UMBRACE TAKEN

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 66, Issue 5602, 7 April 1943, Page 3

UMBRACE TAKEN

ACTION AT MEETING REPRESENTATIVES WALK OUT A serious rift in the affairs of the South Auckland Dairy Association occurred on Monday, when representatives of the New Zealand Go-opera-tive Dairy Company, Limited, took strong exception to the convening of a meeting to which they were not invited and left the room.

The meeting referred to was held at Morrinsville on March 29 to discuss the guaranteed price and farmers’ costs and was attended by the majority of the South Auckland companies. A passed stating that the industry was unable to continue economically on the standards of production, prices and costs laid down by the Government in 1938. It requested that a special tribunal be set up under the emergency stabilisation regulations to establish a price based upon present-day production costs- Messrs A. J. Sinclair (Te Awamutu) and J. L. Faulkner (Morrinsville) were elected a committee to forward the aims of the meeting. COMPANY NOT REPRESENTED When the resolution, which had been referred to the South Auckland Dairy Association for support, was read" at the meeting of the association, Mr Sinclair suggested that Mr W. Marshall, chairman of directors of the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company, Limited, should explain, in his capacity as a member of the Economic Stabilisation Commission, a statement he made to the Dairy Board that if stabilisation came into force the principle would be that the price of farm products would not be increased, as, in any case, the industry had last August accepted the . compromise price offered by the Minister of Marketing, the Hon. J. G. Barclay. Replying that he was not prepared to adopt the suggestion, Mr Marshall said it was regrettable that a meeting should have been held to discuss a most important problem without giving the speaker’s company an opportunity of being represented. With the one exception all the major companies were represented. It was not fair to ask those not represented to vote on a proposal that had already been adopted. The question of the absence of the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company’s representative had been raised by him at the Morrinsville meeting, said Mr W. Darrall (Tatuanui). He understood they were unable to be present. There was difficulty in arranging a date that would suit themCRITICISM OF TACTICS Statements were made by several delegates pointing out that there was no intention of affronting the New Zealand company, but that all were actuated by a desire to take action in the interests of the small dairy farmer in good time for the Dominion dairy conference next month. Mr Marshall said the Morrinsville meeting discussed the principal subject set down for consideration by the association that day. It was clear the reason why he was not invited was because his position on the Economic Stabilisation Commission. He was prepared to place his case before the whole industry at the Dominion conference. It was impossible to work in unison with those who thought the circumstances of the Morrinsville meeting were the right tactics., He had no option but to withdraw. Mr Marshall and Mr C. J. Parlane (general manager of the New Zealand company), left the meeting. Mr Sinclair then remarked: “I am afraid that is the end of the South Auckland Dairy Association.” The effect of Mr Marshall’s decision was later discussed in committee. The Morrinsville resolution was endorsed and Mr W. N. Perry (Bruntwood) was added to the investigating committee. .