Wheatgrowers receive sympathetic hearing

Press, 13 June 1986, Page 2

Wheatgrowers receive sympathetic hearing

Wheatgrowers had received a sympathetic hearing from the Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Caygill, on proposals for anti-dumping action to be taken against imported subsidised wheat, said the chairman of United Wheatgrowers, Mr Ness Wright, yesterday. A deputation of wheatgrowers met Mr Caygill on Wednesday to push for measures to prevent New Zealand wheatgrowers being forced to compete with subsidised overseas crops when the industry is deregulated. Although Mr Caygill did

not agree to compulsory power retainment over wheat trading until 1989, he would study anti-dump-ing and monitoring proposals, Mr Wright told a meeting of the wheatgrowers’ electoral committee.

Mr Wright said wheatgrowers in Australia, the United States, Canada, and the E.E.C. were subsidised. French flour was undercutting Australian wheat in Singapore and Australian wheat was now being quoted at lower prices to New Zealand mills. Directors of United

Wheatgrowers emphasised that the best option for growers was to place their wheat with the Farmlands Grain Trading Society, which has a marketing agreement with United Wheatgrowers, rather than contract it to a milling company.

Growers had to band together to form a strong organisation to prevent the industry collapsing like the meat industry, directors said.

Seventy-five to 80 per cent of growers who had attended silo meetings to discuss the situation recently had indicated they would send all or part of

their crop to Farmlands, said Mr Wright. Mr Roger Keenan, chairman of the New Zealand Flourmillers’ Association, said mills wanted to use New Zealand wheat as much as possible and would not turn their backs on the New Zealand wheat industry.

He offered growers help in presenting their case to the Government if prices were depressed by unfair assistance to overseas producers, but warned of interpretations of the Commerce Act which would make collective bargaining illegal.

Mills would have to know before October or November how much grain they could expect for the coming season, said Mr Keenan. If a shortfall was predicted, the mills would have to arrange supplies from overseas.

Mr Keenan said he believed mills would offer growers as high a price as possible based on a level which would allow mills to remain in business. He agreed that the first contract announced would be a pace-setter for other mills, but each company's

contract would reflect its own ideas and interpretations.