STATE OFFER TO FRUIT GROWERS

Southland Times, Issue 23774, 23 March 1939, Page 6

STATE OFFER TO FRUIT GROWERS

Guaranteed Price For Total Production t FEDERATION AGREES TO PROPOSAL (United Press Association) NELSON, March 22. The Government has agreed to assist the fruit industry by taking over all fruit produced at a guaranteed price on the condition that the New Zealand Fruit Growers’ Federation and the Export Control Board, as representative of the whole industry, ask the Government to bring the proposal into operation. That statement was made today by Mr J. Dicker, chairman of the Nelson Fruit Advisory Committee and vicepresident of the New Zealand Fruit Growers’ Federation, when interviewed. The Government claimed that the guaranteed price would take the place of, and would be equivalent to, the present export guarantee and subsidy paid on locally-marketed fruit, said Mr Dicker. Following the offer made by the Government the controlling organizations of the industry took steps to ascertain the opinion of growers and the Fruit Growers’ Federation board passed a resolution accepting the Government offer of a guaranteed price. The federation’s decision was based on the decisions of growers’ meetings in the Auckland, Marlborough, Nelson, Hawke’s Bay, and Otago areas. Canterbury also had the matter under consideration, but had held up a decision, pending the receipt of further particulars. However, the opinion of the other districts was definite enough for the federation to make the decision. The Export Fruit Control Board had not yet come to a decision on the matter.

Although the Government refused to renew the subsidy on locally marketed fruit this year, it agreed to renew the guarantee of 11/- a case on export fruit this season, said Mr Dicker. Statements published to the effect that the payout of the subsidy on locally marketed fruit would be £1,000,000 were utterly absurd. The position of the local subsidy was that an advance payment of 9d a case had been made on fruit received un to the end of last June, the payout being about £20,000. The subsidy was paid according to the difference between the Dominion average price a case and 5/2. The amount yet to be paid to growers under the subsidy for sales of last year’s fruit was estimated at about £BO,OOO, but that figure would depend on an analysis of the prices when all the account sales were available However, the Minister of Finance (the Hon. W. Nash) had stated that the balance of the subsidy would probably be paid to growers at the end of this month. It appeared probable that the total pay-out under the subsidy would be about £lOO,OOO.