ENG-1959 — Page 136

PRIMARY PRODUCTION AND MARKETING

107

In these respects the Organization is very similar to its Fish Marketing counterpart. Important differences, however, lie in the method of sale which in the case of the Vegetable Marketing Organization is by negotiation and not by auction, and in the degree of practical assistance provided by Co-operative Marketing Societies which are responsible for handling approximately 67% of the total local production of vegetables. The reasons for nego- tiated sales, as opposed to an auction system, are not difficult to find: on an average, approximately 15,000 separate lots are sold daily to some 3,000 buyers. The number of lots rises to over 22,000 a day in the main season, making sales by auction impracticable. The Organization is self-supporting and the costs of the various services are met from a 10% commission charged on sales. Of this commission 30% is refunded to co-operative marketing soci- eties in respect of the vegetables for which they are responsible.

The weights and values of vegetables marketed through the Organization over the last five years are as follows:

Locally-produced

Piculs

Tons

Value ($)

1955 _1956

1,117,629 66,526

19,939,762

1,293,354 76,985

21,589,103

--1957

1,193,662

71,051

21,719,517

- 1958

1,387,797

82,607

26,562,534

1959

1,507,869

89,754

33,808,230

Imported

1955

105,656

6,289

2,164,460

1956

122,363

7,284

1,685,920

1957

L134,098

7,982

1,925,268

1958

118,374

7,046

1,584,748

1959

108,185

6,440

1,714,988

As with the Fish Marketing Organization, it is intended that any financial surpluses should be ploughed back into the industry in the form of improved services and other benefits. An example of this policy is the aid which the Organization has given to local farmers in overcoming their main problem of recent years, the lack of cheap fertilizer, through the operation of a scheme for the maturation and distribution of nightsoil to farmers at a low price.

Cheap credit facilities for the improvement and encouragement of agriculture under the control of the Commissioner for Co- operative Development and Registrar of Co-operative Societies are