XN000022-1980-03-07 — Page 3

2

FRIDAY, MARCH 7, 1980

REHABILITATION ALLOWANCES PAID OUT TO FARMERS

******

THE AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES DEPARTMENT TODAY (FRIDAY) PAID OUT $56 000 TO 200 FARMERS AS REHABILITATION ALLOWANCES FOR CROPS DAMAGED IN THE NEW TERRITORIES BY THE HAILSTORMS ON WEDNESDAY.

A SPOKESMAN FOR THE DEPARTMENT SAID THAT SOME 1 500 FARMERS WERE AFFECTED BY THE STORM AND THE CROPS DAMAGED WERE ESTIMATED TO BE $500 000.

HE SAID FULL EX-GRATIA PAYMENTS TO THE FARMERS WOULD BE COMPLETED WITHIN THE NEXT FEW DAYS.

ASSESSMENT TO CROPS DAMAGED BY THE HEAVY RAIN STORM YESTERDAY ARE STILL BEING CARRIED OUT, BUT INITIAL REPORTS INDICATE THE LOSS BY FLOODING WILL BE SLIGHT.

MEANWHILE THE DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES, MR JOHN RIDDELL-SWAN SAID THIS (FRIDAY) EVENING THAT OF THE ONE MILLION PICULS OF LOCALLY PRODUCED VEGETABLES SOLD THROUGH CHEUNG SHA WAN WHOLESALE VEGETABLE MARKET, ABOUT 80 PER CENT CAME FROM VEGETABLE MARKETING CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES.

AT THE INAUGURATION CEREMONY OF THE NEW COMMITTEE OF THE FEDERATION OF VEGETABLE MARKETING CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES HE SAID THE DEVELOPMENT GRANT FROM THE VEGETABLE MARKETING ORGANISATION TOTALLING $25 000 HAS BEEN GIVEN TO THE FARMERS TO ERECT PLASTIC NETHOUSES.

+IN SOME CASES IT HAS BECOME APPARENT A SMALLER TYPE OF NETHOUSE THAN THAT PREVIOUSLY USED COULD BE MORE APPROPRIATE AND THIS YEAR IT IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE A FURTHER $25 000 TO ASSIST FARMERS TO ERECT NETHOUSES OF THE SMALLER TYPE,+ SAID MR RIDDELL-SWAN.

DURING WEDNESDAY'S HAILSTORM, CROP SEEDLINGS IN NETHOUSES IN SAP PAT HEUNG AND KAM TIN WERE NOT DAMAGED BUT ABOUT 85 PER CENT OF THE CROPS IN THE AREA WERE DESTROYED.

AT TONIGHT'S CEREMONY PAST CHAIRMAN OF THE FEDERATION, MR KO HOK AND LAST YEAR'S COMMITTEE WERE RE-INSTATED FOR ANOTHER TERM.

DORWARD TO LEAVE FOR A TWO-WEEK VISIT TO EUROPE

****

THE DIRECTOR OF TRADE, INDUSTRY AND CUSTOMS, MR BILL DORWARD, WILL LEAVE TOMORROW (SATURDAY) FOR A TWO-WEEK VISIT TO GENEVA, BRUSSELS AND LONDON.

THE VISIT TO GENEVA WILL INCLUDE MEETINGS WITH MR OLIVIER LONG, THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE GATT AMBASSADOR PAUL WURTH, CHAIRMAN OF THE TEXTILES SURVEILLANCE BODY AND GENEVA-BASED REPRESENTATIVES OF MAJOR TEXTILES IMPORTING AND EXPORTING COUNTRIES.

IN BRUSSELS MR DORWARD WILL MEET SIR ROY DENMAN, THE DIRECTOR GENERAL RESPONSIBLE FOR THE EEC COMMISSION'S EXTERNAL RELATIONS.

THE VISIT