PRICE FIXING

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 2, 2 July 1926, Page 6

PRICE FIXING

(To the Editor.)

Sir, —I have searched the newspapers for the past sis months trying to ascer-. tain the policy underlying the Dairy Board's compulsory marketing scheme.; The oniy definite statement I can find-is that contained in Mr. Grounds's official statement issued to the Press on 26th February, in which he states that the board' "had under consideration at its meeting on Wednesday several cable messages received by the Government from the High Commissioner relating to newspaper prdpaganda in Great Britain against- the board's policy. It was agreed that there should be supplied to the Government, for the information and guidance of the. .High Commissioner, an outline of the board's policy and the general procedure* that would be adopted in the execution ".of. that policy." ■--

[ On the question of compulsory marketing, Mr. Grounds states that the board's .London agency will decide, in conjunction with the distributors, their price level from day to day, and that such price-will necessarily be kept at the sales' point'io enable business to be done. In plain lan? guage this means that the "constant aim of the board will be to keep the market value as high as possible. Of course,'as soon as the board finds that the price is so high that sales cannot be made; they will lower the price a little until they find the highest point at which business can be done. Like many other- such schemes it is good in theory, but does nbtWork out in practice. It is like the board's very simple scheme of regulating 'shipments from New Zealand in such a manner that fairly equal quantities "of butter will arrive on the Home market from month to month, and yet this is what has happened under the board's shipping'programme' during the present seaßon:rr - December arrivals 3,260 tons. January arrivals 13,390. tonsj February arrivals .4,500 tons" March arrivals 3,400 "tons ' April arrivals 7,000 tons

Many butter factories are still grappling with the marketing difficulties that were thrust upon them by the glut of arrivals during January.—l am, etc., ; ■-, ■ G.C.W.