MEAT AND DIARY PRODUCE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1788, 13 March 1888, Page 3

MEAT AND DIARY PRODUCE.

Oun Napier contemporary, tho " Daily Telegraph," has recently published a scries of very interesting ami useful articles on tho subject of the frozen meat trade. It points oat that last year was not a good one for exporters, and shows that there were more contributing causes than one to the unsatisfactory results to shippers. Ono of these was it says " the undeniable accumulation of slocks, which m London last June reached an aggregate of 205,000 carcases." Notwithstanding a decrease m Kiver Plate and Australian shipments, the total import into London of frozen and fresh mutton shows a steady inerea.se. The l\iver Plate sent m 188G 7267, but last year only 5221 ton?, and tiie Australian exports which m 183-1 totalled 111 745 carcases, fell last year to 88,81. The totals received m London from all .sources, hownver, wero for the four years ending 1887 respectively 17,580, 21,261, 27,352, and 28,557 tons, respectively, of which New Zealand contributed about threefourths, her figures being 1884, 12 031 tons; 1885, 14,145; 18SG, 17 302; 1887, 19,942. "Of a;l the shipments lust year from tin's colony (says the " Telegraph ") not one was sufficiently affected to warrant its being described as damaged or unsati&factory," but notwithstanding this, it is alleged m London as one of the causes of the decline m prices that there was last year a general inferiority of quality as compared with the standard of previous seasons. In view of this our contemporary thinks "there is much room for improvement " at this end, and urges upon producers that if they would " study their own interests only the very best quality should be shipped," and that "instead of a large number of smull consignments," the consignments should be few and lar c and •' of the very highest class "of meat. it ifurther pointed out that a mistake was made last year m that many shipments were so timed as to arrive m London " when the general demand was least active, and the general suppli'S moro plentiful, and m the distribution of shipments amongst an unnecessarily large number of consignees." These are mistakes which can be remedied at this end by producers and shippers, but our contemporary goes on to kliow that the main reason why so unprofitable ret ims are experienced is the rascally way m which the mutton is dealt with upon its arrival, hclerriae- to the cai'le announcement that tho Arawa's frozen mutton was selling at 4d a pound, the " Telegra h" writes: — " I his is an item of new.-* which shows that there is no improvement of the system under which it would seem all branches connected with the trade combine to rob the producer of his legitimate profits. It is a scandalous shame that everybody can make money out of fr<>a°n meat except the unfortunate s'i'eep-farmer who supplies the mutton. The middlemen, who somehow get letwe n the producer and the butcher, and tin; butcher who gets between the middlemen and the conBumcr, make, their profit without risk, and with the regularity of market days. Eye- witnesses have told us how the carcasses are presented to the buyer ; and a more disgraceful state of things, or a more audacious contempt for the value; of the meat cannot be imagined. Many cf our readers have been m London, and they know what the streets are like m wet weather. In rain or sunshine is never clean, and cannot be from the nature of the market. ( n market day, up come the carts loaded from the frozen meat depots ; it does not matter wlfether it is pouring with rain. Arrived at the proper spot at the market place, men m their mud and slush -smothered boots mount the carts, treading on tho meat, and com mence " chucking " the carcasses into the dirty street. Bespattered with filth, the bags that covered the carcases rippod and torn away, the half-thawed dripping wet meat is offered for sale. And, as we are told to clay, it realises 4d per lb. The wonder is that it finds* a buyer. Once m the butcher's hands it is treated properly, cleaned of its market Btains, and sold with the bland smile of a practised liar as best English or Hcotch." Well may our contemporary add, " We do not know what the sheepfarmers are about to have so long submitted to a state of tilings that leaves them and their property unprotected, and, apparently, unrepresented." liut the shameful treatment to which the New Zealand producer is subjected, is not restricted to frozen meat alone, the same thing is, the " I'elegraph " avers, going on m the butter trade. It writes : — " When the frozen meat industry was first established, m order to account for the wholesale robbery of producers' profits, we wore, told that " the mutton was not good ;" "it would not sell ; ' there was a prejudice against it :

none of the heat butchers dare offer it to their customer. ;" and all such falsehoods of that kind. We know now, and have known for a long time past, that there was not a word of truth m these etat'rnents to account for the low prices realised m the London market It has more recently been aitom ted t<> establish a trade m dairy produce, and here again its promoters are in«t by the determined antagonism of those whose apparent interest it is to nip tho flower m the bud. New Zealand butter is at length beginning to be known m the English markets. Small parcls have fetched a shilling a pound m Glasgow, but that price was thought to be a little above its valun. The highest price realised was 112 b a cwt. m London. Tho same thing is occurring with our cheese ; it only fetches from Sis to 50h a cwt, a price that no more pays its exporters than does B£d per lb lor frozen mutton pay the eheepfarmor. <>f course, the colonist 13 t .Id that his butter and cheese are not up to the required standard, which accounts for his exports being a financial f.ilure. i ut, judging from the experience gained from the meat business, it i- just as likely as not that the c -ndemnation of our dairy produce is made from the same greedy motives as was that concerning the quality of our mutton It was not until Sir Daniel Cooper went Home from Australia, and exposed the London wool-brokers' methods of conducting business, that tho colonial woolgrowers got justice and fair play. Tho colonies want another Bir Daniel to take up the cudgels on hihalf of frozen meat and dairy produce" Perhaps we are to find that other Sir Daniel m Sir Julius, one of whose objects m visiting tho Old Country is said to be to endeavour to put matters en train fcr the more satisfactory die-

posal of New Zealand produce There is here a splendid field for his abilities, aud it he Bucceed ho will confer more benefit upon the colony than he could have rendered it by a dozen years of successful administration of her political a flairs.