FOOD RATIONING

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 24849, 22 March 1944, Page 4

FOOD RATIONING

ADVISORY COMMITTEES PREVENTION OF BREACHES (0.C.) WANGANUI.-Tuesday, A food advisory committee is being formed in Wanganui following Govern-' ment instructions for the creation of such bodies in all centres -to assist rationing officers to administer the regulations. The committee will deal with all applications for increased' allowances under various heads of food rationing, but full instructions regarding policy have not yet been received from Wellington. One duty of the committee will be to control the black marketing of rationed foodstuffs. Kach district committee will be headed by the district rationing officer as chairman and will have four consumer members appointed by the Chamber of Commerce, t-he local branch of the Women's Institute and the local branch of the New Zealand Labour Party. In addition there will be five associate members, representing master grocers, master butchers, the licensed victualling trade, restaurant proprietors and the shop assistants' union. The associate members will be called upon by the main committee when matters affecting their particular trade or service are considered, but they will have the right to attend all meetings of the advisory committee if thev wish.

In Wanganui nominations fnom the butchers and grocers are being made under protest, as members of the Master Butchers and Master Grocers' Associations consider that there is sufficient control of rationing without an advisory committee, which, they say, will be unwieldy. Preliminary arrangements for the formation of committees ' are being made by Mr. J. W. G. Brodie, an officer of the Oil Fuel Control Department, Wellington, who is making a tour of the North Island to organise committees in the main centres. He anticipated completing this work by March 31 and it apparently is the intention of the Government that advisory committees should begin work * by April 1.