Readers Write

Northern Advocate, 28 November 1939, Page 4

Readers Write

There appears to have been, at thoi North Auckland Dairy Conference, f some confusion and many mis-state-?

ments regarding the i

COST OF FERTILASERS.

position of fortilis-t ers for the coming | year. The price of?

superphosphate today is £3 16/ at the? works, less 4/6 discount to dairy i companies, or 2/6 more discount to? dairy companies now than a few? years ago. The amount of fertiliser i used in New Zealand last year, both f imported and local, was about 550,000? tons. Of this, there was imported a* little over 120.C00 tons. ?

It is very questionable, owing to the war. if we can import much this year, and the works are making every effort to increase their output in New Zealand to make up for the loss of imported fertiliser.

The works had a fair amount of raw material in hand when war broke out, and as long as this lasts the price is not expected to rise. Jute for bags, sulphur and freights are all up since the war, and this will ultimately mean an increase in price. The Government arc using every means in their power to sec that the raw. material reaches New Zealand. The position in this respect has improved lately and the works now have more raw material than at the outbreak of the war.

The trouble is likely to be that the increased demand from local works may be beyond the works’ capacity, owing to the shutting out of the imported article. The farmers can rest assured that the Agricultural Department are alive to the problem, and, as they did before, will protect the farmers’ interest in this matter.

Prices have not risen yet, and will not rise until the raw material in hand when war broke out has been used up. I may say, in reply to another statement, that in its deal with the United Kingdom for the sale of our produce, the Government did make provision for the re-adjustment of price if cost of imported commodities rose more than 10 points.—J. G. BARCLAY.