Egmont Box Co.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIX, Issue 98, 30 August 1923, Page 7

Egmont Box Co.

ANNUAL MEETING. Tho Seventeenth annual meeting of the Egraont Box Company, Ltd., was held in tho Foresters’ Hall, Elthaiu, on Tuesday (reports tho Argus), tho chairman of directors (Mr J. B. Murdoch) presiding over a good attendance of shareholding interests and dairy company representatives. In moving the adoption of tho annual report and balance-sheet, tho chairman stated than on examining, tho state of affafrs, an improvement j in the position of the'company could readily be seen. The company was, now cutting timber at Talma and j Kakahi, tho Oluitu bush having been 1 worked out. At the first-named mill J between 15,000 and 16,000 feet <d timber of good quality was being cut i per day and was in the proportion of one third pine to two-thirds hardwood. It was now becoming difficult to obtain bush in which white pine! predominated, but supplies of hard-1

wood which the company had cut had

found a ready market. At Kakahi; only the smaller mill was working. They would bo able to operate on a more extensive scale when the Tongariro Company constructed the railway lino through from the Main Trunk to Taupo, which would open a large bush area up tho Wanganui River. This would mean a big improvement to the Box Company, as it would return the £14,000 spent in j connection with the railway. During the past year 4,500,000 feet of j timber had been cut and tho stocks now held totalled 1,000,000 feet of both batter box and cheese crate j

timbers and a further 1,500,000 feetj was available for milling, which would give a total stock of 3,000,000 feet on hand at the present time, which should be ample for immediate requirements. Tho changing ovew from butter to cheese making was making it increasingly hard for the company to meet requirements in respect to providing boxes and crates, as tho company had to maintain large stock** of timber for, both purposes, and consequently one class was often left on hand. The value of tho Box Company was to be realised when they were faced with this difficulty. No contractor would accept an undertaking under the same conditions they had to face. However, satisfactory arrangements had now been made for continuous supplies, and although tho demand for butter box timber last year was enor-l moua, they had been able to copei! with it. The year’s operations had'

shorn a. marked reduction in the cost of production, and ho hoped to announce other decreases 'in the near future. The companuy was in a fair way for running to a successful issue, now that the troublous times of four or five years ago wore negotiated. When mortgages and other liabilities were 1 reduced to a minimum if. was they’r intention either to give rebates or reduce the prices of the boxes. There was fully ten years’ Supply of timber in bush now hold by the company, and as this and the plant were practically all paid for, the assets, in his opinion, were worth £2 for every £1 shown in the

balance-sheet. Shareholders could therefore see they wore in a firstclass position. Mr A. Morton stated that the company had to make use of the Public Works Department to cart the timber from Tuhura at Is (kl per 100 ft., but the charge would be reduced by Is 4d when the Pailway Department got the line through. Replying to a question the chairman stated that the hardwood cut and sold this year amounted to 2,567,000 feet, as against 1,819,000 •during the previous twelve months, so it would be seen that the market could absorb all the hardwood they could cut.

Mr M. Power expressed the opinion that further buish or timber land should bo acquired without any increase of capital, and suggested a revaluation of assets on the basis of standing bush. lli© retiring directors, Messrs J. Wooldridge, F. Ranford, and J. S. McKay, were returned to the Board unopposed. Mr H. A. Lennon was appointed auditor at a remuneration, of 75 guineas.