DIRECTORS’ REPORT

Hokitika Guardian, 16 October 1929, Page 3

DIRECTORS’ REPORT

WEST COAST FARMERS’ CO-OPER-ATIVE LIME PRODUCING COY. LTD. Jn submitting the balance sheet for the year ended 31st March, 1929, your Directors feel justified in extending to you some measure of congratulations, seeing that the operations for the past year have shewn a profit. This, though small, is more encouraging when compared with the results of previous year’s operations. ft is instructive and interesting to note the results of the last five years, whic h were as follows: Year ended 31st March, 1925, resulted in a loss of £6lO 5s 6d. Year ended 31st March, 1926, neither i loss nor gain. Year ended 31st March, 1927, neither

loss nor gain. Year ended 31st March, 1928, resulted in a loss of £203 15s 7cl. Year ended 31st March, 1929, resulted in a gaiy of £4B 2s 4d. So that for the year under review was £251 17s lid better than the previous year, and it was £251 12s 7d ’>et f er than the average of the previous lour years. It sh'Mild.• further he noted that the ’ fo m “Rad Debts” of £lsl 19s lOd, is an amount that has been carried dong for several years in the hope ' hat it might be recovered; and, although it has been considered advisable to write it off during this year’s operations, it should be recognised that those debts were not incurred during "bis year’s operations. Therefore, strictly speaking, this year’s operations have been, to that extent, more profitable than appears on the balance sheet.

It may be explained that had this amount of “ Bad Debts” been written off during the previous 'four years, this vear’s operations would have shown £2OO 2s 2d profit; or would have been r ‘44l 12s 5d better than the average of the previous four years. The result, therefore, is certainly of an encouragng nature.

“ Depreciation,” amounting to £238, being equal to 5 per cent on the property of the Company, has been debit’d to Profit and Loss Account. On the credit side of the Profit and boss Account it will be seen that the tern “Lime Sales £1,708 8s 3d,” compared with the previous year, shews an ncrease of £SB 18s 4d.

In respect of “ Liabilities,” it will be seen that “Capital” has increased by £3l 19s 6d, being on account of adlitional shares having been taken up by those seeking to secure the prefermtial discount of 10 per cent., as pven to shareholders.

While the item “ Sundry Creditors, £539. 15s. 4d,” has been increased by £32. Bs, thej'.itetn ~‘f.Batik Overdraft, £384 13s 4d,” has been decreased by io less an amount than £509 13s lOd. This is a most gratifying result, seeing that such decrease in overdraft hfis not been accomplished at the expense if indebtedness in other beyond that above mentioned. . On the “ Assets ” side of the baltnce sheet, the most noticeable item is hat of “ Sundry Debtors £342 19s 1.0 d.” This has been reduced from the; nrevious year by £249 8s 3d, but as the item “Bad Debts £lsl 19s lOd,” '•as included in the latter amount, lie actual reduction by means of payments was £97 B,s sd. Even so, it is a decided improvement on the previous vear’s records.

It will be of interest to shareholders to learn that there has been an increase in output over last year of 59 tons, 2 cwt—the respective quantities, being 961 tons' 13 cwt for 1928 and 1020 tons 15 cwt for 1929. The wages cost was, in respect of the year ended 31st March, 1928, £IO4B Is 6d, and For the year under review £967 Os 6d. You will be equally interested to ’earn that the wages cost per ton has been reduced ’from 21s during 1928, to 18s lid during the year under review—being a difference of 2s 10 id per ton. It may further be stated that comparing the average wages paid per ton of lime produced in respect of the previous four years, the reduction for this year amounts to no less than 4s 3Jd per ton. From the foregoing, it is reasonable .to assume that with an increased demand for lime, and with the reduced cost bf production maintained, there would be every prospect of the Company recovering itself. It rests, therefore, with the shareholders, who are users of lime, or who should be users, to give better support to the enterprise that was initiated, and has been carried on, purely in their interests.