SUPPLIERS’ CHAIRMAN REPLIES

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 287, 31 August 1938, Page 6

SUPPLIERS’ CHAIRMAN REPLIES

All Milk Tested Daily “UNFAIR REFLECTION ON FARMERS” Mr. J. J. Maher, chairman of the Wellington Dairy-farmers’ Association, replied yesterday to the statements made by Crs. Huggan and Campbell. He said that his association, which was a cooperative one of farmers, supplied the milk for the Hutt Valley and Petone. Ho would challenge any councillor to question the quality of the milk supplied. It was tested daily for quality, adulteration and bacteria by an officer of the association employed permanently and exclusively for that purpose. Under Government regulations milk was required to stand up to one form of test for 180 minutes ; the association went further than that in insisting that milk supplied to it stand up to test for 330 minutes. _ Unless «uppliers could produce milk in that condition their supply was refused. The supply of milk to Lower Hutt and Petone was exactly the same as that which went to Wellington city. Not only were there the daily tests by the association’s own officer, but there were regular, strict inspections by departmental officers. Prosecutions for adulterated milk were rare in the Hutt Valley, where some of the best type of citizens were engaged

in its distribution. It ill- behoved any elective representative of the people to make reflections on those engaged in the production aud distribution of milk. “Statements of this nature made under cover of privilege of public body speaking are becoming too common,” said Mr. Maher, referring to Cr. Campbell’s use of the words “they would never run short of milk while there was a ‘cow with an iron tail’ in the backyard.” Only one inference could be drawn from the quotation of this saying, said Mr. Maher, and it constituted an unfair reflection on the farming community. Those who made such statements should at least have enough belief in what they said to repeat their insinuations in some, place where the mantle of privilege did not cover them. Otherwise it was just idle talk centring attention on the utterer and in the process wronging an honest body of hard-working farmers.