ABSOLUTE CONTROL OF DAIRY PRODUCE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20060, 29 March 1927, Page 14

ABSOLUTE CONTROL OF DAIRY PRODUCE.

TO THE EDITOR. Sib,—The Otago Provincial Council of the Fanners’ Union has once again by resolution affirmed the desirability of fastening the yoke of compulsory control of the sale of their produce on the neck of the dairy farmers. Yet, amongst those who took part in the discussion and voting as reported in your paper. I fail to recognise anyone who can bo classed as a bona tide dairy farmer. And it is glaringly inconsistent for a body of men chiefly engaged in stock-raising to seek to enforce the disability of a compulsory marketing pool on the dairy farmer whilst exercising the right of free marketing of their own produce. Messrs Waite and Christie trot out once more the old time-worn jaded story of the machinations of the wicked speculator in an attempt to explain the reason for the terrible loss the dairy industry is meeting, and will still have to face this season. A loss brought about purely and simply by the foolish bluff, and throats of what would bo done by the Control Board when their matured plans for the elimination of the “speculator” and “Tdoloy Street” and its Dominion “agents,” and “canvassers” came into operation. Read the evidence or statement of the advocates of absolute control made to the Parliamentary Committee; read the address of Messrs Wm. Grounds, Goodfellow and Co., at the inception of the Dairy Control Act, and there you will find the genesis of the financial losses that the industry has to face to-day and, I am afraid, for acme time to come. ’ The simple facts of the present position are plain for anyone to see who desires the truth, and has nothing to hide. The hoard by its action in backing up the usual system of marketing made a practical divorce in the relations between the producer and buyer that had existed since the inception of the industry. Amongst those wholesale buyers are firms whose operations cover the supply to thousands of largo and small retailers, people who depend absolutely on these wholesale distributing houses for their supplies the wToio year round. The wholesale buyers of Dominion dairy produce found themselves faced _ with entirely new conditions surrounding the source of the produce they required to meet the demands of their thousands of retailer clients. They bad even no guarantee that they would be permitted to obtain the needed supplies, ex cept on conditions that might prove to be —from an economic and business standpoint —unacceptable. What, then, was the alternative? Why; they naturally sought out other sources of supply to ensure their ability to meet the demands of their clients, with the result that we lost our market, to the immense benefit of the Danes. — whose butter has been as much as 28s per cwt. above ours—and the Australians, whose butter even topped ours in price, during the same period. There is no secret about it. The boosters of the absolute control faction killed the existing business relations, and confidence in our ability and willingness to deal on rational and business lines. And, until we get rid entirely of the absolute control cranks and their mendacious and mischievous followers, there will bo heavy weather and adverse conditions for the dairying industry. And the best answer to those foolish people who make the “speculator” the scapegoat to bear the responsibility of (heir ignorance and folly, is furnished by the following extract from (be message cabled frbm London, dated March 2 A\ “Mr Toms, chairman of the New Zealand Dairy Producers’ Board, states that since the abolition of price fixation substantial progress has been made in gaining the goodwill of those large sections of the trade that for three months have been excluded bv price fixation from then- normal participation in New Zealand trade.” Will your renders note the words. “Have been excluded.” Yes; to the dairymen’s great loss! And Mr Toms, continues “I am convinced (hat the groat majority in all brandies of the trade are doing tbeiu(most to assist the New Zealand pro dneer over the very difficult position caused by the unfortunate past policy. If the boycott bad continued, the New Zealand diary industry was faced with complete and disaster” Thus the chairman of the London Com,n ■" of lb" Dairy Produce Control Board "'-T.iP.vinr reply to the absolute control faction's Pa-'Aish vapouring*-—I am, etc W. D. Mason.