Meat from Australia for Germany.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 30 October 1912, Page 4

Meat from Australia for Germany.

There is either a gigantic project afoot or a gigantic blunder. The latter in all probability for it is imposible to believe that any one in his sober senses is planning an attack on the German meat market of 2. 600. 000 carcases a year. The terms of a cable message state clearly that a Hamburg steamer is to take soon 100,000 carcases from Adelaide, and that similar cargoes will be forwarded regularly every fortnight. The total works clearly but for 26 fortnights at 2.60, If the story be true at all it is more likely that the ambition of these south Australians is bounded by 10.000 carcasos rather than 100.000 as the fortnightly shipments. Still the experiment, or rather the determined attempt as we should prefer to call it is worth watching. The German Minister is paid to have declared himself convinced by a meat packer of the validity of the scheme and to have asserted that there is no intention to relax any of the precautions of the German regulations. But as it has: been abundantly proved thatthe refrigerating industry is able to supply good fresh, meat under all possible "tests of the regulation a, Moie serious perhaps is deliberate attempt of the German newspapers to lie away the character of the meat. This however may be taken as the ranging of the forces of defence in the last ditch. The proof being so easy to the contary. the old proof of tho pudding—"in the eating " —it is only a counsel of despair to assail the character of the product. The morl of the story, if it is true at all, is that the time is at hand for the opening of the continental markets to the frozen meat of the countries which produce meat of good quality in vast quantities. Therefore it behoves those who control the trade of those entries to be watchful and enterprising if they want to get a share in so beneficial a movement. Having wasted a night over defence, perhaps the House of representatives will condescend to take a half hour or two in devising some method of encouraging the farmers of the Dominion to organise a series of shipments to the newly opening markets of consumption.