouble today did not have holdings of sufficient size, he said. The chairman, Mr R. H. Bedford said that farmers wanted to know where they were going; were they going in the right direction or should they be going at all? Mr W. N. Dunlop said that farmers were being called on for a. 4] per cent increase in production, according to projections, and if they were to do this it had to be profitable. In these circumstances he felt that there was a need to look at the whole situation. Urging that they should look well into the future. Mr R. A. Milne said that if changes had to be made the planning and thinking should be done at this stage. Having just spoken to a group of young farmers, Mr A. L. Mulholland said he had been impressed by the fact that these young people wanted to know where they were going. Such a symposium would need to be carefully planned, said Mr A. F. Wright. Ever since this committee had come into existence production had been rising but prices had been falling. A 4 per cent Increase in ewe numbers between 1967 and 1968 had been reported to the meeting but at the same time costs had possibly risen by 6 to 7 per cent. Mr G. T. Mars, district officer of the Economic Service of the Meat and Wool Boards, said that until wool prices had fallen in December, 1966, he did not think that anyone had much evidence that increased production had not been accompanied by an increase in net profit. Although wool prices had fallen in 1966 and 1967, costs had continued to rise, and farmers’ incomes had fallen. But the Economic Service had evidence that farmers who had increased production had done so for a well worth while increase in profit. The publicity sub-commit-tee was asked to report to the next meeting of the committee about the holding of a symposium.