NEW ZEALAND MEAT EXPORTS

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 143, 13 March 1939, Page 10

NEW ZEALAND MEAT EXPORTS

Essential To Ship Full Quota STATEMENT BY BOARD MEMBER By Telegraph—Press Association. ’DUNEDIN, March 11. Commenting on the New Zealand Farmers’ Union president’s reference to meat exports at a Balelutha meeting last night, when Mr. Mulholland urged farmers to prepare a plan so that they could keep control of the industry, Mr. James Begg, a member of the Meat Board, said that Mr. Mulholland evidently thought that the board was not constituted to deal with the position iu the best way. All except three members were appointed by farmers and two of those three members actually were farmers. They were thus seven to one against the broker’s man. “I am sorry to see that this great industry of ours has been made the shuttlecock of party politics,” Mr. Begg said. “There is no doubt that we owe gratitude to Mr. Coates, but things have changed since those days. The National Farmers’ Union in Britain is a strong political force, and this restriction would have come no matter who had 'been Minister. Mr. Nash, to my personal knowledge, fought as haid against these restrictions as anyone else. It is only fair to make that statement.” Mr. Begg said that a restriction of 3 per cent, would mean a reduction of 4000 or 5000 tons below what New Zealand shipped last year, and last year was a bad one. The restriction was not so bad in numbers, but Ibe weight amounted to thousands of tous. The board had decided that there should be no restriction on killings this year, as that would give the market rr serious knock. What New Zealand was allowed to ship this year was based on last year’s shipments, and if further arrangements were made for 1940 they would be based on this year. That made it essential that New Zealand should ship the full quota allowed by December 31. “It may be necessary next year to restrict killing,” Mr. Begg added. “That is going to be a serious thing for New Zealand. Fortunately the Home Government lias allowed us io decide which meat we shall restrict. We must restrict what brings the least money, bill if the British authorities expeet a 3 percent, restriction to raise the price of home-killed meat they are going to be disappoinied. More drastic restriction may be required.”