FREEZING MERGER

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 50, 21 May 1927, Page 4

FREEZING MERGER

WAIRARAPA AND WELLINGTON SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE Press Association. MASTERTON, Pri^. A meeting of 200 shareholders o' - Wuirurapa Frozen Meat Company tT day decided by 32,085 share votes v 1,610 to confirm the provisional ment entered into by the company V the Wellington Meat Export Co! for the merging of companies, ft 1 agreement provides that the Wairarv* Company will not renew its leased the Waingawa works from the Rit. of New Zealand. Mr. W. D. Hunt, chairman of dir* tors, explained that the eomapny s arrived at the stage where it either had to exercise its option and por chase the works from the bank f- £ 135,000 or to abandon its lease, t view of the unsatisfactory output *• Waingawa the directors recommends the latter policy. The directors cook ' not see any hope of increasing \i supply of stock under the present «;;■ ditions of freezing and not dealing k their own account. The overlie; cost was so high that they could ie induce support with rebates such a other companies were giving. Th could not hope to conduct the worh profitably in competition with economically run port works. Ngahaurang. with its own output and that of W*. ngawa combined, could work alma; to capacity and would thus be able io reduce freezing charges considerably and handle stock at a price as low as any of its competitors. Under the agreement the Wairaraja shareholders invest £50,000 in eight per cent, cumulative preference sham in the meat export company. It wls pointed out that those townspeople .: Masterton and Carterton who had r,o desire to invest in the Wellington company had been offered par value for their shares, plus six per cent, interest. Replying to a question of whether another company could work and whr. action the Meat Board would be like,; to take, Mr. Hunt stated that ny action by the Meat Board was pure; regarding the matter of a licence u export. Anyone could operate wor:> and the Government had the matter entirely in its own hands. There wii nothing to stop another company opening at Waingawa, but he failed to see how they could get sufficient orput to run the works economically*