POTATO SUPPLIES

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXII, Issue 217, 13 August 1942, Page 4

POTATO SUPPLIES

LESS FOR TROOPS.

ESSENTIAL NEEDS

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 12. A survey of potato stocks throughout the Dominion has revealed that the supply is wholly inadequate to meet the demands of the Armed Forces and the civil population during the next three months, and accordingly drastic measures to curtail consumption are necessary. In making this announcement the Minister of Supply (Mr Sullivan) said the present position had developed partly as a result of tho comparative failure of North Island crops in the early part of the year in the Rangitikei' and West Coast districts. This necessitated drawing on the South Island crop some six weeks to two months earlier than usual. On top of this, the requirements of the Armed Forces became greater than anticipated. When this liecame apparent efforts were made to purchase potatoes in various other countries, but conditions evervwhere were found to lie similar to New Zealand. Australia, for instance, had already approached New Zealand with a view to obtaining supplies from this Dominion to overcome a. complete shortage of supplies in the Commonwealth. The Minister said he could assure the public that no effort would bo spared to procure supplies from overseas, but unfortunately, even it a source of supply could be found the Government could not for obvious reasons take such quantities into its calculations until shipments had actual! v been landed in New Zealand. The" onlv course, therefore, open to meet the situation was to apportion our available supplies as equitably as possible between the Armed 1< orces and such essential services as public and private hospitals, old peoples homes, etc. Undo*- this arrangement the ration to the Armed Forces would have to be.cut very drastically., as it was only by this means that limited supplies could be made available to the civilian services mentioned. With a view to avoiding a recurrence of the present position next year", the Government was planning for increased production in 1943 and this necessitated the diversion of a substantial quantity of table potatoes to seed purposes, further accentuating the problem. The Minister urged the public to utilise any table potatoes for home garden crops and also to economise by cooking potatoes in their jackets".