TATUA DAIRY COMPANY.

Putaruru Press, Volume VIII, Issue 352, 21 August 1930, Page 1

TATUA DAIRY COMPANY.

money was being deducted from all suppliers except one man, who was charged id per lb instead. The company had probably over £3OOO in cash invested in various ways. . The present factory would last a good many years, so that when the time came to rebuild the company would have accumulated a considerable sum. Personally, he regarded a factory as merely something to cover the machinery, and thought nothing would be gained by building a concrete factory.

ANNUAL MEETING. I i [ Very Successful Season. With a balance-sheet before them showing a total payment for the season of Is 7.68 d per pound cl butterfat, suppliers of the Tatua Dairy Company were in a cheerful frame of mind at the annual meeting last week. Mr. W. Darrall, chairman of directors, presided over an attendance of about 30 suppliers. Series of Good Sales. Reviewing the season's operations, the chairman said the directors had been fortunate in making a series of good sales. The manager had taken up standardisation from the start and he was able to make the most of it. That had helped very considerably. The yield had been high, and this, coupled with the good prices realised, had made the company the envy of many others. “ I think this is the largest cheese producing unit in the Auckland province,” continued the chairman. The output was 960 tons of cheese last

season. There had been some suggestions that the factory was employing too many men, but figures showing the amount of wages paid per ton of cheese produced showed that the factory was not overstaffed. The Dominion average was £3 15s per ton of cheese, while the Tatua Company’s was only £3 6s 5d per ton, or 8s 7d per ton lower than the Dominion average for cheese factories. This low scale of expenses obtained over the whole of the company’s operations, and the low manufacturing costs were reflected in the high payout for the season. Highest Quality Wanted.

While the directors were satisfied with the prices, they were not entirely satisfied with the quality of their cheese. They must leave no stone unturned to make their product the best that could possibly be made. The directors wanted suppliers to cooperate by bringing along good milk and bringing it along at a reasonable time, so that the staff would not be kept waiting. If the factory staff did not have the best raw milk at an early hour they could not turn out the best cheese. Fortunately there were very few suppliers who came in late. If milk was received late the staff had to work overtime and this increased manufacturing costs. Reserve Fund. The directors were endeavouring without reducing payments to suppliers to build up a reserve in readiness for the time when it might be necessary to rebuild the factory. “ Your will see from the balancesheet that you are in a strong position,” added the chairman. “ You have £2OOO on fixed deposit. This reserve will save you taking up fresh shares when the time comes to rebuild.” Interest earned by the finance of suppliers in the purchase of cows had also been put by as a reserve. Share Deductions. Mr. C. Lynch asked what was the policy of the directors in regard to the issue of share capital. The chairman said there had been no change of policy, and share

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