DAIRY BOARD

Southland Times, Issue 20209, 21 June 1927, Page 10

DAIRY BOARD

ELECTION RESULTS. The election to fill the three statutory vacancies on the Dairy Produce Export Control Board has resulted in the defeat of two of the sitting members, Messrs H. D. Forsyth and J. R. Thacker. They are replaced by Mr J. B. Hine and Mr H. T. (mapman. The postal ballot of suppliers of milk and cream to dairy factories has been in progress for the past few weeks, the poll now having closed. The result of the first count, as announced by the returning officer, Mr W. C. Robinson, of the Department of Agriculture, is as under, the figures given being tonnage votes. Each factory is entitled to one vote for every twenty tons of butter or forty tons of cheese exported, up to 500 tons, and above that quantity the basis is one vote for every thirty tons of butter or sixty tons of cheese. No. 3 WARD. Mr W. Goodfellow . . 544 tonnage votes Mr F. Lye .... 231 tonnage votes No. 4 WARD. Mr J. B. Hine . . .761 tonnage votes Mr H. D. Forsyth . . 30 tonnage votes No. 7 WARD. Mr H. T. Chapman . 132 tonnage votes Mr J. R. Thacker . . 86 tonnage votes As was anticipated, there was fairly keen interest in the election, the recent controversy concerning the price-fixing policy of the board having given a big fillip to the exercise of voting rights. In all three wards the voting was substantially larger than it was last year, when the board was elected. The largest percentage of votes was cast in No. 4 Ward (Waikato and district), 67.5 per cent, of the 3750 odd voters having exercised their franchise; in No. 3 Ward (Taranaki district) there were about 5000 qualified voters, and 65 per cent, of votes were cast; a smaller poll was recorded in No. 7 Ward (Westland, Marlborough, Ellesmere, etc.), 46.25 per cent, of the 6900 odd voters having voted. Last year only about one-third of the voters in each ward went to the poll. It is understood that the results of suppliers’ votes also give a substantial majority in favour of the candidates who won on the basis of tonnage votes.