RP, Much of the fruit and vegetables canned in Hastings comes from China. Local producers are unable to grow anywhere near the quantity required, or sell it to the cannery at a price the consumer would be willing to pay. They [the growers]export their wares at top prices, we import cheap product for canning.
Quick example, canned tomatoes 400gm size from the USA, were selling at Pack and Save for 78 cents a can. Fresh NZ grown tomatoes, $8.00 a kilo.
Fresh Squid is an extremely cheap product in the shops, with beautiful fresh squid skirts selling for only a few dollars a packet, whole quid cost very little also. I can't see any huge profits when the retail price is so low. It maybe the home market is so small, and squid is not a popular dish, it would not be viable to purchase the machinery to process the product entirely on home soil.
My wife actually works at Watties consumer services, so I know they will imports product when they can't get it locally (NZ/AUS). The consumer still expects to be able to buy product, even when its not in season. (then they complain because its not locally sourced)..... They buy product from all over the globe, not just China.
I bought some Hoki during the week, $19.00 a kilo, who can blame me with snapper at $48.00 a kilo?
RP, I am guessing, The overseas' fishing fleet usually have a freezer ship working in tandem, it's just a matter of the fishing vessels transferring their catch and it is snap frozen for the journey to an Asian port.
Possibly/probably, the cost of double, sometimes triple handling at a home port is where the problems and expense lie. Whilst your concerns are fully understandable, especially your wish to see more people employed, the cost to the consumer, the housewife, would be to vastly increase the cost of the product, thereby adding to inflation figures.
Here is Hawke's Bay, especially in Hastings, we have a huge anomaly when it comes to employment. WINZ have large numbers on their books as unemployed job seekers, and yet orchard owners are paying fares, accommodation and health costs to bring in labour from the Pacific Islands. These workers have to be paid the going rate, they are not cheap labour.
Here is Hastings there are really large numbers of Islanders, people with an excellent work ethic. They are not taking jobs from locals, locals just won't do this kind of work.
In the ports where those trawlers work from, I don't know if there is an unemployment problem, but perhaps WINZ could step in and help employers take on the staff needed for home processing, this instead of paying out unemployment benefits.
Any suggestion such as that will be seen as bashing the unemployed, this constant moan is far easier than viewing it as a way of helping people gain work skills so they can support themself.
Hangler the economist eh. Independent, Sanford and Sealord profit margin is being protected of course. How did poor old Big Business cope before globalisation and China. If they can't afford to process them in NZ then they don't deserve quota.
Rex, funny you should mention being an economist: I ask you to consider. racepics has suggested fish could be processed here in NZ rather than ship it offshore, then have to re-import the product back here for retail sale.
Please step with me into the world of stark realism. There is a great need in NZ for jobs for Maori, people who figure unacceptably highly in the unemployment statistics. Twelve years ago, Sealord, one of the largest fish handlers in NZ, became part of a settlement under a Treaty of Waitangi.
This treaty settlement gave the Maori owners/controllers an ideal opportunity to promote and create work for local Iwi. Sadly, as has been mentioned, the work goes offshore perhaps to boost the corporate purse. I believe that tends to put a slightly different slant on what has been suggested.
This National Govt is hel bent on crush any NZ small business . JK and his over paid mates like Fletchers are robbing us blind . It will be interesting to see where the profits from the big Auckland development go . You can tell which have been processed offshore by the nasty grey colour . I have heard that our fish is also processed in Auz. Free trade yea right we export good stuff and import crap.
Phill, I have seen fish advertised as 'New Zealand snapper' far cheaper in Aussie than we can buy it here.
Yesterday's price in Hastings $48.00 a kilo. That is damn near twice the price of good quality steak. A boat goes to sea, works the nets of lines, in many cases the fish is marketed the following day. A farmer usually needs to feed and medicate a cattle beast for nearly two years before it goes to the works.
Some would say this anomaly is due to costs. A fisherman does not need to feed fish, and the cost of a boat would be far less than a present the cost of land.
Late last week, Pak and Save in Hastings were selling whole gurnard, these were not small fish, most were between 750gm and a kilo, they had bins of them. The price ... two for $4.00. That is a huge difference to the $29.95 a kilo for fillets.
This morning, Kahawhai were selling at $9.98 each. By the looks of the fish, they actually swam to Asia and back. Hoki fillets were retailing at $12.95 a kilo.
If the weather holds I hope to wet a line tomorrow, I am suffering from withdrawal symptoms.
They were doing the same today at Marine Parade, Rex, only during the middle of the day. The guy alongside me had a nice lemon, I would guess at three kilos. The larger of the red cod in this picture was comfortably over two kilos, the dam thing was positively obese. Beautiful white fillets though, they joined me for dinner this evening ... very nice too.
Great to have fishing like this in the winter, sure kills any thoughts of packing the rods away for the cooler months.
on 30/6/2013, 6:29 am
but Hoki is expensive fish, surely there is enough profit in that to process it locally and support NZ jobs.
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