THE VOICE OF COMMERCE

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 65, 19 March 1925, Page 9

THE VOICE OF COMMERCE

OPINION OF WELLINGTON

CHAMBER

"LAUNCHING INTO UNKNONVN

WATEES."

Decided opinions regarding the proposal that the Dairy Control Board should exercise full control of, dairy products in New Zealand were expressed in a motion carried at yesterday afternoon's meeting of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce. The chamber unanimously adopted the following motion, moved by the chairman (Mr. H. D. Bennett), and seconded by Mr. S. A. Longuet :—

The Wellington Chamber, of Commerce learns with considerable anxiety that the Dairy Control Board is under no necessity to the' Government for authority to exercise full control of the daii-y products of this country, thus finally removing in one stroke the safeguards thought to be available when the Bill was before the House. . The chamber, while commending all efforts at improvement of the quality of the Dominion products, .and the marketing conditions, calls upon the Dairy Con, trol Board not to wantonly disregard the voice of commerce. This chamber disassociates itself entirely from expressing the views of directly interested persons, but it seeks to protect the fabric of commercial and mercantile activities, which makes production, transports, and distribution possible, and which- in turn makes the ■market what it is. It is of the opinion that the Dairy Control Board is not fully seized of the possibilities and dangers ahead,' and in rushing beyond the limited control judiciously adopted in the case of the Meat Board, it exposes the industry to the hostility of those interests m a position to do this country incalculable harm by supporting, through finance and patronage, our principal competitors in the trade. This chamber calls upon the Dairy Control Board to hesitate before launching out into unknown waters, and to give due study to the economic factors which have made the dairy and .all other industries what they are today. .

Mr. Bennett said they had been working on the idea that it would be necessary for the Dairy Control Board to get an Order-in-Council, but they found now that that was not so. He .did nßt think the chamber could do very much more It apepared now that the board had all the powers that it needed, and had decided to go the whole distance. The point he desired to stress was the apparent ladk of understanding of the ownership of the produce. The., farmer seemed tb think that he could 'do what he liked with the butter he produced but that was not the case. There were many factors to be considered. That butter belonged to the people as a whole and that was. an aspect that was not realised by the farmers. It was the business of the people to see that produce was so handled that there should be no danger of reducing the revenue of the country.