BRITISH-GROWN WOOL

Evening Star, Issue 25698, 23 January 1946, Page 4

BRITISH-GROWN WOOL

AN INTERESTING REPORT SUBSTANTIAL TOTAL CLIP (N.Z.P.A, Special Correspondent.) < (Rec. 10 a.m.) LONDON, Jan. 22. New Zealand woolgrowers have more than ordinary interest in tha Elliot report on wool just v issued, although it relates only to arrangements for disposing of British-grown wool and has nothing to do with Dominion wool disposal arrangements. Some British woolgrowers have been pressing for a marketing scheme for British-grown wool to be established under the Agricultural Marketing Acts, but the committee—which was set up by the Uinted Kingdom Government to investigate the % subject—recommends against a marketing scheme under the Act and suggests instead a joint wool council, which will represent the interests of the home-grown wool industry in the arrangements made by the joint organisation for the disposal of Dominion wool.

Obviously the future marketing of British-grown wool must be broadly in line with that of Dominion wool and the proposed council would presumably ensure arrangements to that end. One of the functions of the council would be to work with Dominion woolgrowers' associations in such matters as marketing methods, research, and publicity. . The committee's report gives interesting glimpses of the real size and extent of the British woolgrowing industry by publishing certain facts now made known for the first time. It mentions, for example, that there are nearly 94,000 wool producers in Great Britain but that 42,000 of them produce clips of fqwer than 40 fleeces. In other words, wool production with many British farmers is little more than a sideline, although it should be added that the total clip of the country is quite substantial. It is almost en■tirely cross-bred. Much of it possesses characteristics not found in any other wool. Normally one-third of the British clip is exported, and in total volume the British clip represents not more than 10 per cent, of the weight of woo] normally consumed in Britain within one year. WOOL CLOTH EXPERTS. It is welcome news that British wool cloth export allocations for the approaching February-May period are in some respects larger than in the past. New Zealand receives her own allocation and the New Zealand • authorities have expressed the desire that intorlinings and furnishing fabrics in particular shall be offered within the allocation. Certain British exporters receive " open " allocations for the coming period, which means they can slip the goods in question to any country with which Britain has payment arrangements. Under these "open : ' allocations New Zealand may libpe to receive goods additonal to her

present quota. This is one method whereby the British authorities are seeking to introduce a little more freedom into overseas trade in wool goods. A feature of the new allocations is that they include yardages for certan Continental, European, and Far Eastern markets for the. first- time since their liberation from enemy hands. ■-'