HONEY CONTROL

Hokitika Guardian, 20 July 1926, Page 4

HONEY CONTROL

BOARD CHAIRMAN’S DEFENCE. In a letter to the Minister for Agl'iuiture, Mr Johii Murdoch, of Ro.sk, 1 mde serious allegations against Ihe Toney Control Board, which ho Uesribed as “threatening to cripple the ndnstry.” In 1024, .said Mr Murdoch, ho had shipped GO cases of honey o London, his charges on the conignment averaged 9s lOd per case roin the grade store to London, and -hen last year he shipped through the Control Board his charges worked out ’ t £1 Is 7d per disc, though li c ex lectetl the charges to he less under ontrol than they had been formerly. Tho Honcygrowers’ Association had icver been a financial success, and it could bo advisable for at least the rciresentativo of the Government on the Control Board to be a coninierciallyaained man, since the three men on ,he hoard were also directors of the loney Producers' Association. 110 lomplained also that the price, of Ncu Zealand honey on the London market ivas omitted front the High Commissioner’s cabled report. In the charges made on his shipment last year one item was £2O 19s id for advertising. His cheque from the London agents amounted to £123 8s Id; his cost of production w»s £49 7s 6d, the agents’ charges £45 Gs 4d, and he had since received an account for freight amounting to £ll 4s Cdrso that the total cast of marketing Ids honey had been £95 3s ;od, and the return for His year’s work was only £lO 14s TO'd for 70 colonics of lice's. He objected strongly to being asked to pay Id per lb for advertising. v . at higher prices. On Friday, Mr .1. Rentoul. chairman of tlib Honey Control Board, who has been in Wellington interviewing the Minister on the issues raised by Air Murdoch, made a statement to the New Zealand “Times’’ on the matter. Air Rentoul began by pointing out that, taking the actual account sales, the New Zealand honey on the Lmidou* market had sold at £l4 per ton better than the best Californian honey. This was taking only the white California, honey against all tho New Zealand grades. Ho objected to tho statement that the Government. representative on tho Control Board was not a business man. lie was, as a matter of fact, a man with big business interests. His firm bad just purchased the New Zealand Brick and Tile Company, a big transaction involving £IOO,OOO, and lie was a n an with 1200 colonics in his apiary, which must have cost him £iooo. Ho must have more money invested in tli© honey business than any other man in New Zealand. Mr Alnrdoch’s figures would not hear analysis. On examination it would be found that lie had taken account of one item twice over, that tho net export charges for his bonev were already deducted when he received a return of £lll 18s Bd, that this return was not accordingly, and that Air Aturdoch thus had only to deduct his production charges to get his earnings for the year. I liese amounted to £62 Is 2d. and since Air Muddoch’s 70 colonies represented a capital investment of £2lO, the return of his outlay was 29£ per cent, on the amount which he had put into ;ho business, and this with a veiv aici,ago crop. His return would be stall further increased by a reduction in his allowance, for tins and cases, which was unnecessarily high. New Zealand was probably one of the largest honcy-onting countries in tlm world. Tho. consumption of honey in the Dominion was about 1000 tons per annum. The Inited Kingdom, on tho other hand, produced _ only about 1000 tons, and imported about 4000 tons per annum, a certain amount of this being re-exported. AVOU Id) EAT Ai'ORE. Those figures were remarkable, and it would ho seen that the board was justified in its assumption that, with publicity in the TJliitcd Kingdom, there was every hope of inducing the people to cat more honey. Tho Control Board was asking the beekeepers In net together, not with any idea of cheapening the export, hut with the object of safeguarding the market that hade been built up in the United Kingdom. Practically since the Jioiiey trade had started there had been a voluntary pool', mid this had lieon instituted for the purpose of putting the honey up in a small package and delivering it direct to the consumer. This system had progressed until, in 1924, 60 per cent, of tile honey exported was packed in this way. This ivas sold ill Croat Britain, and a considerable portion, on- tlio Continent. It was decided that something more effective than a. voluntary pool v.as needed, for though the voluntary pool had met with considerable success, outside producers were selling against tlie exporters, and cutting;,prices, witliout paying any of the costs, and it was feared that the voluntary pool would ho broken up and the market go to

pieces. It was not reasonable to suppose that they should go on paying the cost of advertising Now Zealand honey while others were reaping the benefit. AVliile much of the New Zealand honey was of good quality, there were a number of grades with strong flavours, and there was nothing to prevent Egnlish agents from buying up cheaper grades, perhaps mixing them and marketing them at lower prices, thus undoing the work put in to maintain tho standard. These were the principal. reasons for the Honey Control Board being brought into existence.

Also, the hoard laid marketed Dominion lioney in Germnny. Delei urn, Holland, Denmark, Norway and Swedeii. At this end it lii.nl built up a market in Singapore, and had sent

shipments to Shanghai, Monte Video, Manila and Hongkong.