We also attach a copy of a statement made to the Head of the Sanitary Depart ment by a Hong Kong egg merchant-Appendix B.*
In paragraph 21 of this Report reference is made to propaganda by the New Terri- tories Agricultural Association on the subject of poultry-keeping.
Fruit and Vegetables.
15. To turn to vegetables, the two wholesale dealers, Messrs. Wong Pak-kan and Wong Kit-wan, gave interesting information to the Committee. Mr. Wong Pak-kan is one of the biggest wholesale dealers or laan in the Central Market with many years' experience.
16. There are mainly two methods by which New Territory vegetables and fruit come into his laan :
(a) Attached to the laan are men called Kai-ye, literally god-father or sponsor. They hold this title in relation to the New Territory producers. The Kai-ye goes out to the New Territory and says to the producer, "Let me sell for you, I'll lend you money without interest to assist your pro- duction. I'll provide baskets and I'll send men out to weigh your pro- duce and bring it into the laan. After the stuff has been sold through the laan from market stalls to the public, I'll bring back to you the price realised by sale to the public. For all this you will pay me commission for my work and you will pay the laan commission for the laan facili- ties". This is the kai-ye's proper business. He knows the producer. He advises him as to the line of produce required, finances him before the crop by advancing money to him for seeds, takes delivery from the main centres such as Yuen Long, Tai Po and Tsun Wan, brings the pro- duce in by lorry, gets it sold, and takes back the money to the farmer. By this system the farmer becomes his protégé and is induced to keep on supplying that particular kai-ye with vegetables and so his production is stimulated. What does the producer have to pay for all this service? He has to pay commission on the price realised at sale to the public. The commission is two fold: 6.4% is the laan's commission and 5% is the kai-ye's commission. In addition a charge is made for convey- ance which in the case of Tai Po works out at about 40 cents a picul for lorry hire.
The Kai-ye is himself financed by the laan who has to meet the overhead charges and guarantees the credit of the whole transaction. The laan commission in Hong Kong is lower than at any other place in the delta. In Kong Mun and Canton the laan charges 11% direct to the producer for laan services only.
Mr. Wong Pak-kan was unable to say how or when the Hong Kong commission had been arrived at; but to his knowledge it had been at its present figure for the last sixteen years at least.
Mr. Wong stated that the laans are getting more and more veget- ables from the New Territory every year. Prices are very low this year, but they are still getting more vegetables from the New Territory. This is due to improved facilities of transport. The lorry has made a great difference to the marketing of New Territory produce in Hong Kong, and the vehicular ferry now permits of direct transport to the Central Market.
(b) To a much smaller extent than by the above process, vegetables are also brought in to the laan from the New Territory by runners who bring in produce direct to the laan and only pay laan commission as they do not work through kai-ye. In Mr. Wong's case the business done by such runners forms less than 5% of the whole. It appears to be only in the case of such runners that the train may sometimes be used instead of a lorry.
Mr. Wong was confident not only that the existing system in fact offers an entirely adequate organisation for marketing present day New Territory produce in Hong Kong and Kowloon but that it also permits of
*Not printed.