Drastic Comment

on Cooks' Copra

ALTHOUGH copra is the largest source of Cook Islands’ income and is capable of expansion at much lower cost than that of citrus production, copra production has been allowed to fall below that of 1930, and “the industry is in a vary bad condition indeed”, states the report of Professor S. Belshaw and Mr. V. D. Stace, the economic experts advising the Cook Islands Administration.

Important reforms are needed, states the report, which lists major defects in the industry and adds that the quality of Cook Islands copra “is among the poorest in the Pacific.”

The report states that copra processing is inefficient, purchasing and marketing are poorly organised, plantations are in poor condition, the collection of nuts is far short of potentialities, storage is bad and the copra regulations have not been enforced.

The report recommends, among many other improvements, that a copra marketing board should be established to deal with marketing, while the Agriculture Department should retain the supervision of production and processing.

The experts urge the encourage ment of co-operative organisations

while allowing traders to nr reasonable, but not excess profits.

The system they propose ii modification of that in fore© various British and other Isle territories where copra boards M a monopoly in buying and seh copra. It does not eliminate If traders, but the report gives a o warning: “Should the reorgani tion prove unsuccessful, the alternative, in view, is a comp official marketing agency.”