ENGLISH FARMING

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 113, 6 February 1935, Page 14

ENGLISH FARMING

Fiji Agricultural Expert’s Visit Some observations on the position of the English fanner were made by Mr. H. R. Surridge, agricultural officer at Fiji, who arrived at Wellington by the Tainui yesterday from England and the Irish Free State, where he has been spending a holiday. It was difficult co give an accurate statement about the position, he said, for different farmers were affected in different ways, as, for instance, by the milk marketing scheme. The beef marketing scheme had, however, in his consideration saved the industry. Farms were becoming more and more mechanised in England, and more intensive cultivation was taking place on them. English cream and butter was of first-class standard, but in many places it was unobtainable, aud New Zealand butter, usually retailed from eight to tenpence a pound, was procurable. Recent cable reports about the higher marketing price of Danish butter were confirmed by Mr. Surridge, who said that he failed to see why Danish butter, at 1/2 a pound, should be retailed at so much higher than the New Zealand product. New Zealand was not the only place which had been experiencing drought, and the last two seasons in England had been very dry. resulting in a large fruit harvest. Since Mr. Surridge was in England eight years ago he noticed Increasing prosperity and great advances in communications in transport, Old London was rapidly disappearing, as the rebuilding of Regent Street and Piccadilly showed. Last Christmas trade figures had constituted a record for a number of years, while there had been lately a general three per cent, increase in retail prices. When in Jamaica Mr. Surridge visited Mr. A. C. Barnes, a former director of agriculture at Suva, and had witnessed the loading on to the Tainui of the consignment of 4000 cases of citrus fruits, the first of the season for New Zealand. He is to return to Suva almost immediately.