Ngauranga to close; Govt inquiry

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33234, 25 May 1973, Page 2

Ngauranga to close; Govt inquiry

7 Press Association) WELLINGTON, May 24. Immediately the dosing of the Ngauranga freezing works was announced today, men at the plant stopped work. A statement by the chairman of Swift (N.Z.) Ltd (Sir Clifford Plimmer) was read to the men this morning, and they voted to stop work for the rest of the day. This afternoon, the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Moyle) confirmed that an inquiry would be held into the closing of the works. Mr Moyle said the inquiry would investigate the viability of keeping the works open as a co-operative venture.

In his statement announcing the closing of the works, • Sir Clifford Plimmer said . costs involved in complying with the new meat hygiene • and pollution control re- • quirements could not be met I by the company economically. DATE UNCERTAIN Just when the works, r which was built in 1881. would close, was still not J clear late today. r Mr R. Kay, the plant manager, said killing would • continue for a while but r probably would be phased out - over the winter. The works : would not do any killing next season, which begins in Sepv tember e Mr Kay, who has been at e the works for 25 years, said e he was due to {-retire last January “but I could see the

- writing on the wall then, so I decided to stay on.” d Last night Mr Moyle au- ” thorised accountants to study e the costs of bringing the '■ Ngauranga works up to stanT dard. This might cost up to '■ Ssm. he said. Although the closing of Ngauranga was announced today, the general manager ’ of the Gear Meat Company t (Mr I. R. McDougall’) said the company intended to prot ceed on a modified scale with j setting tin a meat works in t Taumarunui. t This would be subject to s negotiations on regional det velopment with local au- - thorities, the Meat Board and the Government, he said. t At the height of the sea--1 son. the Ngauranga works t can process 6000 sljtep and ’ lambs and 200 cattie a day.

a Mr Moyle recently said bought by the company in that of New Zealand’s 41 ex- the area would be killed for; . port slaughterhouses, 10 were it in other works, which y’below the standard of Ngau- were as well or better sited e ranga. and that it would than Ngauranga. . take SlOOm to bring all the This would enable Swift’s; j country’s slaughterhouses up to continue full-scale buying to the required health stan- and trading. At the same time’ . dards. it would effect some rational“LIMITED LIFE” isation b ? the eco- . . . . nomic conditions of those r Sir Clifford Ptimmer’s other works because of- >’ statement today said that greater throughput and I because of the rising costs spread of killing, said Sir • - arising from changing con- Clifford Plimmer. i ditions in the industry, capi- “Developments along these 1 tai (hygiene and pollution re- fines also will enable the quirements) and maintenance company to retain as many i expenditure on the Ngau- as possible of its staff and . ranga plant — which had a to keep faith with its farmer ■ limited life on its present clients,” he said. 1 site — would be uneconomic. Efforts would be made to There seemed no end to find alternative employment ■ cost increases, he said. for the maximum number of ’ Under a much sounder employees, and severance I economic proposition now would be dis- ■ being developed, stock cussed.