HUTT VALLEY MILK SUPPLIES.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 464, 24 March 1909, Page 5

HUTT VALLEY MILK SUPPLIES.

THE NEW COMPANY MEETS. OPTIMISTIC OUTLOOK. The shareholders and suppliers in the re-cently-formed Hutt Valley Farmers' Cooperative Milk Supply Company, Limited, held a meeting on Saturday at the registered oilico at Upper Hutt. ' Mr. Angus J. M'Curdy, managing -director, presided. Tho chairman reported that tho support accorded the company by the Wellington public had exceeded their expectations, and that the five carts were taxed to keep pace with the_ demand for the company's milk. Side by side with the milk trade a good Iftisi-. ness was being done in butter, and .if a supply of reliable eggs could be at onco arranged for, that branch would be well supported also. Offers of milk from farmers 'were coming forward freely, and dates' were being fixed for- tho adding of their milk to the company's supplies. The chairman announced that tho shareholders' farms alone reached the respectable area of 5060 acres, and the cows totalled '547. To these latter must be added the cows of those fanners who were not on tho company's share list, but with whom contracts were being made, making a grand total of over 750 cows. The meeting decided that all suppliers should be bound to carry out implicitly any regulations made by. the Health Department and Department of Agriculture, and to observe strictly such further regulations as tho beard of directors of the company from time to time deemed ■advisable,-and. of which notice would be given. The chairman stated that a contract had been let for the' immediate • installation of electric motive power. The meeting decided to extend the company's milk service to portions of the city not yet touched, and to appoint canvasser's, organise new milk rounds, and put on extra carts. _ The action of the managing director in continuing to sell milk at twopence-halfpenny per quart was endorsed. Mr. M'Curdy stated that overtures had been made for the purchase of the company's business, but he had declined to entertain any such proposal. Tho farmers decided to continue to sell direct to the consumer.

A number of inquiries were made from farmers for admission to the company, and it was unanimously resolved to authorise tho managing director to ■. receive such applications and submit to the shareholders at an early date a proposal for the/registration of the company as a public ■ company, ns the number of shareholders would probably exceed the number permitted to a private limited liability company. The price of farmers' milk was fixed for delivery at Te Aro, La-mbton, and Thorndon stations, to include freight, and tho winter prices to be paid to farmers were arranged to extend from April 1 to September 30.