DAIRY INDUSTRY CONTROL

Hawera Star, Volume LIV, 27 October 1934, Page 6

DAIRY INDUSTRY CONTROL

Mr. Poison Suggests Way Out of Difficulties PAYMENT OF SUBSIDY MONEY TO BE REPAID (By Telegraph—From Our Own Reporter.) STRATFORD, Oct. 27. With the object of outlining the Dairy Commission report and the present legislation, Mr W. J. Poison, Dominion president of the Farmers’ Union, addressed a large gathering of farmers at Stratford this afternoon. Mr H. Blyde, president of the North Taranaki Union, presided. The meeting was thoroughly representative of the province. Mr Poison said the Commission had examined every aspect of the industry, and the report must change the whole future of the industry. The Bill would be through Parliament before the House rose and would become law.

Mr Poison agreed with the report in the main. It had some brilliant clauses, but the report disclosed that no dairy farmers were carrying on their business in a payable manner—a situation which was serious, even l drastically so. The world to-day consisted of a series of "ring” camps, Britain .becoming one of them with quotas.

• "If we are to carry out a reorganisation of the industry it means a measure of discipline and self-control such as never before; it means the saving of the industry,” said Mr Poison.

Voices: It won’t. Mr Poison: I’m giving you medicine, I will 1 give you some sugar presently.

Produce was forced down to-day to a price unheard of because of the "ring,” and the British farmer was in a similar position, he said. If Britain was prepared to make an agreement with Uruguay she should be willing to do the same with the Dominions. It had been reported that Britain would, not make an agreement with one Dominion she would not make with another. Mr Poison gave the lie to that, stating that Canada had a different agreement with Britain, giving her an opportunity to export more than produced. It was clear that the Dominions must have separate agreements and ...must, have two-way trade with other countries. "The dairy report is an indictment of the present organisation, ourselves and the co-operative system which we thought so much of,” continued the speaker. “We are as co-operative as a hive of bees. We think about our own lives and leave others alone.” Mr Poison likened the present situation to an operation by surgeons on a dying man, saying that some form of •subsidy was essential if the dairy farmers were to carry on. There 45.6 per cent, of State Advance farmers in arrears and 57 per cent, of farmers in difficulties. Mr Poison had taken it on his shoulders to suggest a remedy, which was actually a repayable subsidy. The report dealt with the suggestion, stating that it would have an unfortunate reaction, but Mr Poison quoted a London committee to say that no reaction wouid result. The Commission claimed that it was inflation, but inflation was embodied in the Reserve Bank principles to-day.

Mr Poison said the Government should issue credit through the Reserve Bank to farmers through dairy companies to enable lOd to be paid out for butter-fat, this subsidy to be reduced as the price level was raised. The dairy factories could ensure that the money would be Tepaid and would give a guaranteed minimum price.