MARKETING OF WOOL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3672, 29 July 1924, Page 16

MARKETING OF WOOL.

CONTROL BOARD PROPOSED. WELLINGTON. July 22. “That a Wool Control Board be formed with the object of a better get-up and marketing of the dominion’s clip By a uniform system of classing and minimum reserves.’’ was a remit discussed by the Fanners’ Dominion Conference to-day. Mr W. G. Anderson (Pelorus Sounds) said that wool controlling was not a new idea. It had been carried out successfully both in America and Australia within recent years. The principle had already been laid down that Uie producers should control shipping for the purpose of controlling freights. They could not do that unless they controlled produce, and all he was asking was that they should place wool on the same basis as the two other great staple products —meat and butter. It was impossible to have wool classed commercially on farms. He was not proposing to interfere with tho present commercial channels. hut all they wanted was to see that wool was put on the Home market in the

best possible conditions. Even the wool brokers of the dominion were now falling in with the scheme as regards draft on wool. this was a very old grievance, and was costing the producers £BO,OOO per year. A ne cost of the wool packs for which they were not paid by the manufacturer was £97,000, and this large sum was being annually presented to the manufacturers through lack of organisation on the part of the producers. Mr A. A. Ross (Te Kauwhatal seconded the remit, saying that he was utterly unable to understand the inconsistency of those who would suffer a meat pool and a dairy pool, and yet oppose a wool pool. Mr J. B. Pick (Seddon) pointed out that 90 per cent, of the wool was sold in New Zealand, and that once it was sold it was out of the producers’ hands. Therefore the scheme would be of no advantage in controlling shipping freights. Mr tv. L. Marshall (Marton) said that there was no call from the wool-growers for a pool, and until there was one there was no occasion to worry about the matter. Mr O. C. Munro (Clevedon) said that they should wait to see how the existing boards panned out before saddling themselves with further responsibilities. There was just a tendency to involve themselves in too much red tape. Mr A. E. Harding (Auckland) said that he did not want to see the motion defeated lest an impression be created that the farmers were opposed to the co-opera-tive marketing principle to which they were committed. On .dr Harding’s motion, further discussion on the question was postponed until to-day.