Spinel ferrites constitute an important class of magnetic materials. Polycrystalline ferrites are a complex system composed of crystallite grain boundaries and pores. Manganese zinc ferrites have resistivities between 0.01 and 10 Omega m. Making composite materials of ferrites with either natural rubber or plastics will modify the electrical properties of ferrites. Composite materials are ideally suited for many modern applications where ceramic materials have some drawbacks. The mouldability and flexibility of these composites find wide use in industrial and other scientific applications. Mixed ferrites belonging to the series Mn(1-x)ZnxFe2O4 (MZF) were synthesized for different 'x' values in steps of 0.2. These pre-characterized ceramic ferrites were then incorporated in a natural rubber matrix. The dielectric properties of the ceramic manganese zinc ferrite and RFC were also studied. A program based on G programming was developed with the aid of LabVIEW package to automate the dielectric measurements. The dielectric permittivity of the RFC were then correlated with that of the corresponding dielectric permittivity of the magnetic filler and matrix by a mixture equation, which helps to tailor properties of the composites. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.