OUR LOCAL INDUSTRIES.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 9014, 29 January 1895, Page 5

OUR LOCAL INDUSTRIES.

ARE THEY PROPERLY SUPPORTED? AN IMPARTIAL ENQUIRY. [BY OCR SPECIAL REPORTER.] No. VIL—THE BISCUIT AND CONFECTIONERY INDUSTRY. One of the most prosperous, as it is one of the most improving, of our industries is that devoted to the manufacture of biscuits and confectionery. Like that of agricultural implements, it has almost succeeded in driving the imported article out of the market. In continuation of the series of articles which have appeared in The Press, an interview was had yesterday with an importer, and following upon this one with Mr McDougall, the proprietor of the very extensive biscuit and confectionery works known as Aulsebrook and Co.'a. WHAT THEIr-I'ORTER SAYS. " Well," said the gentleman interviewed, " I hardly know what to say iv the matter of the importation of biscuits and confectionery. The local article ia so good, and the price so satisfactory, that we do not care to import to compete with them. Tbe time was when we used to import a considerable quantity of English-made biscuits of all kinds, but now we are shut up to a very few lines of the most expensive and more delicate kinds. Even in some of these the local manufacturer is competing, and very soon there will be no import at all of biscuits. The same thing applies to confectionery. At one time there used to be a large import of Englishmade confectionery, more particularly in the line of Scotch mixtures. Bub the loca manufacturer has cut in and run these ordinary lines quite out of the market. It is now* only in the finer descriptions of French confectionery that there is any importation. The higher classes of chocolates, j too, are still imported, bub as with biscuits so with confectionery ; it is only a question of time, and there will be no more imports- j tion. The colonial manufacturers are taking more pains in the get-up of their goods, and they are also bringing in machinery which enables them to produce many of the finer flavoured lines. The consequence is that, with the freshness of the local article, coupled with the fact that it can be sold as cheaply as the imported, there is really no reason for our importing confectionery. The colonial makers too have during the past year or so greatly added to the lines they manufacture. The time was when the ordinary boiled lpllies was the only kind made in the colony. Since then, however, the colonial makers have added from time to time a number of specialities so that any one wanting them can get a wide range of selection." THE MANUFACTURER'S SIDE. An interview was next sought with Mr McDougall, who, as has already been stated, is the proprietor of the well known business of Aulsebrook and Co. **' With regard to biscuits," said Mr McDougall, •'The main importation is ab Christmas time when the, merchants import a few lines of the most expensive sorts, which it would not pay us to manufacture. Even the small lota that the merchants sell remain on the grecer's shelves for some considerable time. In fact, the English biscuits before being brought into consumption are from six to eight months old, which does not improve their quality. There is another point to which I would direct your attention and that is that the majority of English biscuits are made, not as here, with good fresh butter, bub with oleomargarine. The local-made article, which we manufacture has almost entirely shut out of the market the English-made goods ; the only exception being what I have told you. We can, and do, manufacture biscuits here of as good quality in lines, that we deal in as they can in England, and can supply them, as cheaply as they could be made in London. When to the cost in England is added freight, duty, _c, you will see that our locally-made biscuits are not only fresher, bub far cheaper. to the conanmer. The industry of biscuit-making in our midst should be liberally patronised, inasmuch as it stimulates local production. All the butter, flour, eggs, &c, used in our biscuit factory is. locally produced, and therefore the industry aces as a stimulus to others. Then there is the immense quantity of coal, labels, &c. which we use, all of which are purchased in the local market. • HOW THE INDUSTRY IS PROGRESSING. ' s , "We have lost no opportunity, I may say, of improving our manufactures by importing the latest and most improved machinery, &c. This enables us to produce all the different lines of biscuits quite as well as the Eoglish factories, except as I have explained, the very finest and most expensive sorts, for which there is a very limited demand at present. We have extended our trade throughout the whole of New Zealand, and have ab present six travellers constantly on the road, supplying, as we. do, from the North Cape to Stewart's Island. The Maoris, I may say, are no inconsiderable, customers for our biscuits, and we send a large quantity up the Wanganui river and inland from Gisborne. This ia principally what is known as cabin bread or ship biscuits. The sale of this description of biscuits to tbe steamers, &c, has now almost ceased in consequence of their baking their own bread. When the Spanish cruiser Nautilus was here, we supplied her with some eight tons of cabin bread, together with some of the finer sorts, the captain expressing his entire satisfaction ab being able to obtain such good biscuit. It is somewhat strange that our Australian cruisers which are on this station, and very frequently in New Zealand waters, do nob patrouise local industry in the shape of bisouits, &c, seeing that they could get it fresh instead of being about a year old. At present they are supplied from the dockyard stores at Home, and ib may be in store there for months before it is served out. Here we could supply the best article in unlimited quantities as cheaply as it could be gob at home, and give il quite fresh. You ask mc the number of kinds of bisouits we produce. Well, these include some seventy different lines. Amongst 'these our. leading lines are water biscuits, which you ' will see every where, nice biscuits of different flavours, lunch biscuits of all kinds, Zealacdia mixed which includes differeub kinds, ginger nuts, tea biscuits, _c Of these we _ell tons during the year, the demand being very great. In fancy biscuits we make specialities, such as macaroons, ratafias, raspberries, _c, which are gradually making their way. We are also just now making new water and wine biscuits; the former are shorter than our usual water biscuit and the latter is flavoured with vanilla. Some time ago we tried an experiment of sending Home half a ton of our lunch biscuits. Tbe result was very successful so far as it went, as they brought the same price in the Home market as we sell them for here, but the cost of freight being so heavy precluded from shipping more. If the freight were not so high we could open up a very good trade with Eugland in this lino. A special line that we have been making during the past few years is Passover cakes for the Jewish residents. We make a very great deal of this and send it throughout New Zealand. We have to be exceedingly particular in the manufacture, the Rabbi generally superintending it, and we are the only makers of Passover cakes in New Zealand. We have developed quite an industry in the manufacture of cakes, including a cheap line called Nonsuch; and we also manufacture wedding cakes largely. We have added to our other manufactures the production of self-raising flour, for which we find a very good demand.

THE CONFECTIONERY INDUSTRY.

" Some five years ago, strange as it may seem, the firm manuf_ctured no confectionery at ail, How the industry has developed sinoe then, may be judged from the fact that we now turn, out about a ton a day. In the department of confectionery as in biscuits the local manufacturer has completely shut out the imported article, with the exception of the higher priced chocolates and fancy ham. Leaving oat the special lines,

to which I will refer presently, wej now manufacture some fifty different! descriptions of confectionery. These range! from the ordinary boiled to superior flavoured sorts. In addition to these we manufacture all kinds of lozenges,! having one of the latest improved machines \ for the production of this kind of confec- j tionery. Iv this department we make over twenty different kinds. Then there are chemists' lozenges of different sorts, which are specially hand made. It is necessary in connection "with this class of goods that an extra finish should be given to ttrem, which cannot be done by the machines. The flavouring, too, is a special matter which has to be very carefully attended to, and our) productions in this department will' favourably compare with the imported article. This is proved by the fact that some of the largest drug importing houses take considerable quantities of these goods - from us. We manufacture ten different kinds of chemists' lozenges, including eucalyptus lozenges and jujubes. Within the last two or three years we have, also developed a new line, viz., the manufacture of jam goods, such as jujubes, pastilles, gelatines, &c. Before we took up this line it was almost exclusively confined to the imported article, but since our manufactures have gone on the market we are gradually lessening the importation. In the matter of sundries we make caramels of all flavours, fondants, liqueurs, comfits of all kinds, and Royal mixtures. Auother line into which we have. recently gone is the making of packet table jellies of all flavours, a line which appears to have met with a good deal of favour. As I have already said, the finer lives of chocolates are still imported, but we are] making all the ordinary lines of chocolates] to the number of thirteen different kinds. These include chocolate creams, tablets, drops, &c. In connection with candied peel, we import the raw skins in, brine fromi Messina. We cure them, au&. then candy them, and have developed quite a large industry in this direction. The**e is t now no Eoglish peel imported, the quality we turn out being so satisfactory. We can also sell' the peel as cheaply as it can be bought in London. We ordinarily employ some seventy bands, but this number is largely augmented at Christmas time, when our busy period comes on."