The Honey Industry Trusts
The New Zealand Honey Industry Trusts have provided funding “to further through education, study, investigation and research the general advancement of the honey industry in New Zealand” for more than 30 years, and will almost certainly continue to do so for the next 30…
The Trusts were established from the assets of the Honey Marketing Authority when that body was disestablished in the early 1980s. The industry ultimately agreed that the net assets of the HMA – about $800K at that time – “must be attributed to the whole of the honey industry” (Kay Report), including both packers and producers.
David Kay was an accountant appointed by the Minister of Agriculture to hold a Committee of Enquiry to arbitrate between the various beekeeping interests. Kay recommended that:
“… the funds resulting from a re-organisation of the industry should be held in trust or in a statutory body administered by the National Beekeepers’ Association” (1981 NBA Annual Report).
Kay also felt that the funds should provide initial support for a co-operative honey marketing venture that was being promoted and considered, in the interest of creating industry marketing continuity and stability. He said this initial loan at concessionary rates should “be regarded as an industry cost towards orderly restructuring”.
Two trusts – a charitable trust and a general trust – were established to best deal with taxation considerations. David Kay was selected to act as the chair, being “independent of the honey industry”. Kay’s care, consideration and investment management abilities ensured industry confidence in the operations of the Trusts. Ivan Dickinson (Milton) was appointed the initial South Island Trustee, and Russell Berry (Waiotapu) was appointed as the North Island Trustee. Though not a part of the Trust Deeds, the NBA stated that no one should serve on the NBA Executive and as a Trustee at the same time, and the NBA took considerable steps to ensure that the assets of the Trusts could not be “captured” by any sort of specialty interests.
The Trust Deeds were set up to give the Trustees “absolute and uncontrolled power and discretion in the management of the trust fund.” (Trust Deeds). It took beekeepers, branches, the NBA Conferences and the NBA Executive some few years to acknowledge this autonomy in the choice of projects to support and the financial management of the Trusts’ capital.
The first few years of the Trusts, until the NZ Honey Producers Co-op loan had been repaid, saw a limited generation of capital, thus limiting the grants possible without depleting the Trusts.
The first grants were made from the Trusts in 1985. The main allocation was to fund the further years of Dr Denis Anderson’s appointment as bee pathologist with the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) at Mt Albert, Auckland.
Dr Mark Goodwin and Ruakura Research received funding in 1985 and 1986. Research visits were funded, overseas bee specialists brought to NZ and such things as Telford Farm Training Institute were supported. The NBA itself applied on a number of occasions, when an activity involved the clear “industry good” that was the standard for the Trust decisions.
In 1993 Ian Berry (Havelock North) replaced his brother Russell Berry as the Trustee representing the North Island.
David Kay remained as independent chair of the Trusts until his retirement in 2004. He was replaced by another accountant and financial advisor, Dave Sawers (Napier).
In 2010 Ivan Dickinson stepped down from his role as South Island Trustee, the last of the original Trustees. Allen McCaw (Milburn) was appointed to replace him.
In 2018 Ian Berry stepped down as North Island Trustee, to be replaced by Barry Foster (Gisborne).
The current Trustees, then, are Michelle Vallor (who replaced Dave Sawers), Allen McCaw and Barry Foster. Over the 30 year history of the Trusts, the role of the honey industry Trustee is one that has always had the respect of beekeepers.
The original $800K available to the Trusts in 1983 has grown now to $1.5M, while providing consistent and valuable funding for the honey industry, its people and its projects.
The Honey Industry Trusts had a significant anniversary on 1 June 2023 – the Trusts turned 40 years old. Forty years of providing annual grants to further the NZ honey industry…
Also significant is the fact that the Trusts have only 40 more years to continue.
The Trust Deeds describe the ultimate “date of distribution” of 1 June 2063 – effectively the winding-up of the Trusts. At that point (or, really, anytime before that) the Trustees must pay out all the money in the Trusts to either Massey University, Lincoln University, the NBA (or any other such body the Trustees choose) or to the Director General of Agriculture or MAF…
But that’s still a long time away. When it does come, the decision will be entirely for the Honey Industry Trustees, selected for their ability to make the right choices for the honey industry trust funds..