C.F.M. top rate 12½ per cent

Press, 26 August 1978, Page 16

C.F.M. top rate 12½ per cent

Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, Ltd, yesterday issued the prospectus for an issue of SSM first-ranking debenture stock, with the right to accept oversubscriptions of SIM. It is the first public debenture issue by the company: the funds will be used to finance capital expenditure for works’ development purposes, and to meet further hygiene requirements of overseas markets, says the chairman (Mr I. E. O. McKellar). Interest rates offered are 12 per cent for the threeyear term, 12} per cent for five years, and 121 per cent for terms of seven, 10, 12 and 15 years. The stock of the issue is secured under a trust deed; there is available as security not less than $5OO book values of assets for each $lOO of stock, and the total interest commitment of the company, including this issue, is covered not less than three times. The trustee for the debenture holders is the Trustees Executors and Agency Company of New Zealand, Ltd. “Earlier in the year, when local money was not available, an overseas loan facility was arranged, of which only SUSIM has been drawn

down, says Mr McKellar. “Conditions have since changed and the directors now consider it prudent to limit the company’s ex-; posure to exchange risks by I attracting on-shore investment. “C.F.M. has had an exceptionally good killing sea-I son in spite of difficulties encountered with the new slaughtering and dressing techniques imposed upon the industry. “Throughput levels at high daily tallies were maintained for longer than usual, and the company had little industrial unrest, other than that arising from national issues. “As a result, the sheep i and lamb kill of more than 4,163,000 is 220,000 higher than for the previous year and the second highest recorded. Cattle and pig killings, still continuing, are ahead of the previous year’s good figures. “The effects of cost increases have been offset by higher throughput. As a consequence, profits have been maintained at about last year’s levels,” Mr McKellar says. “As at the last balance date shareholders’ funds exceeded S24M and total assets were S44M.