Borthwick’s Hong Kong office to serve Asia

Press, 29 May 1985, Page 36

Borthwick’s Hong Kong office to serve Asia

NZPA Hong Kong By Staff Correspondent, DAVID PORTER Thomas Borthwick and Sons (N.Z.), Ltd, has become the first New Zealand meat company to set up a representative office in Hong Kong. The local general manager, Mr Richard Kidd, said the office will be concentrating on beef sales, although it would be trying to introduce some chilled lamb items locally. It will act as Borthwick’s launching pad for the Asian market, he said. Borthwick’s main interests have been in beef since the Meat Board took over sheepmeat marketing, said Mr Kidd. He criticised the board’s adoption of sole agency arrangements for sheepmeat in Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong.

Market comment in Asia had indicated dissatisfaction with the board’s approach of appointing sole agencies because importers preferred to deal directly with exporters, he said. Increases in sheepmeat

exports to Asia reported by the Meat Board since it took over the marketing were at least partly attributable to Australia not being a strong competitor over the period because of poor domestic seasons, said Mr Kidd. He has been servicing the Asian market for Borthwick for the past five years.

The board’s Asian director, Mr Graeme Harrison, in January this year strongly defended the board’s policies, especially in increasing mutton sales which, he said, had been achieved by offering consistent pricing and quality. The New Zealand Trade Commissioner in Hong Kong, Mr Greg Hedges, said lamb and mutton exports from New Zealand had risen in value terms from about SNZI.S million in the calendar year 1983 to ?NZ2.4 million in 1984.

However, taking into account the increase in volume and last July’s devaluation, the unit price appeared to have stagnated or softened slightly, said Mr Hedges. The major meat export to

Hong Kong was beef, which increased from about SNZIS.I million to ?NZ17.5 million over the same period. Mr Kidd said Japan was Borthwick’s major Asian market, but the new office would service the whole region and would be exploring the possibilities of trade in South-East Asia. Borthwick was interested in pushing portion-con-trolled beef to the restaurant, hotel and supermarket trade by attempting to get closer to end users of beef in Hong Kong. “We also felt it was necessary to have a presence close to China and that Hong Kong was the best place to be,” he said. Borthwick had established an association with a Hong Kong company, Euroasia Holdings, Ltd, whose principal, Mr Peter Lee, is involved in a joint venture with a New Zealand fishing company, Wanganui Trawlers. Mr Lee also had close contacts with China and would be working with

Borthwick to try and develop the market there, said Mr Kidd.