CONTROL OF CROSSBRED WOOL

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 15955, 17 October 1922, Page 9

CONTROL OF CROSSBRED WOOL

B.A.W.R.A. INFLUENCE ELIMINATED. Sir John Higgins, the chairman of 8.A.W.R.A.. in.-Australia, in his efforts to secure extended control of the wool supplies of Australia, held out as an inducement to growers to accept his proposals, the stabilising .of crossbred wool. Tie submitted four distinct schemes, the effect of any one of which would have been to perpetuate B.A.W.R.A. for years. No. 1 was to purchase outright the whole current Australian crossbred clip and hold it off the market for a. year. No. 2 was to advance 85 per cent, of the value, and bold the;wool for a year. . No. 3 was for B.A.W.R.A. to lix limits and appoint representatives to attend the auction sales and bid up to those limits, profits or loss to go to 8.A.W.R.A., and No. 4 was to appraise-the iwool and purchase it on the lines of the appraisement scheme, hold the wool over for a year, and then resell. The selling brokers, however, had other views, and a more attractive scheme to submit to growers. They offered growers free storage on unsaleable crossbreds for 12 months if required, and agreed to advance up to 80 per cent, on all such wools. Under- this scheme there is no interference .with market supplies and no tying.up of. growers. Those who want to hold their wool can do so without incurring, storage charges, and the liberal advances system makes it unnecessary to sacrifice the wool. B.A.W.R.A. Jias exercised no control in New Zealand, but a. .National Wool Committee was formed to regulate the quantities to be offered at each sale, and . that, .committee ,i.n thp. course ot events would have ceased to exist ut the end of last season, but at the request of the Brokers’ Association the committee is continuing its functions, and will fix the quantities. to be offered at the sales which begin next month. There is likely to be considerable development in Australia in regard to the re-grading and re-packing of farmers wools and m'ak.iug them into large even liues, which would attract, the buyers. The object of this is to prevent the accumulation of “star” lots, which absorb considerable time in selling. This, principle of re-grading thp small lots and making them up into big parcels has long been the custom in New Zealand, and at last Australian brokers see the usefulness of the scheme. “Star” lots are not superior lots of wool,. as most people, would imaging, but small lines of two bales arid under. The expression of “star lots” comes to us from the Wool Exchange in Coleman street in London. The small lots appear, in the catalogues with an asterisk or star, and these small lots are sold after the bulk wool has been cleared. The pooling method is an advantage to the growers,' for they generally receive a better price than if the lots were sold by themselves. —Dominion.