FOOD HOARDING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 19885, 11 March 1939, Page 16

FOOD HOARDING

PROSPECT FOR 1939 BULK STOCKS DWINDLE IMPORT RESTRICTIONS PREDICTION BY RETAILC “At the present rate of exhaustio of warehouse stocks, there will be definite shortage of popular food item within a few months. Food hoardin is bound to take place, unless th public -can be assured that ample re placement stocks will be allowed int the country in the near future. Thos with money to spare will find it pos sible to accumulate supplies for thei own use, ancl the general run of shop pers will have to content themselve with the less popular comestibles,' stated a prominent Gisborne business man to-day, discussing the effect o the Government's import restrictions The retailer said that he had n< direct interest in importations, bu that, dealing through agencies, he hac found a definite shortage developinj in food items and other articles whict had come under the restrictive effect; of the recent regulations. Pinch in May or June The real pinch would not be felt by the buying public until May or Juno he considered. By that time the accumulated stocks in the larger warehouses would be drawn upon very close to the limit, he was informed, and the rate of consumption could not be met. Already those firms fortunate enough to have good supplies in hand were being drawn upon by other= who were relatively short of stocks. The items thus affected might be considered luxuries in some countries, but they had been incorporated into the dietary of the average New Zealand family for many years, and restrictions would call for a widespread review of eating habits. Similar views were expressed by a warehouseman, who agreed that stocks throughout the country would be very low in four months, and that the importations allowed under the Government’s policy would not by any means make up the losses by consumption at the ordinai’y rate. Though there was no sign of hoarding yet, he knew that many retailers had changed their old practice in dealing with warehouses, and were endeavouring to keep up their stocks at a high level, in the hope that these would tide them over the period of the worst shortage. Establishment of Factories “If the lines most affected wero those which can be produced economically in New Zealand, the handicaps to trade would not matter so greatly,’’ he said. “Many of the lines barred or restricted cannot yel be produced in this country, however, and before factories are producing similar or substitute foods, the public will notice a considerable change. “The same may be said of • lines which are not required for the feeding of the people, but which contribute greatly to the comfort of living in the Dominion.” A feature of the restrictions concerning which the general public has not been informed is that goods admitted free of license, having been ordered or shipped for New Zealand prior to December 5 last, are set against the volume of importaions licensed for the first six months of 1939. Thus a firm which landed a substantial supply of a given line of goods in December, the line having a value of £IOO, cannot actually import further supplies ol' that line until the values of licenses issued under the regulations have wiped out the,. £IOO. Set-off Against Free Admissions The position is explained by the following case, in which the figures are purposely misquoted, though the proportions are approximately correct. A firm landed £6O worth of goods which were ordered before December 5 last, and applied under the regulations for a license to import a further £IOO worth for the first half of 1939. A license to import £35 worth was granted, but this value was set against the £IOO worth already received. The upshot is that the firm is not only unable to import any more of the line during the current sixmonths’ period, but must not replenish its stocks until, by a process of applying for licenses for succeeding six-monthly periods, it has achieved a total greater than the balance of £65. A further instance of the working of the import restrictions was supplied to an inquiring pressman. In this case a firm had placed a substantial order for a certain line of goods late in 1937, and had received delivery before the turn of the year, Having these stocks on hand, and having purchased heavily to secure discount, it had no need to import again during 1938. Now, however, its stocks are running low, and it finds that because it has no imports for the first half of 1938 to show, it cannot secure a license to replenish the line. The same disability will be felt during the second half of 1939, unless there is some relaxation of the restrictions. Anomalies Call For Action Among the complaints of importers against the regulations is that the Customs Department does nothing to help the private traders to overcomp the purely administrative hurdles raised by the regulations. For instance, when letters are written to importers, the department refrains from the usual practice of indicating clearly the application to which reference is made. Since most importers are involved in a welter of protests concerning individual applications for licenses, it would help them greatly if ordinary business procedure were followed. The department so far does no more than refer to the date of the applicant’s letter, and baldly states its decision. A Gisborne business-man who returned this week from Wellington informed a pressman that importers ir That city were seriously embarrasse: by the Government’s refusal to clarify Its policy. Restriction of imports wa bad, in their eyes, but business coul< find its feet if the Cabinet would do clare just what it was aiming at. Rejections of applications fo licenses, or drastic curtailment o values, were normally followed b,