MEAT FREEZING.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue 84, 21 June 1881, Page 2

MEAT FREEZING.

Ther Lyttelton Times, referring to Mr Wales' report to the meat freezing committee, says : — "Mr Wales has brought hack to the Dunedin gentlemen who sent him information which, not being speculative of prices, is much to the purpose. Having seen three establishments in various stages of progress, he has put together the right kind of reporfc. The principle points on which information was required were as to the best kind of machine to be employed, as fco the cost of machines, as to t.he capacity^ as to the proportion between- • the rest of the plant and fche capacity of machines employed. Upon ali these points Mr Waleß has enabled his friends to arrive at just conclusions. Ifc oughfc to be non in their pawer.to calculate .for themselvea whether the basis announced hythe Orange '"" Company can be depended npon ; in other words, whether they can guarantee the public of Ofcago to send Home meat at a cost of 3d per pound and expenses, as set forth by fche Orange circular. . . . The Ofcago Company will have to consider the expense to which they ought to go. In making up their mind they will be guided largely by the supply of stock they will be able to depend upon annually for their operations. To determine that point with • anything like accuracy is the chief present .'lifficnlty which the Company will have to face." At a meeting at Wellington on Thursday of gentleman favorable to the formation of a Meat Freezing Company, the following letter was read by Mr Buchanan: — Mr Buchanan, after a few preparatory ' and explanatory remarks, read the following " W. C. Buchanan, Esq., Carterton. " Dear Sir,— We are in receipt of yours of 4th, asking what has been donein the direction of exporting frozen meat, and we gladly furnish you with all particulars which we have up" to date. We enolose prospectus of the proposed refrigerating company, which speaks for itself, and we may say that at a meeting held today nearly one-third of the shares were applied for in the room, as thero seems every prospect of its being successfully floated. ' Before, however, the machinery can be imported and refrigerating fairly started, it is likely fchat the experiment of sending Home a cargo of frozen mutton will be tried by our company (the Land Company), as our directors in Edinburgh advise us by last mail that they had arranged with tbe Albion Shippin c Company, Glasgow, to send Home 7000 to 8090 carcases in the end " ' of December or beginning bf Janaary. This arrangemanfc was of courso made before ifc was known that a refrigerating company was likely to be established. The terms of onr agreement are that the shipping company are to send out one of their fastest iron sailing vessels fitted with a refrigerating chamber calculated to hold 200 tons weight of meat, and with one of . Ball-Coleman's large engines. The ship finds everything, and freezes the carcasses in porfc as we send them in from the conn* try at the rate of 300 per day. This was [ the principle adopted in the Straehleven experiment; wifch a small engine, and was J successful, bufc, of course, a refrigerating company slaughtering and freezing the' . J 1 animals before sending them to the ship is better. The freight to be charged us is 2|d per lb, to cover everything, and if necessary to ship will keep the meat frozen : for us in London at our expense for three weeks. We have also arranged with the insurance companies at Home to insme the 1 cargo againsfc decay afc £5 5s per cent, and this is likely to be reduced. Mr Brydon is now in Australia gaining information, and will see the Protos loaded.— We are, &c. ' "The New Zealand and Australian' 1 Land Company (Limited)."