THE PRICE OF MILK

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21289, 16 September 1932, Page 15

THE PRICE OF MILK

Sir,—To a lot of people the decision of the milk vendors to make 5d a quart a fixed price for milk seems a bit out of line with the times. As for the struggling farmers only getting 7d per gallon, what of the butter-fat farmers getting little more, for much more milk and labour ? Roughly, at lid a gallon, a farmer would get 3s 6d per day from one cow, whereas if he were supplying a factory he would receive about one-fourth of that, perhaps only 9d of it. This is only a rough idea, and as many farmers know, it it were worked out accurately it would be consid- ' erably more, as a cow is not much good that will not do four gallons a day in season. Also, it might induce some of the "butter-fatters" to change over and in so doing get well remunerated and give the public Cheaper Milk.

Sir, —The milk vendors' statements to my mind are so worded that they give a wrong impression. We are informed we will be charged at the "regulation" price. Your correspondent "Working Man" asks who regulates the price ? The milk vendors do, and their profits are increased according to the way their combine regulates or pushes the price up. It is strange that butter is down to pre-war price, yet milk at 5d is nearly double pre-war price. Many vendors have been retailing splendid milk at 4d and less, and evidently made a fair profit, as they were anxious not to lose a customer at that price. 1 have been paying 4d, and the vendors were anxious to continue to supply me at that price. The combine say it is necessary to charge 5d so that the producing farmer can be paid at least a fair price. Your correspondent "Working Man" says it would be interesting to know what the milk vendors pay the poor farmers, and suggests 8d a gallon. I Ifnow that the farmers are paid as low as 6d a gallon, because one of them told me so on Sunday. Now is the chance for some of these underpaid farmers to put a man on to deliver their own milk and I venture to say they will get all the customers they want at 4d, and make a good profit, too. Epsom Ccstomee.