GAINS OF VP TO 6d THROUGH SCOURING

Press, Volume C, Issue 29620, 16 September 1961, Page 6

GAINS OF VP TO 6d THROUGH SCOURING

rjAINS in favour of selling scoured wool as compared with greasy wool of up to 6d per lb are claimed by Mr L. J. R. Tucker, of W. Tucker, Ltd,, operators of the Whakatu woolscouring works, in a statement replying to Mr Ambler’s remarks.

“We are the largest scourers of farmers’ wool in New Zealand and have been in the woolscouring business since 1895.” says Mr Tucker. "We operate a solely commission woolscouring works and the business has been built up to what it is today—the biggest in New Zealand—by the results we have obtained for fanners and woolbuyers alike. These farmers have in turn regularly shipped their wool to London and new clients are trying the Napier scoured market with great results at both places. For Farmers “Last year, on behalf of farmers alone in the Hawke’s Bay, East Coast, and other areas, we scoured 16.500 bales of wool as well as a considerable quantity for buyers —about 15.000 bales—a total of 31,500 bales. In 1950 we scoured 12,000 bales all told.

Surely these figures alone prove how wrong Mr Ambler is. All New Zealand woolscourers over the last decade have considerably increased their production. “Naturally if other buyers let Mr Ambler buy scoureds at his price there would be a loss to the farmer, but there would be a terrific gain to Mr Ambler by the margin he

would be making in selling his scoured products. “If the London market is so cheap why is he not over there buying and making a fortune. I have yet to see the Bradford man miss the opportunity of making a halfpenny regardless. “Perhaps Mr Ambler could tell us (a) how much wool his firm purchased in London

last season and <b) how much in New Zealand?

“We can quote Mr Ambler any number of farmers who have split their wool clips and have had half of it scoured and sold either in London or Napier and the other half sold in the same sale in the grease. The result has been that we are now scouring the whole clip, as the gain has been as much as 6d per lb in favour of scouring after deducting expenses and allowing for loss of weight. “I agree that good long preparing wools should be left greasy or for that matter most wools that would be required for the worsted trade, but any wool, other than carbonising wool, that is for the woollen trade should be scoured in New Zealand, and that would amount to about 50 per cent of the total clip. “When working out a gain .or loss on scouring the yield factor is most important and I wonder what yields Mr Ambler is working on when he arrives at the figures he quoted. If he has not bought greasy wools and sold them on the London or Napier scoured market, what is he basing his figures on? Some Losses “There are occassions when a farmer has lost money by scouring, but by the same token a lot more farmers have lost a lot more money by selling certain lines in the grease. “We have always advocated that where wool can be improved for the market by scouring that is the wool that should be scoured.

‘‘ln summing up Mr Ambler's address I can only assume that he is finding it more difficult to buy his requirements at his limits and is therefore decrying the

method the farmers are using.”