WHEAT SHORTAGE.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14391, 1 September 1917, Page 8

WHEAT SHORTAGE.

OFFICIAL REPORT ON- SOWING

- (From Our Parliamentary Reporter.) WELLINGTON, this day. In the interests of New Zealand we ought to try to provide for our own wheat requirements, remarked the Minister of Agriculture m reply to a question m the House, but, added the ister, farmci-vS should not ; waste, land! or energy m growing wheat oniuisuitri able land. Reports from tho field clivi-j sion of the Agricultural. Department up to 13th August showed theVt? were, 179,000 aci-es iv wheat., m the. South S Island. There was also the possibility of another 50,0 00 acres being soton' m the spring. A large area was being sown m Australia, but nobody knew, exactly wha^ might occur. Wet. weather had interfered with New Zealand sowing, while some farmers ; had written to him, stating they feared they would have to put stock on the young. wheat, because labor was so short. Even 'under the most favorable conditions" there did not appear to be, enough wheat m. New: Zealand for the next year's requirements. The shortage at the moment was so serious that several : mills m j Auckland and other places were shutting down m four or five days,. . .The Minister mentioned that the Secretary of the Department of Agi*i culture, m reporting the result of the appeal, stated: "I think there is good reason to hope that the, total area sown or to be sown will not be much if any short. of the 250,000 acres considered necessary to supply the Dominion's requirements. 1 '