GENERAL POULTRY-KEEPING.

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 35, 4 November 1922, Page 18

GENERAL POULTRY-KEEPING.

(By

F. C. Brown,

At a meeting of those interested in tho poultry industry, held in Ohristchuch last week Mr. F. C. Brown, who attended by invitation, gave an. interesting address on tho positon in the poultry trade. In the course of nis remarks lie said: — . I am pleased, to again come to Christchurch by request of the N.Z.M .j 1 P.O. for the purpose of imparting information regarding the poultry industry. Neither myself nor Mr. Cussen proposes to deal solely with any one particular branch connected with the industry, as in view of this being a public meeting, we considered that by ■taking such a course it would not prove of interest to all present. Therefore it is proposed to deal with some of the most recent inquiries we have received by letter and during our visits' of instruction together with other matters relating to the industry. The A.B.C. of Poultry Keeping. In other words, our remarks are chiefly intended for beginners and those who have not yet entered into the ranks of poultry producers. As. 1» always the case, it is our one desire to teach the A.B.C. of P oult uv keeping, although personally I feel. that I « n only down to B of the alphabet myself, but still hope to get to O someday I merely mention this, as the more I learn about the busmess, the more - 1 realise what a lot there is to learn Before going into practical details I desire to say a few words regarding the industry. In this connection I may state that it is flourishing in one way but unfortunately it is”not in another. So far as mcreasino- production is concerned we have made rapid strides during recent years owing to the increased numbers that have embarked in the business and the great improvement brought about in the production capacity of our flocks. Our knowledge in regard to the management of poultry on sound lines has also made tremendous headway during the past few years. The Marketing Question. When, however, we come to the question of marketing the egg and table poultry products, the progress made in this direction is not by any means what it should have been. The marketino, side of the industry is undoubtedly the weak link of the whole business to-dav, and I feel safe in saying that the -chief blame for the present unsatisfactory position lies with the producers themselves. The fact that eggs have been retailed in Wellington at Is. 2d. a dozen before the flush season set in must, surely be an eye-opener to the average producer. Especially in view of the fact that Wellington is always looked upon as being the best market in the Dominion. The question that here arises Is the weak

Chief Poultry Instructor.)

| state of the market, together with the great fluctuation of prices that have taken place due to the law of supply . and demand or is to manipulation of ! the market by those who have inter- ' ests in eggs in other ways than pro-: duction. But be this as it may the 1 fact remains that eggs have been sold .below their true market value. This surely is sufficient to indicate that the present System under which they are being marketed is not by any means sound. After 12 years of organised effort with the sole aim of marketing eggs on a co-operative basis, the results to date are certainly disappointing. Evidently the producers are satisfied with the arrangements as the question of improving matters lies entirely in their own hands. Co-operation. Co-operation and all pulling together is the one and only way of improving matters in this respect, but not. like some of the socalled co-operation that exists to-day. This is not to imply that the principles on which egg circles were first formed, and which I strongly advocated have proved wrong, but rather to point out that the manner in which some of them at any rate are controlling is all wrong. Properly conducted egg circles are capable of doing a power of good for the uplifting of the industry, but on the other hand where the principles for which they were formed are not thoroughly acted upon, they may easily do much harm. No system of co-operation to my mind is even bordering on. being perfect which first gives a selling agent commission for handling eggs, and then leaves the door open for him to purchase these on his own account at this season of the year to pulp or preserve for winter use. It is only natural to suppose that his aim like most other people’s is to buy in the cheapest market and sell in the dearest. It z is reallv time the producers put on their thinking caps and set themselves out to co-operate on more sound lines whereby the market may be stablished to the benefit of not only the 'producer but the consumer as well. Practically all the egg circles in the Dominion are affiliated to the New Zealand Poultry Association, an Association which has done a splendid work for the industry, but on the marketing question (and they have spent more time on this than on anything else) the results of their labours are most disappointing. The weakness of some egg circles to-day in tho large centres is that instead of working together, they are fighting each other for all they are worth, such as by under selling each other on tho one hand to capture consumers and raising prices on the other to capture producers. This brings to my mind a picture I once,. saw when two farmers were having a row over a cow—tho one was pulling at its tail and the other at the horns but the lawyer was milking her. The question of allowing grocers and retailers to use eggs for cutting pur# poses is another matter calling for urgent consideration on the part of producers. Because say two or three grocers ip a city set themselves out to ent prices against each other, then why should the price of eggs be based on such a principle,