WHEAT AND THE PRICE OF BREAD

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 55, 13 September 1928, Page 10

WHEAT AND THE PRICE OF BREAD

Sir Joseph Ward, on his return from England via Canada, is reported to have expressed surprise at the disparity between wheat prices in New Zealand and in Canada. And well he might. In tho case of the Dominion the price is a full 0s per bushel, as against a little over 4s in Canada and Australia. The Now Zealand wheat farmer and flour miller have been successful in ! inducing tho Government to grant them virtually a monopoly of the local market. But the Now Zealand consumer is paying more for his bread than is warranted by the world price of wheat and flour. Latest mail advices of the price of wheat in Sydney is 4s Sd per bushel, equivalent to 4s Old at country stations. Asked at a wheatgrowers' meeting in Canterbury last week what was the value of Now Zealand wheat, Mr. Mulholland, chairman of tho Wheatgrowers' Co-operative Marketing Association, replied Cs 2d. Now, tho average yield per acre of New Zealand wheat this year is 39 bushels. Some crops yielded 95 bushels per acre, and 60 to 70 bushels were common. The average yield in Australia is under 13 bushels. Flour is quoted £12 10s per ton in Sydney and £10 us in New Zealand. So we have the curious position of more wheat to the acre, dearer flour; less wheat to the acre, cheaper flour! That is the difference between Australia and Now- Zealand. What is the result? Bread is maintained at a price in New Zealand that is not warranted by the world's parity price for wheat, nor by one of the most prolific wheat harvests, probably a record, in the history of tho Dominion. We are not at the moment concerned with the pooling efforts of Canterbury wheat farmers, efforts which appear to be directed towards showing a firm front to wheat buyers; but it is the concern of the community, and especially of those representing it in Parliament, that this anomaly of a record harvest with upheld artificial prices for wheat and flour unjustified by world's markets should be removed.