Marketing of Honey

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 163, 5 April 1933, Page 11

Marketing of Honey

Sir, —Mr Hillary, president of the National Beekeepers’ Association, is more prone to note the mote in his brother’s eye rather than sense any impairment of his own. For instance, he says,- “the only levy this year will be in regard to the brand.” Does he overlook the fact that early in February the Department of Agriculture, gazetted the order fixing the levy upon honey for export at one-eighth of a penny per lb? Again he says, ‘.‘this expenditure gradually built up a large stable market for 500 tons of honey.” He does not say how long it takes the Board’s London agency to dispose of that amount. Since the beginning of 1930 the total quantity of honey exported from this Dominion was under 300 tons, of which 70 tons were destroyed by fire last year, and yet the chairman of the board stated that there were still 455 tons on hand with the London agents at the beginning of this year. With regard to the purchase of “Imperial Bee” brand, he says, “The soundness and urgency of this action cannot be disputed.” With the above amount still to be dealt with by the London depot it is manifest that it must continue to use the brand for the unsold balance, which will take over a year to complete. The chairman of the Control Board has definitely announced that honey exported this season must he sold outside that agency, and therefore, cannot use the brand. Why then the urgency? Mr Hillary most particularly refers in his letter to the levy upon export to pay for - the “Imperial Bee” . trade-mark. It should be noted that the chairman of the Board first proposed the amount of one penny per lb., but found it unpopular. He later suggested }d per lb., now we have Mr Hillary’s assurance that it will not be more than id per lb. These rediwtions have been made in six weeks. -Lae vital point is. if beekeepers once assent to any amount at all, it may be as readily raised at some future time on the grounds that the total amount collected is insufficient for the purpose required.—l am, etc “ H. GEDDES, Rotorua, March 31.