DAIRY CONTROL

New Zealand Times, Volume L, Issue 11661, 27 October 1923, Page 4

DAIRY CONTROL

After the verdict of the suppliers to bring compulsion into force, the chief thing is the formation of the Board of Control. The members of this Board are twelve. Of these, nine are to be elected by the suppliers—six for the North Island, three for the South, two appointed by the Government on the recommendation of the Minister for Agriculture, and one appointed by the Governor-General representing outside interests. The suppliers will in this do as they please, of course. These have accepted the compulsory part of the hill by a large majority. It is well known, at the same time, that they realise many abjections to the complete establishment of compulsion. So far as we have been able to gather from published correspondence and propaganda, we consider that the dairy farmers do not want any revolutionary changes, and are against pooling. The factories, moreover, want to have the final cay in the disposal of their produce, and want to be free to consign or sell. Neither do they want the local agents abolished, a 6 they generally recognise that they have served a useful purpose, which they can go on serving. If these are the views of the suppliers, they should lose no time in parading the candidates according to the lines of their desire. The Gover-nor-General’s task is not quite so simple. Why any power at all was given to the Government it is difficult to understand. It would, in fact, have been very much better, speaking generally, if the Government had not been given any chance of interference. As they have been given that chance, they can best use it by selecting the ablest men as their nominees. In this there can be but little difficulty. Mr Greville stands out head and shoulders as the most prominent dairy authority in the Dominion. To this qualification, the readers of Mr Greville’s paper, “The New Zealand Dairyman,” will add, without hesitation, that Mr Greville understands the electorate of suppliers better than any other authority now in the field. The Government could not do better than make this distinguished expert one of its nominees. If the suppliers make good their views, as above defined, the Dairy Control Act can be expected to do all that was expected from it, without any deduction from the objectionable side. There is much self-seeking in the air in this connection. The outline we have given above is, we believe, the best way of circumventing the self-seekers, and giving the Dairy Control Act the benefioial career designed for it by its well-wishers.-'