Optimum Development Rate Sought

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31967, 19 April 1969, Page 8

Optimum Development Rate Sought

What is the optimum rate of farm development? This question was posed at the farm development seminar held this week by the North Canterbui-y Agricultural Advisory Committee and no satisfactory answer could be given. Mr R. A. Milne, senior farm advisory officer of the Department of Agriculture at Rangiora, said that the faster development was done the cheaper it was, particularly

when costs were rising. i “I think that this needs examination to determine the optimum rate of development and also a more lenient lending procedure than at the moment to encourage this,” he said. It would be much easier If there was a blueprint of the ideal situation. Mr Milne said. “I think it is quite feasible to do this provided there is

a substantial increase in research funds,” said Professor J. D. Stewart, professor of farm management at Lincoln College and the chairman of the seminar. "This needs to be done on a farm basis so we need a lot more demonstration farms.” Qn the farm under study at the seminar. Professor Stewart said, the development cost a stock unit of $l7 was a good one. The calculation made was often $2O and anything under that reflected a pretty efficiently prosecuted development programme.