POULTRY INDUSTRY.

Matamata Record, Volume XVIII, Issue 1626, 9 May 1935, Page 3

POULTRY INDUSTRY.

N.Z. POULTRY BOARD.

ORGANISATION.

Poultry-keepers who are subject to the provisions of the Poultry-runs Registration Act, 1933, are evincing con-

siderable interest in the proceedings and policy of the N.Z. Poultry Board Which was appointed in April last in accordance with the Act. Those who are not in qlose touch with the- position are anxious to know what the Board is doing, and what it proposes to do for the betterment of the poultry industry. Having paid their registration fees they are looking for results. That is quite a reasonable attitude, provided due allowances are made for the many difficulties which have to be overcome, and it is recognised that the Act is not a magic wand nor are the Board members magicians. The present day obstacles to stability and sound development of the poultry industry are the same as have been faced for many years. The first essentials for improvement are organisation and co-operation. In this respect poultry keepers to-day are. where dairy farmers and fruit growers ■' were fifteen years ago. They have much lee-way to maker up, but, with the shining examples of what has been done in other primary industries, and with the Act and the Board as established foundations, the right spirit combined with determination will command success.

The principal function of the Board as laid down in the Act is to “organise and develop the poultry . industry.” The Board’s plan for the. organisation of the industry tinder the title of the “N.Z. Poultry Producers* Federation” has been widely circulated and has been received by poultry keepers with general approval, many branches of the Federation having already been formed. The constitution of the Federation having already been formed. The constitution of the Federation provides for the establishment of a branch in any town or district where there are at least ten members; for the grouping of branches under district councils within each of the four provincial districts covering the whole Dominion with respective headquarters at Auckland, Wellington, Christ-

church and Dunedin.’ Each provincial district will be represented by a producers’ member on the Poultry Board. Provision is also made for a Dominion executive^ 1 and an \ annual Dominion

conference, the first of which will,be held in May next. The success of the Act arid of the Board is largely dependent upon the cordial co-operation of poultry-keep-ers, and the Board appeals to jail poultry-keepers, whethere'd registered or not, to assist in the formation j of branches in theirneighbourhood or' to join a nearby * branch where one jias l been established . The Federation’affords an opportunity for poultrykeepers to submit their views dnd suggestions to the Board, to keep- in touch with every movement, and! to confer on all matters relative to the industry. The representative of the Auckland

Province on the Poultry Board, Mr T H. Evans, is now actively engaged ii forming branches of the > Federatioi throughout his territory, and la meet ing of poultry-keepers interested i: the formation of a branch in the Pae roa district will shortly be held & advertised in this issue. 1 The Poultry Board has had undei consideration a number of matters oi considerable importance to the welfare of the industry, and has taker action where deemed necessary in the interests of producers. Export oi surplus eggs in the the flush season ia absolutely essential in order to prevent local prices from becoming, demoralised. Thousands of poultrykeepers, especially those living in districts remote from the chief centres, do not realise that the price of their eggs would probably have been shout 6d per dozen during last spring had surplus eggs not been exported. The Board co-operated with export committees during the past season, rendered financial assistance in special circumstances, and assisted in advertising N.Z. eggs on the London market. r.-V The Board has taken action with a view to bringing about reforms in the present methods of marketing eggs by advocating the introduction of a system of grading under which eggs would be classified, marked and offered for sale in accordance with their quality and weight, thereby protecting the interests of both producers and consumers. At the end of last minmer over 100,000 dozen eggs . were held" in coof stores, mostly ;by speculators who had secured them at low prices during the previous flush season . Most of those eggs had been in cool storage for periods of six months or longer, but in the absence of any regulation to the contrary, speculators were able to place them on the market without any indication to the public that they were other than fresh eggs. The results were: A profit of 100 to 200 per cent, to the unfair competition with producers bathe fresh egg market, and exploitation of the consumer. The Board is strenuously pressing for regulations fto provide that chilled eggs , shall be stamped and sold as such. The Board is also pressing for sha introduction of a Stock Foods Bill, whereby standards would be fixed for certain stock foods. There is no 'occasion to enlarge on the necessity for such a measure, as most poultry-keep-ers have had , the bitter experience of buying pollard, bran, mashes, etc., of grossly inferior quality due "either; to adulteration or the process of maihuThe Board: is. giving attention ;:to many other matters which affect the poultry industry. At the moment, however, the consummation of the Board’s plan for: the organisation: of poultry-keepers 4s the principal unmediate objective in order that the Board and the Federation may be in a position to advance the best interests of the poultry industry to, ibhe greatest possible extent.