PIG RAISING

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 98, 16 July 1927, Page 27

PIG RAISING

INDUSTRY SHOWS INCREASE POSSIBILITIES IN AUSTRALIA New Zealanders are eating more ham and bacon, and there has been a general increase in the pig-raising industry in the Dominion in recent years. It is shown by the Government Statistician, Mr. Malcolm Fraser, that the development of the pig-raising in the Dominion in recent years has been accompanied by a rapid growth in the volume of our export trade both in frozen pork and in hams and bacon. Our chief customer for the former commodity—the United Kingdom—-took 07,434 cwt. in 1926,, against the insignificant figure of 12,489 cwt. in 1922, while Australia actually took less in 1926 than in 1922. This falling-away in the relatively insignificant frozen pork trade with Australia has been more than compensated in the trade in hams and bacon. In 1922 191.9761 b. of hams and bacon were exported from the Dominion: of this amount 95.0131 b., or approximately 50 per cent, of the total was shipped to Australia. The subsequent years saw a sharp upward movement in the total and Australian trade, and in 1926 the total exports aggregated 558,1271 b., of which Australia received 444,6381 b., or approximately 80 per cent. The consumption of ham and bacon per head of population in New Zealand increased from 11.421 b. in 1923-24 to 13.751 b. in 1924-25, and further to 15.321 b. in 1925-26, indicating that the market in the Dominion has been developed to a considerable extent in recent years. AN UNDEVELOPED MARKET According to similar figures for Australia (9.51 b. in 1922-23, 10.451 b. in 1924- and 10.641 b. in 1920-26), the Australian consumption has not shown such an increase as the New Zealand. There is, therefore, reasonable grounds for presuming that there is a considerable undeveloped market for New Zealand hams and bacon in Australia. Some idea of the extent of this undeveloped market is to be seen in the difference between the average annual consumption over the three years mentioned above in the two countries; the figure for the Dominion, 13.521 b. is substantially interesting in view of the warmer climate experienced in many of the Australian States, which would no doubt be a potent factor in making the Australian consumption relatively greater than the New Zealand if sufficient supply were available in the former country. New Zealand ham and bacon entering Australia is subject to a tariff of 2d. a pound. The output of ham and bacon recorded in 1925-26 (201,080 cwt.) was 32,752 cwt., of 19 per cent., greater lhan the figure for 1923-24. Having regard to this increase :it must be a source of gratification to the industry thtit the aggregate and relative values of the output were well maintained in 1925- While the total valuo increased from £ 839,354 in 1923-24 to £1,023,401 in 1925-26, the average value per hundredweight rose from £4 19s 9d in the former year £5 Is lOd for the latter.