Longburn Freezing Company.

Feilding Star, Volume XVI, Issue 147, 18 December 1894, Page 2

Longburn Freezing Company.

The annual meeting of shareholders in the above company was held in the Theatre Royal on Saturday last, about twenty five shareholders being present. Mr D. Buick, chairman of Directors, occupied the chair. The following report was then read:— ln presenting the accounts and balance-sheet for the year ended 80th September, your Directors regret that these show an apparent loss on the operations for the season of i-584 0s Bd. During tho twenty-six weeks the works were in operation, 57,174 sheep and lambs wore put through, of whiqh number 21,850 were froaen, qr behajf of clients, 17,600 were purchased froiu growers and frozen, and 17,725 sheep wore boiled down from which 23,123 legs and shoulders were frozen, and 7,757 woro sold locally on account of growers. Your Directors are now making arrangements by which they hope to purchase mutton aid lamb at jrcwjueratiYe prices to §ro w

ers. To those desiring to freeze on theit own account, advances will be made on meat shipped through the Company's agents. In accordance with the Articles of Association, two Directors, Messrs J. O. fiatchelar and William Coombs, retire, the former offers himself for re-elec-tion. The auditor, Mr G. J. Scott, also retires, but offers himself for re-election. The balance-sheet showed a loss of £584 Os 8d on the year's operations, but the chairman stated that the business of the company was really better than it would appear from the balance-sheet. A great deal more than the loss was accounted for by necessary expenditure in connection with the works. Being unable to get steamer space sufficient to get frozen meat away when ready, the freezing chambers had to be kept going for six months with only 89,500 sheep which Bhould have been got rid of in half the time. As it cost £15 per day to keep the freezing chambers open a large amoant of expense was incurred here. Then legal expenses in connection with Barnsdale's case had absorbed £170, the new agreement with the National Mortgage Company had cost LSO, the legal work in connection with the redaction of capital L6O, none of which were recurring items and cotild all be fairly classed as extraordinary expenditure. Then if the Company could have got the same advance on their meat as had ruled previously, some LI7OO more would have been received from that source. In addition to that tho company made a loss of over LB3B by the concession of oneeighth of a penny made to shippers north of Greatford, a reduction which tho Directors thought should be abolished. The report and balance-sheet were adopted, and tne meeting adjourned to Saturday, the 22nd. instant.