FLAX GROWING.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 66, 19 March 1931, Page 4

FLAX GROWING.

COMPANY TO LIQUIDATE. NO MARKET FOR LAND. The directors of Miranui, Limited, have decided to place the company into voluntary liquidation, and a meeting of shareholders to pass the necessary resolutions is to be held at Shannon next Tuesday. •When the company was formed flax was selling on the basis of £32 5/ per ton, f.0.b., Wellington. Now the market value is not above £17, a fall of nearly 50 per cent. It is said that there is no revenue whatever from the company's area of land of any description. About eighteen months ago blight affected a considerable area of the flax and practically wiped out the crop thereon, compelling the company to put approximately 1000 acres into grass. This the company was selling at satisfactory prices up to £45 per acre. The fall in butterfat prices last spring has prevented sales of any land, and land that was then worth £45 per acre can find no market at the present time. This is the main cause of the crisis in the affairs of the company.

In view of the limited area of flax now available and the prospects of the hemp market continuing depressed, the directors decided in the interests of the shareholders generally that it would be better immediately to parcel out the lands of the company amongst the shareholders as nearly as possible in proportion to their respective shareholdings. This return of land assets is said only to have been made possible by the debenture holders waiving part of their security, so as to give shareholders an opportunity of making some recovery on their shares. According to the report of the directors, the operations of the company for the year ended May 31, 1930, resulted in a loss of £858 14/3, on milling and farming, after making allowance for depreciation on buildings and plant of £1001 2/3. In addition, it was decided to write off £2489 17/, as against grassing and cultivation, and expenses of selling, making the total written off £3348 11/3. For the year 192829 the credit balance was £11,189 10/2, and after paying a dividend of 3 per cent, absorbing £2850, and writing off preliminary expenses £1202 6/8, there was a balance of £7137 3/6, which was further reduced by the writings off shown above to £3738 11/9, which was the amount brought forward into the current year.