RAISING OF BEEF ON HIGH COUNTRY

Chronicle (Levin), 23 August 1947, Page 8

RAISING OF BEEF ON HIGH COUNTRY

WELLINGTON, August 22. In tlie House of Representatives today urgency was taken for the Imprest Supply debate wliieli entered upoh ita fourth day, l*t only one more meniber spoke before Mr. Naah replied. Tlie Minister df Finance aaid a sug gestion liad l)een ^inade to him tlia'i high country miglit be nsed to raise eattle for the export of ehilled beef to tlie (Jnited Ivingdom. This h,ad been gone into earefully by competent authorities, but at the moment he merely vvauted to deal witk tlie economie side. It would be costly, but it would enablc a regular trade in chilled beef to be built up. A certain type of eattle would be raised and the meat would -be bouglit by tlie Government and pro cessed here. It would tlien be exported on alternate weeks from Auckland and Wellington in special fast sliip.with the result that New Zealand would have a permanent inarkct in Britain foi chilled beef, with. supplies arriving there rejularlyin 28 days. If the despatcli of sliips to timetable could be ensured, buvers on the Smithfield market would know they could depend oi. buying A"cw Zealand chilled beef there on a regular day of the week. Mr. W. S. Goosman (Pialco): Yod can only produce store stoek on high country. Mr. Nasli said he was eonsidering foi tlie monient the practieability of using high country in conjunction with a fast steamer service to supijly chilleu beef regularly to Smithfield. Mr. Goosiiian: It's a great idea.

Mr. N(a.sh said that unfortunately the scheme would be hopelessly unecpnoinic at present. II e had discussed it with shipping interests and was told that 15 siiips would be required to maintain a 28-day turn-round schedule, and the vessels would probably cost £2,000,001each. It would eost the Government xome tnoiiey because the liill country could iiot at once produce eeouoniically the stock that would be required. The advantage would be that dollars would be saved atfd New Zealand would ob tain, in Britain, a market whieh the British Government was anxious we should. Mr. Goosman said it would be im possible to keep the vessels filled with chilled meat and Mr. Nash agreed with this view. Mr. Nash said he hoped the Sheep Industry Comuiision would conside? tlie practieability of a scheme sueh as had been suggested. It did appear that liill country and some of the high country of New Zealand could be more productively farmed than in the past. To bring gradually more marginai land into economie production was more im portant for Now Zealand 's welfare tlian anything else. The liill which authorised the expen diture of £12,052,ouu was passed.