PRODUCER MEAT COMPANIES

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27427, 13 August 1954, Page 10

PRODUCER MEAT COMPANIES

AUCKLAND AND OTAGO CONCERNS £1,000,000 SUPPORT FROM MEAT BOARD FUNDS (New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 12.

“The New Zealand Meat Producers* Board, with the approval of the Government, has undertaken to use its funds to support the operation of two producer co-operative meat trading organisations,” said the Minister of Agriculture (Mr K. J. Holyoake) today. “The two organisations concerned are Producer Meats, Ltd., Auckland, and the Primary Producers’ Co-opera-tive Society (Otago), Ltd. “In each case the extent of the support will be £500,000, on terms and conditions to be arranged between the board and the organisations concerned.” Mr Holyoake said that support would take the form of guaranteed overdrafts with trading banks. The detailed control of the operations of the organisations would be the responsibility of the directors, who would carry out the general policy as agreed by a joint committee of the organisations and the board established for the purpose. “These producer co-operatives were established some years ago,” said Mr Holyoake, "and in effect acted as opendoor agencies for individual producers. Under bulk-purchase conditions, whereby meat was sold to the United Kingdom on fixed f.o.b. values, the operations of the organisations have been simple ,and successful. With the return to free trading, their operations will become more complicated, and greater financial resources will be necessary. “It was for this reason, associated with the desire of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board to maintain co-operative open-door channels, that it was decided to give financial support to the organisations.”