PRICE OF BUTTER

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 59, Issue 45, 2 December 1938, Page 8

PRICE OF BUTTER

CHARGE OF 1/7 REPORTED.

CRITICISM BY MINISTER

(Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Dec. 1

A published report that some grocers were intending to charge Is 7d a pound for butter over the counter was brought to the notice of tlie Minister for Marketing (the Hon. W. Nash), who described this price as altogether too high and unfair when compared with the rise in wholesale rates.

Mr Nash said that the Government had the power to iix the price to the consumer as well as the wholesale price; bat he added that up to the moment it had not contemplated any action.

THE POSITION IN WELLINGTON. PACKING IN CARTONS DISLIKED. (Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Dec. 1. The new retail price of butter in Wellington, from and including today, will be Is 6d a, pound in some shops and Is 6}d in others. “Our price will be advanced from Is 4d to Is 6dl a. pound as from noon to-day,” said the managing-director of one ,group of Wellington stores carrying on both cash and credit business.

“I will not say that that will be the final price,” he added. “It may be increased to Is 6}d if an agreement is come to by 'Wellington retailers. As a matter of fact, the gross profit of l-)d a pound we will be making heneeforwards on the increased wholesale cost is barely sufficient to pay wages, without allowing for other items in our overhead!. A profit of lid a pound on a cost of Is 4}d means a margin of only 9 per cent., whereas wo should be entitled to at least 12} per cent., which would represent an increase of 2d.

“Aftother appreciable difference has been made by the fact that the butter now comes to us packed in cartons instead of in wooden boxes,” he added. “It is impossible to dispose of the cartons, but previously we could obtain 9d each for butter boxes. On a weekly turnover of, say, 100 boxes, that meant an additional profit of £3 15s. All these factors should probably be taken-into account when the final retail price is fixed.” “We must set our new price at Is 6}d a pound,” a director of another Wellington grocery company said, “but if we could continue as we formerly did and buy butter in bulk at the guaranteed price and wrap it ourselves we could retail it at Is 5d a pound and make a slightly greater profit than we can make from today.”