PRIMARY PRODUCTION TRENDS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22493, 10 August 1936, Page 8

PRIMARY PRODUCTION TRENDS

Britain's notice to Argentina that the trade agreement concluded in 1933 will be terminated on November 7 may mean that the current negotiations for a new agreement are well advanced or that the Argentine Government is being reminded of its dependence on the British market. It would be only natural if Argentina found it difficult to reconcile herself with the British Government's new meat policy, which imposes a duty of fd per lb. on foreign beef, while admitting Empire supplies free. It has also been reported that foreign beef quotas are to be still further restricted in favour of Empire producers. The severe quotas enforced against South American mutton and lamb also bear heavily. In the circumstances it is not surprising to see it reported that Argentina is thinking of turning from cattle raising to dairying and wheat growing. With butter and cheese, however, she might at once find herself faced with the same problem of markets because, just as with meat, the only considerable buyer is Britain. So far as wheat is concerned, a world shortage is developing owing to drought in the United States and Canada. The opportunity may prove to be no more than temporary ; a good deal depends on the situation in North America. Some authorities state that millions of acres there must be permanently withdrawn from agriculture. The Washington Government is taking steps to return vast areas of what are now judged to be marginal lands from grain growing to pastoral and forest uses. That policy should permanently influence primary production in the United States. What the effect may be upon world markets for particular commodities, upon cereals, for instance, as opposed to pastoral products, cannot be estimated at this stage. Nevertheless these large-scale shifts of farm output may prove to have deep significance for New Zealand.