THE BRITISH-NEW ZEALAND MEAT AND PRODUCE MARKET. CHRISTCHURCH, June 15.

Otago Witness, Issue 2675, 21 June 1905, Page 10

THE BRITISH-NEW ZEALAND MEAT AND PRODUCE MARKET. CHRISTCHURCH, June 15.

The first annual mooting of the Biitish New Zealand Meat and Produce Company was held to-da-y. The report stated that; the company had purchased four shops in London, and was doing a fair trade. Several contracts were entered into with the London County Council for the supply o£ New Zealand meat to public institutions, at a price which left the company a fair margin of profit. Though the price of stock had been high, the company had obtained from all parts of the colony a full share of the consignments, and the account ! sales, through judicious handling in Lon- ■ don, had proved highly satisfactory to the I shippers. The baJance sheet of the London offioe showed a loss of £517 19s lOd, and ' that of the Christchurch office a loss of £632 Os 9d. The loss on the Soho shop was £134 5s Id, on the Dalston shop £35 9s 7d, and on the Finsbury Park shop £45 j 2s 2d, while the profit on the Ealing shop i was £17 12s lOd. j The Chairman (Mr M. C. Orbell), in. j moving the adoption of the report a-nd j balance sheet, pointed out that some of the j expenditure was of a non-recurring characi ter. It was October last before the first; shop was purchased, and, as the balance sheet at the London office was made up to December 31, shareholders would understand that not much progress could bo made in so short a period. Since the date of the balance the position had so materi1 ally improved that the directors considered that the business was now being steadily established on a satisfactory basis. .Referring to the contracts obta-ined by the comj pany he said that Mr H. F. Recce (the , company's manager in London) considered t that this class of business was worked at • less expense, and was safer and more easily j conducted, than shops, and for those reaJ sons he was not pushing the shop business 'at present. The supply of meat had given I satisfaction, as was proved by the fact that one of the first contract 6 had been renewed for a further period. The amount of drafts against consignments afloat (£1190) was undoubtedly small, but up to February 28, the date of the balance at the Christchuroh offioe, that branch of business I was very small indeed, as compared with ; what the company had since been doing on. : consignment. It was since the date of the balance that the company had received an impetus, which indicated that it was receiving more fully the confidence of farmers. During the past three months the consignments had exceeded anticipations. The company's operations had been retarded by the want of more capital, but ha was sanguine that this would be forthcoming 1 , because sheepowners were realising the advantages of a company working solely in. their interests. The report and balance sheet were adopted. Messrs Kaye and Overton were re-elected directors.