LOCAL DAIRY MARKET

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22595, 7 December 1936, Page 8

LOCAL DAIRY MARKET

The Government's local marketing scheme in respect of dairy produce goes a great deal further than seems either necessary or desirable to reach the stated objective of the Prime Minister. Mr. Savage says the endeavour will be to co-ordinate the distribution of butter, cheese, eggs, honey, pork and bacon in the interests of both consumers and producers, and to reduce harmful price fluctuations and cut out speculation. The question is whether, to achieve these ends, it is necessary for the State itself to enter the trade by buying an established business and appointing one of its proprietors as director of internal marketing at an undisclosed salary. The Government has applied schemes of coordination and control to other industries, that dealing with wheat, flour and bread being the best known, but it has not entered the business with State farms, State mills and State bakeries. On the other hand, with its guaranteed price scheme for export dairy produce, it does actually purchase the produce when it is shipped and markets it in Britain. With the dairy industry, therefore, there is it tendency to advance the process of socialisation a step further—a long and intricate step. In both the export and the domestic market, the Government is going further than the electors were given to understand last year. It is due to them at this stage that the Prime Minister should issue a clear and frank statement on the trend of policy and on what is his Government's destination. In the particular action under discussion, by which the Government has acquired what Mr. Savage describes as a " key organisation," a great deal requires to be explained. Existing distributors want to know where they stand, the nature of the cooperation expected of them and the steps to be taken to co-ordinate the trade. The consumers of the important foodstuffs affected also have a right to information as to prices, and so have the producers. The latter are particularly concerned to learn whether in future the Government intends to take over the whole of dairy factories' output and whether local requirements will be paid for and sold at guaranteed price parity, or otherwise.