WOOL INDUSTRY

Taranaki Daily News, 17 August 1934, Page 14

WOOL INDUSTRY

WORK BY COMMITTEE. PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH. The probable procedure of the New Zealand Sheep and Wool Research Committee to be set up by the Government, if legislation now before Parliament is passed, and the general problems which will be considered, are set out in a statement by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. The committee, which will consist of seven members, will be authorised to spend up to a quarter of the proceeds of the levy of fourpence a bale for “scientific or industrial researches in relation to wool or sheep conducted outside New Zealand,” and to pay the remainder to the South and North Island* sub-committees. The main committee will outline a general programme of activity and allot this work to avoid overlapping or undue effort. The members .of the committee will receive no refnuneration.

General problems which will probably be considered by the committee are: (1) Economic and technical survey. (2) Information on all details of production; trends in quality and quantity; wool yields as affected by environment; kriowledge of wool production practices; intemationad trends in demand and changes in utilisation procedure. (3) Preparation of wool for marketing. (4) Researches into selection and breeding practices and their effects on wool quality and yield; problems of breeding under New Zealand conditions; sterility; experimentation in breeding. (5) Modes of inheritance of different characteristics of wool as guide to breeders; hairiness, kemp, etc. (6) Experiments in breeding. (7) Nutrition; 1 parasites; disease and management in relation to wool production. (8) Tests of cheaper branding fluids, dips, etc. (9) New uses for wool.

The Bill before Parliament at present is designed to provide for co-operation in an international scheme for'investigating problems of wool utilisation and publicity, and also .to examine questions of certain diseases and nutrition problems which have been causing concern in Canterbury. In general, it is stated, sheep-farmers have been very individualistic and naturally resentful of any suggestion that their wool is inferior. There is said to be ample evidence, however, that there is room for improvement in the average clip, and, while the position of finer crossbred wools is not generally considered serious, there is some definite anxiety regarding the demand at an economic price for many of the crossbred wools. Sheep-breeders, states the department, should realise that the science of breeding is fast approaching a position of practical application. A development in recent work on sex lineage in inheritance of characteristics may have profound effect on breeding practices, while scientific advances in knowledge of nutrition and disease problems are outstanding. The main argument for the Bill is said to be that of increasing world competition between textile fibres, which indicated that if wool is to hold its position it must be made suitable for all the various manufacturing processes and that further avenues of utilisation should be explored.