N.Z. DAIRYING.

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17913, 8 January 1930, Page 10

N.Z. DAIRYING.

A VISITOR’S OPINION. TOO MUCH OVERLAPPING. WAIKATO MOST PROGRESSIVE. In an interview with the Napier Telegraph an American journalist, Mr Marshall Dana, who is travelling through the Dominion, said that the Waikato struck him as the most pro- ■ gressive farming district he had ever seen, and though its man-made production \\?s astounding, he yet op nod that within the next few years it would be further increased by at least a third, and if the growth of nitrj-er.-ous mnnu"e sales is any indication, he will he right. The production of,the Waikato a .ways appeals lo visitors bcetuso it is entirely the result of forethought and planning on the part of the farmers; other districts have better land, but most do not make such good use of it. One th'ng which this visitor could not quite understand was the redundancy of factories in certain districts, and notably in parts of Taranaki. He was tremendously impressed with the benefits of co-operation in dairying, and pointed out that in his own country most of the factories were purely proprietary. Why, then, the competition between co-operative concerns? That is a question which has given many leaders of the industry food' for thought, but only a wider view-point will find the solution. Unfortunately petty interests often dominate the situation and prevent the savings of considerable sums through the reduction of overhead expenditure. Value of Co-operation. Quite recently the Ilerelaunga Dairy Co. in Hawke’s Bay took over the Waipukurau Dairy Co. Formerly these two co-operative concerns encroached on each other’s territory. The amalgamation will reduce operating costs, will enlarge the output of Ileretaunga, and will be in the best interests of the farmers in Hawke’s Bay. What has been done there can easily be done elsewhere, and it should toe done. Another point which did not escape the notice of Mr Dana was the overlapping in cream collection, which is especially apparent in the Manawatu district, but which is also a feature elsewhere. On one road ho noticed half a dozen lorries collecting cream, where one would have sufficed for the job. That he thought was wasteful, and he considered that in America, no matter how keen the competition, the factories woqld have joined together in cream collection, and thus saved hundreds of pounds a year for their suppliers. It is well to be reminded of these things by an outsider. We are 100 apt to think that because they exist now they must continue to do so. Where lliese things hold sway, cooperation is nothing but a meaningless phrase-