Copra-Growers
pp. 10-11 · Read in the full issue
£6Oa Per Ton For N. Guinea
Canberra Slow In Making The Change-Over
THE announcement by the Australian Acting Minister for External Terri tories on March 3, that Australia has entered into a long-term contract with the British Ministry of Food, under which Britain for nine years will guaran tee a price for copra from the Australian Pacific Territories, had been awaited for some time.
It is substantially the same arrange ment as is now in operation in Fiji and the Solomons.
Britain, in 1949, will pay £4B Sterling per ton, fob Territory ports. This is equal to £6O Australian per ton, Terri tories ports—which is about £2OA per ton more than planters now are receiving, and probably is the best all-round price planters in the Southwest Pacific have ever received.
Britain guarantees that price for 1949, and also that during the ensuing eight years (after 1949) the price will not fall (or rise) more than 10 per cent, in any year. Assuming that the market were to fall steadily during the period, the guaranteed price in each year would be:
Under present conditions, the New Guinea producer would get the benefit of the 25 per cent, exchange premium.
But there is no indication of how long the Australian £ will remain 25 per cent, under Sterling. Many shrewd judges hold that, on an economic basis it should have been on par with Sterling many months ago, and is being held where it is by the Socialists merely as a political stratagem.
Up to the moment of this writing (March 15) there is no indication of what organisation will be created to imple ment the new arrangement.
Obviously, something has got to come in between the British Ministry of Food and the Islands copra producers, to collect and ship the copra, and receive and distribute thp monev. The Production Control Board is still functioning, taking copra over from the planters at about £4O per ton Territories ports, and selling it at over £6O per ton. It was officially announced months ago, that PCB was to be wiped out.
Some Direct Questions
WE telephoned Canberra on March 10, and asked the following questions: • What is to take the place of the PCB, to receive and nay for New Guinea copra on behalf of the British Ministry of Food? • What is to happen to the Stabili sation Fund, now reported to be in the vicinity of £400,000? Is the “Stabilisa tion fund” deduction of £8 per ton to be continued? • Is the present absurd margin of £4 per ton between hot-air-dried and smoked copra to be maintained in the new arrangement? • What is to be done to collect copra in the oiftlying districts, where it is
accumulating owing to absence of ship ping? (There is said to be a large stocx in Bougainville ports', where it is ac cumulating at the rate of 1,000 bags a week. The Director of Shipping has said that he cannot cope with the Territories’ demands for transport).
We were politely but firmly told by Canberra that there was nothing to re port, beyond the Ministerial announce ment of March 3.
Unofficially, however, we have been in formed as follows: A decision has been made, but Depart mental heads are taking an unconscion able time to work out details. It is be lieved, however, that the present organi sation and set-up of the PCB will be retained, with merely a change of name.
A cargo of copra has just arrived in Sydney from New Guinea, and the indi cations are that Australia will pay for it at the old and not the new (British) rate.
The Acting Minister has decided to wipe out most of the margin between HA dried and smoked, and he is con sidering a suggestion that suppliers of smoked, during the past year or two receive compensation for the unduly low price paid.
It is expected that the whole of the Stabilisation Fund will be distributed to those from whom the contributions were deducted. This will be a healthy wind fall for many growers. The Fund plan will not be continued.
But all that, as yet, is unofficial.
Inadequate Shipping
THE shipping position on the Territories coasts shows no sign of improve ment. Added to the usual inefficiency of Government control, there is the severe handicap of insufficient wharfage at places like Rabaul, leading to slow turn-around of the boats. The latter come in to Rabaul loaded with copra, and lie there for days Gnd weeks in some cases) because there are no facilities for unloading them.
In this respect—failure to provide adequate port facilities —the government has shown ineptitude and lack of imagi nation. The trouble was foreseen a long time ago by experienced officials; but they could never induce the higher-up bureaucrats to get a move on.
The higher-ups excuse themselves by pointing to the inability of Canberra to acquire a sufficient number of little ships.
But there is no reason why little ships should not be built in New Guinea, just as they are in other Islands Territories.
If the Australian Minister had been more concerned with Territories economics, and less preoccupied with native welfare and timber lease troubles there would have been shipyards operat ing in the Territories long ago.
Cost Of Feeding Labour
ANOTHER extreme disability of the Territories employers is the high and ever-increasing cost of providing food for their native labourers. Rice has cost £66 per ton lately in Rabauk Yet in Fiji they are growing most of their own rice.
This situation was foreseen in New Guinea two or three years ago, but the Administration has done nothing to en courage rice-growing except issue ro
(See Foot Column, Next Page)
Price per Ton Year Sterling 1949 £48 0 0 1950 43 4 0 1951 39 16 6 1952 35 15 6 1953 32 5 0 1954 29 0 0 1955 26 2 6 1956 23 10 3 1957 21 3 0
(Continued from Page 8)
ports about experiments on Department of Agriculture stations. A species of mountain rice has been grown successfully in Papua, near Yule Island and in Central New Guinea. Why not in other places?
Some planters are taking steps to grow rice; but, without assistance from head quarters, the majority will do nothing while they are getting high prices for copra.
We have heard of one planter in the Kokopo district who plans to avoid the present high price of canned meat by buying young pigs from native herds (which have been improved by the im portation of good boars) and feeding them up to the slaughtering stage with the tapioc which the Japs planted on a large scale in that district as a food crop. This is working out successfully.