XN000022-1986-08-18 — Page 5

MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 1986

THE INDUSTRY HAD A MAJOR ROLE TO PLAY IN SUPPLYING THE NEEDS OF LOCAL FACTORIES. IT ALSO CONTRIBUTED TO HONGKONG'S EXPORT TRADE.

IN 1985 DOMESTIC EXPORTS OF INDUSTRIAL MACHINERY INCREASED BY 56 PER CENT TO $1 BILLION, REPRESENTING 0.8 PER CENT OF HONGKONG'S TOTAL DOMESTIC EXPORT FOR THE YEAR.

THE NEXT STOP FOR MR JACOBS WAS THE WINNER FOOD PRODUCTS LIMITED WHERE ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY MET CHINESE CULINARY TRADITION TO PRODUCE CONVENIENCE FOODS RANGING FROM INSTANT DOLL' NOODLE TO FROZEN DIM SUM.

W.NNER, ALSO LOCATED IN THE TAIPO INDUSTRIAL ESTATE, REGISTERED TOTAL SALES OF $160 MILLION IN 1985 FOR ITS WİDE RANGE OF PRODUCTS THAT INCLUDE HERBAL TEA, SPRING ROLL PASTRY, BEVERAGES AND SNACK FOOD. ABOUT 30 PER CENT OF ITS OUTPUT WENT TO AUSTRALIA, CANADA, THE UNITED STATES AND EUROPE.

UNLIKE MOST OTHER LOCAL INDUSTRIES WHICH ARE EXPORT-ORIENTED, THE FOOD MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY MAINLY SUPPLIED THE LOCAL MARKET. LATEST STATISTICS SHOWED THAT ABOUT 80 PER CENT OF THE INDUSTRY'S TOTAL OUTPUT WAS CONSUMED LOCALLY.

IN SEPTEMBER 1985 THERE WERE 954 FOOD FACTORIES EMPLOYING MORE THAN 16 000 PEOPLE.

AT HIS LAST STOP FOR THE DAY, MR JACOBS VISITED THE OFFICE OF THE HONG KONG INDUSTRIAL ESTATES CORPORATION WHICH CONSTRUCTED AND MANAGED THE TWO INDUSTRIAL ESTATES AT TAI PO AND YUEN LONG. THE DIRECTOR OF INDUSTRY IS THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF THE CORPORATION.

THE ESTATES SOLD LAND TO INDUSTRIES WHICH, BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF THEIR MANUFACTURING PROCESSES, COULD NOT BE CARRIED OUT EFFICIENTLY IN ORDINARY MULTI-STOREY FACTORY BUILDINGS.

MR JACOBS WAS TOLD THAT THERE HAD BEEN AN UPSWING IN THE DEMAND FOR LAND IN THE ESTATES SINCE THE SIGNING OF THE SINO- BRITISH JOINT DECLARATION. A TOTAL OF 11.4 HECTARES WERE SOLD IN 1985, COMPARED WITH AN AVERAGE OF FIVE HECTARES IN PREVIOUS YEARS.

FOR 1986-87 THE CORPORATION HAD PLANNED TO SELL ABOUT SIX HECTARES.

A TOTAL OF 59 FACTORIES HAVE BEEN GRANTED SITES AND ABOUT THREE-QUARTERS OF THEM WERE ALREADY OPERATING IN THE ESTATES WHILE THE REST WERE DEVELOPING SITES AND WOULD BEGIN PRODUCTION SOON.