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FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 1980
PRIMARY PRODUCERS SAY FAREWELL TO NICHOLS
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MORE THAN 500 PRIMARY PRODUCERS REPRESENTING THE FARMING, FISHING AND FOOD INDUSTRIES TONIGHT TOASTED THE DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES, MR TED NICHOLS WHO WILL PROCEED ON VACATION LEAVE NEXT MONTH PRIOR TO HIS RETIREMENT IN JUNE.
CHAIRMAN OF THE ORGANISING COMMITTEE, MR KO KOK SAID THAT DURING THE PAST 20 YEARS MR NICHOLS SPARED NO EFFORTS TO PROMOTE AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND WHOLESALE MARKETING,
CITING A NUMBER OF DEVELOPMENTS DURING THE YEARS, MR KO SAID, *THEY ALL CLEARLY REFLECT THE ACHIEVEMENTS GAINED BY MR NICHOLS FÖR THE LOCAL COMMUNITY.
+BECAUSE OF HIS RETIREMENT, WE WILL SURELY MISS HIM. HOWEVER, WE ARE HAPPY TO NOTE THAT HE WILL HAVE A GOOD SUCCESSOR. MR JOHN RIDDELL-SWAN HAS BEEN APPOINTED DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES AND HE HAS BEEN WITH THE DEPARTMENT FOR MORE THAN 23 YEARS, SAID MR KO.
MR NICHOLS JOINED THE DEPARTMENT AS ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN 1959 WHEN HONG KONG HAD 10 400 FISHING BOATS OF WHICH 7 000 WERE SAILING BOATS AND ONLY 3 300 VESSELS WERE MECHANISED. NOW THERE WERE ONLY 350 SAILING BOATS WHILE THE NUMBER OF MECHANISED VESSELS EXCEEDS 5 000.
IN 1959 THE ANNUAL TOTAL FISH HARVEST WEIGHED 52 000 TONNES AND THIS WAS INCREASED TO 86 000 TONNES IN 1979.
THE TOTAL ACREAGE OF FISH PONDS INCREASED FROM 239 HECTARES IN 1959 TO 1 963 HECTARES IN 1979.
→THE NUMBER OF FISH MARKETING ORGANISATION PRIMARY SCHOOLS HAS INCREASED FROM EIGHT TO 13 AND IN ADDITION, ONE TECHNICAL SECONDARY SCHOOL HAS ALSO BEEN ESTABLISHED TO TRAIN YOUNGSTERS INTERESTED IN THE FISHING INDUSTRY, SAID MR KO.
MORE THAN 3 600 STUDENTS NOW ATTEND SCHOOLS OPERATED BY THE FISH MARKETING ORGANISATION.
MR KO ADDED THAT DURING THE 20-YEAR PERIOD, MUCH HAD BEEN DONE ON FISHERMEN'S HOUSING SCHEMES WITH THE TOTAL NUMBER OF RESIDENTIAL UNITS INCREASED FROM 48 TO 731.
ON AGRICULTURE, MR KO SAID THAT IN 1959 THERE WERE 1 793 HECTARES OF VEGETABLE LAND AND THE PRESENT FIGURE EXCEEDS 3 489 HECTARES. THE PRODUCTION OF VEGETABLES SHOWS AN INCREASE FROM 1.4 MILLION PICULS TO 3.2 MILLION PICULS IN THE SAME PERIOD.
+CURRENTLY 2 000 FARMS HAVE SPRINKLER IRRIGATION SYSTEMS AND 2 900 HOUSEHOLDS OF FARMERS USE ROTARY CULTIVATORS, HE SAID.
/DURING THE