IMPERIAL SUPPLIES.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 June 1918, Page 7

IMPERIAL SUPPLIES.

HUGE BUSINESS OF DEPARTMENT. £40,333,000 AT MAY 31st. The huge business done by the Imperial Supplies Department on behalf of the British Government involves no less a sum than £64,383,985. The department is sole purchaser, on account of the Imperial Government, of the whole exportable surplus of New Zealand wool, meat, cheese, scheelite, and, till recently, butter and hides; and the purchases for tlie twelve months, ending "May 31st, WIS, are a a under: Frozen meat 7,112,883 Cheese ■ 4,849,4320 Butter 2,764,411 Scheelite 31,152 Wool 13,703/207 Slipe wool ........ 1,058,378 Sheepskins 758,250 Hides 588,660 Other business 1,022.231 £31,859,341. The qualities purchased are:— 030,493 quarters 'beef, 1,967,309 carcases mutton, 1,970,238 carcase* lamb, 511,159 crates cheese, 589, 533 boxes butter, 114 tons scheelite, 559,035' bales wool, 1,547,342 sheepskins, 314,910 hides, 34,801 bales freezing companies' slipe woo!In addition, the department- has purchased other products to the following amounts:—Glaxo, .£303,425; condensed milk, £40,474; canned rabbits, £43,200; frozen rabbits, £30,353. ' In all since it commenced operations, the department had purchased produce, until May 31st, 1918, to the following values: — 'Total purchases to May 31st and dates purchase operations commenced are as follow: Produce. Payments. Purchase £ Began. Frozen meat .. . 24/142,303 3/3/15 Wool 24,501,587 1/12/10 Slipe wool .... 1,870,072 3/3/17 Rheenskins ... 860.271 5/2/17 Hides 703,471 19/3/17 Scheelite 102.942 20/9/1,1 Cheese 8,307,704 4/11 /15 Butter 2,70*1,411 20/11/17 Other business .. 1,158,334 (Various dates).