8 June, 1908.] Ex-port of Honey. 373 



EXPORT OF HONEY. 



Writing from London on 27th Marcli, the Agent-General for Victoria 

 (Hon. J. W. Taverner) has furnished tlie Minister of Agriculture (Hon. 

 Geo. Swinburne, M.L.A.) with the following report relative to the export 

 of Victorian honey to the United Kingdom : — 



" On Tuesday last I saw Messrs. Cosmelli, Meyer and Company, 

 leading honey brokers of this city, whom I have consulted on previous 

 occasions. They are very anxious to do what they can to increase the 

 honev trade, and as you will see by the copy of a fully detailed letter 

 enclosed they are even prepared to join with the producer if necessary. 

 The honey they refer to, being the only samples I have here, they were 

 very satisfied with, and they think there should be no difficulty in netting 

 2|d. per lb. So far as Victorian honey is concerned it must not be for- 

 gotten that some honey sent over has the flavor of eucalyptus, and other 

 honeys have had the flavor of tallow. The three honeys I submitted to 

 Messrs. Cosmelli, Meyer and Company were: — 



JB Honey (Messrs. W. J. and F. Barnes, East Melbourne), Ben Nevis 

 (extracted and bottled by Mr. C. B. Sumsion, Oakleigh), and Swallow 

 and Ariell's Pure Garden Honey. 



Mr. Meyer informed me after tasting them that, if our producers con- 

 tinue to deliver similar honey, they (Messrs. Cosmelli, Meyer and Com- 

 pany) could sell 50 to 60 tons per year. Messrs. Cosmelli, Meyer and 

 Company is one of the leading firms here and if you could induce others 

 engaged in the industry to send consignments to them or co-operate with 

 them you may depend upon getting the best results. Our exports to 

 various places come to only 8 tons yearly so there is room for expansion 

 if our people will only send across honey of a uniform and good quality. 



Messrs. Lyons and Company receive an annual vote from the South 

 Australian Government for placing their wines on all their menus, and 

 thev undertook to take a certain quantity of South Australian honey. 

 I am informed that the honey is put in lb. bottles. The retail trade 

 people prefer to buy it in bulk and to put up the article in their own 

 jars and bottles. As you know, my advice has always been to be ex- 

 tremely careful not to interfere with the system of distribution of produce 

 in this country, as in the long run it would recoil on the producers. I 

 venture to say that our produce will derive larger returns from the ca.sk 

 trade. Compared with South Australia the Victorian honey trade with 

 the United Kingdom is more than double, and capable of large expansion 

 if our people will send over regular supplies of good honey. Your pro- 

 posal to make advances upon properly graded honey should result in in- 

 creasing our trade. I am not afraid of the prices, provided the product 

 is right and suitable for this market." 



Copy of Letter from Messrs. Cosmelli, Meyer & Co. 



24 Eastcheap, London, E.C., 



24th March, 1908. 

 The Hon. J- ^V. Taverner, 



Agent-General for Victoria, 



142 Queen Victoria-street. 



Dear Sir, 



Referring to the visit this morning of our Mr. Meyer as regards the_ importation 

 of Victorian honev, we should like to give you a little essay on this article in 

 order to facilitate' anv future business which 'may come along. The honey might 

 be used for several purposes, chiefly for manufacturing as a substitute for high class 



