MARKETS FOR PORK.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19831, 29 December 1927, Page 12

MARKETS FOR PORK.

Sir,—Your sub-leader in Saturday's Hehald on the pig exporting subsidy must surely appeal to the thinking dairy farmer. As a pork producer the farmer surely does not require that bounty, protection, or whatever you may call it. Ihe most essential thing to him at the present time is the means to have his pork killed, graded and exported. Scattered as the farmers are throughout the country it is found to be an almost impossible task to organise such a scheme, and yet they are clamouring for this to put the business of pork raising on a sound basis. Such an association is being built up at present in the Waikato, and all credit is due to this effort. However, even with this the bugbear of not being able to get in touch with each other still exists. For some years past the producers have been urged'to produce more pork, particularly bacon-weight, with the unfortunate result that the local markets have been glutted, and prices have slumped to a figure that makes it hardly worth while raising pigs. The Government must have known the difficulties farmers have experienced in the past in organising exporting schemes and surely had it come to their assistance with such a scheme early this season such a position as exists would not have occurred. That is all tho farmers were entitled to ask for, and would have been prepared to pay for the service rendered. The genuine farmer does not stand for doles, which the present proposal is nothing more or less. The argument may be put forward that export marketing should be done through the freezing works, but tho pork exporting trade is not on the same basis as beef and mutton, inasmuch as the right carcase for bacon curing for Home consumption only must be exported, hence the difficulty. B. T. Booker.