STATE WHEAT SCHEME

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2697, 17 February 1916, Page 8

STATE WHEAT SCHEME

AUSTRALIA'S EXPERIMENT

Some days ago there arrived in Chrislchurch two South Australians, Air. -W. Miller, chairman of directors of tho South Australian Farmers' Coj operative Union, and Mr. A. A. BadI cock; general manager of the same con- \ corn; and in conversation with a repre- | sontative of the "Press" they gave 6ome interesting particulars of the working of the Commonwealth wheat 'control scheme.

I Speaking of the genesis of the (scheme, Mr. Badcock, who was at the (conference of merchants, With Mr. W.. ' AC. Hughes, the Prime Minister, said that;; the Wheat "Board; thei body which' was'appointed by the Federal Government to take, control of the Commonwealth's wheat output, took chargo of the affair.' as from the first of December last. ; Certain/merchants of each •State, of which Mr. Badcock's firm was one,, had ,lbeen appointed agents for .•■tiie .Government, and are authorised \o receive the wheat from the farmers direct. These merchauts do all the handling of tho grain; they do not pay DUt any money to the farmers-at' all, but ;after grading and, noting the: 'quantity . wheat' from any individual ;farmer,~th"cy" are-authorised, to issue a ccr- / ■Mca'tS.,'rwMdK.'isUu:;tw6" portions.: One v part ;ef'.tho .certificate is ..a; negotiable inVstntmeht,: which;on presentation at tho t banfy authorises".the person vpresentiug ' it to'tfraw an;advance of equivalent 'to y'3s.- per bushel', f.o.b:: at"-'.the"! shipping ;port;;':or' ...equal t0,.", about;; 2s. '6d.' per i bushel' net to:"the' farmer at.inland'sta-; I taons£<' 'After .-the whole- of' : the-iwhea£ \ thusrJsec'u'redK.by.,' .tho '■■. .Go'vernmeh'tiihas" jheen-dispdsedj.pf.'.the^average.price per '•■bushel'will'be calculated; and the'wheat; (. growers of; the. Commonwealth wiilthen loe entitled ■to obtain' the balance of !tho value.of tlie gTaln .sold by'them: to (the Government, tho.'second portion of the certificate being their warranty for ( this .purpose.; '■• ■•■•-.-; -.- : vy..•'-■•■-<

Mr."."Badoock;; ppititedV-'-out/"tlnifc l: -tK'e: l hanks'•' of; 'tiio;" ComincßwealtH';Sv&eta<K' : I this huge -scheme,- and not- tho;;Pederal 1 Government, though, of''- course, ' the / Government, ivas actually, the', guaran- ; tor. Tho;. money .thus' advanced, tore- ■ interest■at'-'-S per-cent. That-was the •scheme, stated ".briefly, but matters of- / detail in connection -with the mafchi.uy ery of tho scheme were 'handled-;-.--by-(Committees formed in each' State- these committee's.bein£ under the'control of \ the Wheat Board. These matters of;" de= ' tail included the keeping of accounts of all transactions, and issuing of ."cefti-" i ficates.'of y which' notifications', were sent along to the Wheat Board at freguent .intervals. ■

.« "In the early days of the scheme," said. Mr. Badcock, "the majority of the' farmers , were strongly opposed, to it, thinking that the merchants .would be very well able to deal with the crop in the ordinary way, but they are ginning to realise now that it was a matter of impossibility to get sufficient freight, and this being so, the merchants would have been unable to/market the wheat, with the result that they would .have stopped purchasing and a tremendous slump would have ensued. To prevent this was ■ the very reason for which the board was formed, and the scheme which allows of an advance being made to the growers has resulted—as was expected—in keeping tho price of wheat up to a reasonable level, approximating to London-values.

"If a farmer is not in immediate need-of /money, and does not wish, to turn his certificate into cash at onco, ha is allowed 4 per cent, on the amount by the bank.' The whole scheme has worked out well,' and the' farmers [ are now; securing the benefits which they have derived from it. -No one can buy or sell wheat in any' State 'nowVexcept' seed permission /must' bo

obtained to deal in that, even if it is one farmer selling to another. Even the millers must buy. all their wheat from .'the Government at si fixed price. "I-consider that this season the Commonwealth will have an exportable surplus 'of between 130,000,000 and 150,000,000 bushels, but I do not think there' is any likelihood of New Zealand being flooded with cheap wheat, as the Federal Government's'scheme was especially formulated to keep up tho price of "wheat, and it is its intention tD dispose of the whole crop on a parity with London values.' At the present time the Federal Government is selling its wheat at a price which means between os. and Gs. per bushel to the grower, and at the conclusion of the' ■Wheat Board's operations, the whole of the prices 'realised in excess of the advance, will be pooled and divided up amongst the suppliers according to the quantity they have sent in."