SUPPLY OF EGGS

Grey River Argus, 20 January 1943, Page 2

SUPPLY OF EGGS

CRITICISM REPLIED TO. . STATEMENT BY MINISTER. P.A, WELLINGTON, Jan. 19. Replying to criticism of the Marketing Division contained in ai] article written by Hon. Arthur Cook, in “The Standard,” the Minister of Marketing (Hon. J. G. Barclay) said to-day that the only item mentioned controlled by the Division was eggs, and the Division had not been charged with an. responsibility regarding the other items mentioned. The shortage of eggs was one of the minor sacrifices the public was called upon to make during the war period. Production had been affected by war conditions, and in addition the development of the war in the Pacific had made New Zealand a vital factor in the supply of eggs to an area far wider than the Dominion itself. This meant that there were fewer eggs available, particularly in areas where the overseas demands were havy and came at short notice. The Division had made certain that eggs were available to hospitals, and those requiring them for health reasons, and the remainder were rationed to the general public in collaboration with the Grocers’ Association. There were more eggs available in country districts than in the cities, because the majority of eggs were produced in the country. Therefore, if eggs’ were to .be made available in additional quantities in areas where the demand of the armed forces was at its peak, additional authority to make purchases in producing areas, and to absorb the additional costs of transporting to other centres, would have to be taken. This question was under immediate consideration by the Government, which was determined to find ways and means of ensuring a ' more satisfactory distribution oi eggs to the civilian population of the pominion as a whole. Mr Barclay added that if it had not been for the. Marketing Division, the public in Auckland and Wellington would have received even fewer eggs, and essential foodstuffs would not have been made available to the armed forces in the way they had been.