The Daily News TUESDAY, JULY 6. OUR MEAT TRADE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 135, 6 July 1909, Page 2

The Daily News TUESDAY, JULY 6. OUR MEAT TRADE.

New Zealand received a severe cheek a couple of years ago when the bottom, metaphorically speaking, temporary dropped/ out of the wool market. Xha circumstance was one, however, ovov which the producers could exercise <no control, and they had to accept the market as it existed. The wool market, as New Zealand has every reason to know, has since quite recovered its buoyancy, the temporary causes of the fall having been removed, as well as new avenues of consumption haviug been create i. Another of New Zealand's important primary industries at the moment, however, is in anything but a satisfactory position, and unless there is an upwarl move ure long, the gain in wool wJi scarcely compensate ior the drop in another direction. Our frozen mutto 1 market, and to a considerable extent beef also, is in auytuing out a uwuthy condition in thu Old Country at tUu moment, and indications certainly do not lavor any appreciable recovery in the near future. ±lie ouueok ior tue lutuie is the more serious when it is considered. that the competition, such as the uieat trusts of Chicago operating in the Argentine, is not yet in anything liKe lull swing. When tiiat competition is read;, to thoroughly exploit the markets 01 Britain, Mew Zealand and Australia, uu less their methods are radically altered, must ultimately lind themselws in sore straits to hold the market they at present command, .jj'or tiie unsausiaeiory condition'of our mutton and lamb mar ket, it scorns to us, iSew Zeauinu is to a great extent responsible. No attempt has apparently been made to regulate shipments, with the result that the London market is congesteu w such an extent that steamers cannot unloau and are being utilised as stores, lhis morning's cable Horn the High Commissioner points out that the arrivals in London, aggregate one million carcases of mutton and 1)50,000 carcases of lamu in excess of the corresponding period | of last year. i'he result is significantly apparent from the comparative state of the market. At this date last year Canterbury mutcun was quoted in London at 4y s d. and North Island 3Vfcd; yesterday the London quotations were f° r Canterbury and North Island 2%d. A | comparison of the lamb shows a situation even more disastrous to this year's producers. Last year at this time Canterbury lamb was quoted 5 D / B dj other : than Canterbury 5%d. Xo-day the quotations are Canterbury aml,iNortli Island 3%d, a drop of approximately twopence a pound. The time is undoubtedly opportune for the industry in New Zealand to fully consider the position. Particularly it is of vital interest to the producers of the Dominion fco know how far their market lias been adversely affected by New Zealand dumpings in London. It is very apparent that the glut in the market is responsible for the present prices; it remains to be shown to what extent New Zealand shipments have contributed tc that position. It seems to us that tlu time has arrived for the freezing companies doing business in the Dominioi to combine with a view to regulating shipments to Britain. ,There should bi no insuperable difficulty in the way ol making an arrangement by which oui mutton and lamb should reach Londor at regular intervals, instead 01, as al present, shipping at the convenience o, the carrying companies, irrespective o] I the effect of irregular delivery or congestion. While it would, 110 doubt, be i a fairly costly undertaking to provide such increased storage as would enable regular supplies to o* shipped over a longer season, there u no reason to doubt that it would be money well spent. It is aleo essential, in the interests of industry, ithat a better control should be exercised over our meat produce in the distributing markets. It should be perfectly obvious that tlie distribution of 1)0 per cent, of our produce through the port of London, while tlte West of England ports contiguous to the great centres of industrial population are neglected, is not likely to produce the best results, lhe maiket could hardly "be worse from our farmers' point of view, and it is to be hoped steps will be at once token to review the whole position of the industry.