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‘Regulation not the way to go’

WARNING: This is Version 1 of my old archive, so Photos will NOT work and many links will NOT work. But you can find articles by searching on the Titles. There is a lot of information in this archive. Use the SEARCH BAR at the top right. Prior to December 2012; I was a pro-Christian type of Conservative. I was unaware of the mass of Jewish lies in history, especially the lies regarding WW2 and Hitler. So in here you will find pro-Jewish and pro-Israel material. I was definitely WRONG about the Boeremag and Janusz Walus. They were for real.

Original Post Date: 2008-05-07 Time: 00:00:00  Posted By: Jan

Governmental food price regulations were not the right means to handle the “potential crisis” around increased food costs, the Milk Producers Organisation (MPO) said on Tuesday.

Managing director Etienne Terre’Blanche said the problem with regulating prices was that South Africa could not regulate foreign companies’ prices.

“If you regulate prices, the rest of the world is just going to go on,” he said.

“Import prices of maize to feed cows and of fuel would keep going up. Something would go wrong somewhere down the line.”

Terre’Blanche said government should invest in a growing agricultural sector to secure national food supplies in the future.

“If any country would totally rely on food-imports, it would be in deep, deep trouble,” he said.

Food prices in countries outside South Africa were “sky-high” and “soaring”.

“It is unprecedented, they are a lot higher than in South Africa.”

Terre’Blanche said South African farmers were under stress to produce enough food.

Prices of fertilisers had gone up 100 to 150 percent, those of feed went up 80 percent and fuel prices had risen 60 percent, whereas food prices had “only” risen 40 percent over the same period, he said.

In particular dairy farmers were fighting shrinking profit margins due to increasing input costs. The number of active dairy farmers in South Africa was steadily decreasing.

“Producers cannot afford to invest in their farms, but at the same time the government demands 15 percent growth from the agricultural sector.”

MPO, Cosatu, government, organised agriculture, food processors and retailers held a meeting on Tuesday to discuss the rising food prices.

Terre’Blanche said the talks had been constructive and another such meeting was planned for May 21. – Sapa

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?art_id=nw20080506191811726C543533