ZEALAND PRODUCE AT HOME.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1762, 9 February 1888, Page 4

ZEALAND PRODUCE AT HOME.

Bo evident is it that there can be no question of more vital interest to the farmers of this district than that cf taming the Home market for New Zealand produce to the best account, that, althongh we bo recently wrote upon the subject, we scarcely need to apologise for reverting thereto. We observe by a report which appears m the " Duneilin Kvening Star," of the , ■4th inst., that a member of the staff of that journal has be n "interviewing 1 " Mr U. 8, Reeves, the well-known merchant of that city, who has just returned from a visit to England, and obtained from that gentleman some exceedingly interesting and useful information anent New Zealand Produce at Home. Speaking of our chief staple of export — wool — Mr Reeves observes that " this receives its due, and the price it brings at the London sales is its full value. Those who have been at the woo! sales will, I think, corroborate this opinion, especially when they remember the terrible howl that goes on there amongst the buyers . It is comparable only to a hungry pack of hounds let loose after a month's confinement m their kennel." But m regard to that other large item of export — frozen mutton, Mr Beeves fully bears out what we have always contended, viz., that under the existing state of things the producer is mulcted of a very large proportion of the returns by the sharking of middle-men. He says : — " < ; ur frozen mutton stands m a very different position. The difference between the wholesale and retail prices is much ton great, and points irresistibly to a huge profit obtained by the middle-man, who fattens at the expense ot the producer. Let me gi»e an illustration. The meat salesman purchases wholesale at 6ay 4d per lb ; he goes to the hotels and restaurants and places his purchase at not less than 5d — thus making a profit of Id perlb, or of 5s per sheep, with little or no trouble." Mr Reeves also bears oat, to the letter, our frequently urged contention as to the remedy for this state of things. These are his words ; — " What i should do, or would try to do, were I a shipper of mutton from New Zealand would be to start m the colony a Company of nippers -the capital need not be Wge — and Bend a good, smart, dependable man to London to open distributing shops there. By this means some of the profits that are now obtained by the middle -men would come to the producers through the medium of the Company, whilst a stop would be put to the practice of foisting inferior mutton from other countries on the English consuramer as 'prime New Zealand.' " As to the time of year at which the meat should arrive m London to command the best market, Mr • eeves shows that the generally received opinion is an incorrect one. " I was under the impression (he says) when I went to London that summer was a bad time for New Zealand frozen meat to arrive, but this is not the fact, as 1 was informed by some of the largest hotelkeepers m the city, who buy fifty carcasses and even more at a time, that they prefer Se\r Zealand frozen mutton to English mutton m the summer, for the reason that they can thaw down the former mutton as it is required, and put it on the table at once, whilst English mutton has to be kept seme time after it has been killed before it can be used on the table." On the same subject (the meat trade) the following interesting information is given : — " While m Glasgow last August I went to the cattle market there to see a shipment of Canadian catte sold. The cattle, which had arrived two days before m a steamer from Montreal, were m prime condition, the beasts not having a scratch on them, and looking as though they had just come off a Scotch farm . From t*outh America a considerable quantity of beef is now shipped m cold chambers, not frozen, and arrives m splendid condition. This has ben accomplished within the last seven or eight months, and as the plan has proved verj successful, the probability is that it will supersed the present method of shipping cattle alive." But Mr Reeves' attention was not given to frozen meat alone ; he has something to say about butter, also, which is well worth noting by our dairy farmers and exporters. These are his remarks on that subject : — " 1 saw 6ome New Zealand butter m the cell rs m London and was thoroughly •shamed of it. It had arrived m a most filthy condition. The outside of the casks was dirty, the hoops were rusted, the casks stained all over, the inside of t c casks was not inviting to look at, and the butter itself was really bad. A few such shipments would be enough to damn New Zealand butter with the dealers. It was n t worth 41b per lb, whilst Dutch butter that lay alongside of it readily sold at 13d. But what a difference m the get-up ! I have told you what our butter was like The Dutch was delicious to the palate, and delightful to the eye. The casks had nice white hoops, the staves were as clean as the day they fcft the cooper's hands, and the contents were first-class. Now, good New Zealand salt butter will bring j on an average 85s per cwt, and some of it will go as High as 100- for the next four months. I would impress on our dairy farmers who think of making butter for exp rt that the casks bliou d be bound with galvanised iron hooj.s, and be covered with wnvas, which will have the desired effect of keeping them cleaa. The cost of covering would be more than made up by the better price they will get for their produce. The latter should not be put m the refrigerating chamber, as some experts declare that freezing spoils the butter. There is, however, a great difference of opinion on this point." Information such as the above is of great value and, m the •words of Captain Cuttle, of delightful memory, "when found" fihuold be " made a note of," inasmuch as the making of such notes, and acting upon them, will assuredly lead to the making of other " notes " which have an ex • changeable value m coin of the realm.