CONDEMNED COWS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26416, 21 March 1947, Page 6

CONDEMNED COWS

LOSS OF PRODUCTION GOVERNMENT COMPENSATION SCHEME P.A. WELLINGTON, Mar. 20. A Government decision to make a payment of £8 a head to cover the loss of production suffered by town milk producers through T.B. condemnation of milking cows was announced to-day by the Minister of Marketing, Mr Cullen. Under the national milk scheme, town milk producers are required, through their local associations, to give individual guarantees, under penalty, of a minimum daily production of milk. These guarantees are calculated on a basis of the normal daily yield of milk from the number of milking cows in each herd. Such producers, faced with a sudden loss of milking cows through condemnations during the contract period, could suffer specific loss under the contract conditions which are peculiar to the town milk industry. This decision to make a payment covering the loss of production does not affect the provisions of the Stock Act, 1908, nor the present basis of compensation in the amendment to the Act embodied in the Statutes Amendment Act, 1945. This amendment makes provision for placing a maximum value of £26 on any animal condemned,for T.B. Full value is not paid in respect of such condemned stock, the farmer receiving only 75 per cent, of the valuation made at the time by the stock inspector. All pay--rlients under the Stock Act will continue to be administered by the Department of Agriculture but this additional payment for loss of production will be administered through the Milk Marketing Division and will ■apply to all town milk producers who are members of supply associations and also to licenced producer-vendors. This special payment is restricted to condemnations covered by the period October 1, 1946 to March 31, 1948, during which time the Government aims to have substantially secured the eradication of T.B. from town milk herds.