MAIN PROBLEM OF HONEY INDUSTRY

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31420, 13 July 1967, Page 13

MAIN PROBLEM OF HONEY INDUSTRY

The problems of the honey industry were not of marketing but rather of production, the chairman of the Honey Marketing Authority, Mr J. W. Fraser, said yesterday. “If these problems of production continue, the price of honey on the local market must show a substantial rise, because of the short supply,” he said. Mr Fraser was addressing the annual conference of the

New Zealand Beekeepers’ Association.

“At present, we are on the heap, with all the difficulties of irregularity of supply and quality. It must be remembered that we can only sell what producers choose to give us. The quantity of honey available for export has been low recently because of two poor seasons and then a disastrous one. “The supply of honey to the authority’s depots at the end of last month was 566 tons, a reduction of 501 tons on last year. Apart from Mid-Canter-bury and Marlborough, below average crops were produced throughout the country,” Mr Fraser said. He said a feature of the grading last season was that either Very light pr very dark colours were received. Honeys in the extra light amber and light amber colour ranges were in short supply. “The authority has introduced two price rises during the last year on the local market. The first, in November, was to compensate for increases in packaging materials announced by carton and cannister manufacturers and the second, in April, was a result of increased labour, distribution and outer packaging costs.” A change in the authority’s policy of advertising honey in general from the authority’s own two brands of honey, had proved successful, he said. Honey was now being advertised under floral sources, instead of trade names. This was proving successful as discerning buyers were seeking the various types of honey. “A scheme which has now built up to the stage where an increase of 3 tons of honey was handled last year is the gift parcel scheme,” he said. The gift parcels of honey were made up in 51b lots and last year, 13 tons were sold throughout this medium. “In addition to sales on the local market, overseas mail orders have been forthcoming. As a result of the success of this, an overseas mail order scheme will soon be introduced for 516 tins of honey, initially in the United Kingdom and the United States,” said Mr Fraser.