DAIRY PROBLEMS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21744, 8 March 1934, Page 12

DAIRY PROBLEMS

GOVERNMENT AND QUOTA

MRr -<5-000FELLOW'S VIEWS

jfHE - .WELLINGTON CONFERENCE

[FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT] *"""* 'HAMILTON", Wednesday 1 "Tho. calling of/a conference is only camouflage,!' said Sir. W> Goodfellow, managing-director of Amalgamated "Limited, yesterday, when addressing. a meeting of representatives of WaiKiito dairy companies and .the tfarmW • Union. The meeting was called discuss dairying problems which are to be considered at a, conference to bo held in Wellington next Tuesday at the instance of tho Primo Minister, the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes. Mr. Goodfellow said -the conference in Wellington was being called merely to pave the way for the quota system. Ho had been told that the Government r.[ready had a quota system cut and dried. This system involved a reduction in the number of cows to bo railked and other proposals. The whole thing was ridiculous, and was just an attempt to stampedo the dairying industry into a quota, continued Mr. Goodfellow. Tho Government's intention was to get tho dairy cbmpany representatives in Wellington so that Messrs. Forbes, Coates, and Blasters could lecture them.

"I have no doubt," Mr. Goodfellow sajd, "that the New Zealand Government gave a promise to Mr. T. Baxter, who visited the Dominion as the representative of the British farmers in regard to the quota. I doubt whether tbe Government has gone further —it dare not. If a majority of the conference agrees to a quota we are as good as gone —the Government will put the quota in force by Order-in-Council." Referring to the. Ottawa Conference. Mr. Goodfqllow said Mr. Coates had stated that the" Government had fulfilled its obligations with respect to t'ta Ottawa agreement. That might be tlh 9 political view, but it was not the commercial on 6, and there was a great difference between i. them. From the commercial viewpoint,' ■ the Government had hardly carried out its obligations. New Zealand had undertaken certain ajgreements in regard to the freer entry of British goods into the Dominion, and it should adhere to those agreements. Then in 18 months' time tha country would be in a position to bargain.

FAEMEBS OPPOSE QUOTA

3DISPOSING OF SURPLUS STOCK

I'BY TELEGRAPH —PRESS ASSOCIATION] t ' iIASTERTON, Wednesday A meeting .of farmers in Masterton today agreed that quotas should be avoided if possible, but some considered tho imposition of restrictions inevitable. • A i notion was passed that th'e feeling of tho" meeting was opposed to the imposition of a quota, and it recommended tl;(i Dairy Board to negotiate with- the British.". Government for the avoidance of a quota before the expiration of the Ottawa agreement. As one means of'disposing of surplus buUter, Mr. J. 0. Holms recommended thfi export to India, Burma and Malay Suites of ghi, or clarified butter, which sold retail at-lid per lb. in Karachi. The Hen. A. D. McLeod said the avorage price of ghi in India was about 8d per lb. The present difficulty over the export was the lack of direct shipping services. Transhipment in Australia, was costly. • Mr. Holms said that butter exported as ghi would not bring a big price, „but something would be got" for the surplus sold in this way and the relief to the British market would automatieaUy raise prices there. The Department of i Scientific and Industrial Research had had this ghi project before it for,some months, but it seemed to have done nothing. - ■