DAIRY COMPANY AFFAIRS.

Waipa Post, Volume XX, Issue 1244, 18 May 1922, Page 5

DAIRY COMPANY AFFAIRS.

ADDRESS BY MR SINCLAIR,

MANY IMPORTANT SUBJECTS

Speaking at Rototuna, Mr A. J. Sinclair (assistant-general manager of the New Zealand Dairy Company), said that in the short space of twelve months the Company had increased its capacity so that this year it was easl- - able to deal with the output of 16,000 tons. This had represented an outlay of £67,538 in additions in plant, land and buildings in connection with the butter branch. The assets of the Company stood at £B€s,000, but only £500,000 had been called up from shareholders to achieve this. The total turnover for the year would be £3,500,0000, which, despite the increased output,-was one million less than last year's turnover. This explained why the farmer was hard up. The Company had now 7568 suppliers, and, judging from letters and complaints received from them, 7500 of these were hard up at the present time. (Laughter). Steady Rise in Quality..

The quality of the Company's butter was very high, the average grade for the season having been 91.54. The average grade for the year before the amalgamation was 89.6, and credit for the steady rise in quality each year since then was, Mr Sinclair said, due to the system of cream- grading which had been adopted. The cheese grades had not been so good, and the management intended giving serious attention to this branch with the object of improving the quality. Sale of Goods.

With regard to the sale of goods, Mr Sinclair mentioned that £200,000 worth had been sold to suppliers during the season. Many lines were not in stock at the. Company's depot in Auckland, so orders for such lines had been passed on to other merchants, and sent out direct by them. This had resulted in many irritating mistakes and delays, so for the future the Company intended to cut out a lot of the smaller lines and only deal in the larger lines to be supplied from its own depot in Auckland. A Rainy Day.

Mr Sinclair mentioned that £32,000 was out to suppliers for the purchase of dairy stock. The company had been criticised for charging *9 per cent for these advances, but*with this 2 per cent above bank rate it had provided for a rainy day. The rainy day came—"it poured," said Mr Sinclair, amid laughter—but there was this reserve to lean on, and the company would come out all right. . But it has no money to make advances for cows this winter.

Rtetrenchmenrt.

With regard to retrenchment Mr Sinclair said that the company's wages bill had been reduced by £I6OO per week as compared with last December. At one time it had 84 men in the building department, but now had only 14. The" building department had, however, done good work, and in the erection of one factory alone had saved £3OOO as compared with the lowest tender. All managers had also had instructions to dispense with any casual labour not absolutely necessary. Mahy suppliers thought, he believed, that the salaries of the managing heads should be reduced rather than labourers be dispensed with, but this was hardly applicable, as the salaries of the management had not been increased when times were good. However, the management had gone carefully into the matter and had ascertained that if there had been no head men to pay (and presuming the company's affairs had gone on just as well without them) the savings thus effected would have meant one-twentyeighth of a penny per lb for suppliers. The total cost of administration of the company's affairs was .23d (just uvider |d per lb) the lowest in New Zealand. (Applause). Casein.

Referring to casein, Mr Sinclair said the company's" product was equal to the French lactic acid casein, and the best price was' being obtained for it, but until the cost of production could be lowered the pay out was not likely to increase. Until the company could use its own cheap coal its casein could not be made the paying proposition it should be.