FROZEN MEAT TRADE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 300, 28 January 1910, Page 5

FROZEN MEAT TRADE.

PItOTKCTIXii TIIE INTERESTS OF TIIE PRODUCER. COXFEREXCF. AT ClililS'l'Cl ILIICII. l!y Telegraph.—rrcss Association. C'liristciiureli. Last Xiglit. Tin; Frozen Meat Conference, called liy the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association, opened at the rooms of the Association at 11 o'clock this morning. .Air. D. 1). McFarlane was elected chairman of the conference. The chairman made brief reference to the circumstances under which the conference was convened. The trade had grown from 1,707,32,51 lis of mutton ,'inl lamb, valued at .">d per >b, equal to .(.'.•>.1,1:00. in ISS2. to 2(i!).77;t,tillSlb. valued at C.").(12-t..i 12. At tlie rate at which (he meat was exported in the last two years a drop of hi per lb meant a loss of something like CI,000,00') to the producers and shippers. A DIG LOSS. Owing to the droy which took place the meat exported realised .less by nearly ;C1,.>00,000 than would have been the case if the previous average price* were maintained. To prevent tlu recurrence of such a drop it was leiessary to ascertain, if possible, the cause of the drop and then to devise and adopt such measures as were desirable and practicable. It was impossible for the New Zealand tanner to j;ive personal attention to the sale of his meat, .unless sold in local stock markets, in which case the ruling prices are governed by defective conditions which obtain in London markets and the low prices fixed as a result of those conditions. Last year, 111 ignorance of the English market and of what their brother farmers were doing. Xcw Zealand producers consigned their'lamh and mutton sale in Loudon—a total of 1.203.000 carcases, as against 010.000 carcases for the same months of the previous year. TIIE MAfIirXATIOX'S OF THE LOXDOX INTERS. No special arrangements were made for storage of this enormous increase, ■and London buyers, being aware of the, position, found it an excellent opportunity to engage every available inch of storage space available, and then to dictate prices to the unfortunate shipper, who had nowhere to put his meat' and naturally no one to whom to sell it. Consequently shippers were absolutely helpless. The blame was hardly attributable to the astute London buyer, hut rather to the ignorance of the New Zealand producer, and to the fact thai he has no one to effectively protect his interests at the other end. THE REMEDY ~ ' was for the conference to discuss as to whether the assistance of a paternal Government should be invoked, or whether the blessed principle of co-opera-tion and combination were to Be applied. Other matters requiring consideration ■we're such points aw rates of insurance, shipping freights and storage, methods of sale (both in the Dominion and' :n London), advices to consumers as to prices and the amount of meat in London and in transit, and method of discharging from ships in London and carriage to the cold stores. . PUTTING LAXD TO TIIE MOST PROFITABLE USE. Speaking for Canterbury, he could safely say that the farmers were now iii better heart than ever before, but if there were a' repetition of last year's prices, fanners would have to put their land to other and more profitable uses. Whilst the farmer could turn his land to other uses, he (the chairman) would be very sorry to see the freezing industry displaced from the present high position. Continual cropping and dairying would exhaust the soil, and without sheep and freezing works they would •find it difficult to maintain the fertility, of the soil. CO-OPERATIVE DISTRIBUTING ASSOCIATION. Mr. Geo. Sheat (North Canterbury executive of the Farmers' Union) moved: remit, forwarded by the Seargill branch, proposing that farmers co-oper-ate and a distributing association bo •formed to bring the producer and consumer into closer touch. .Mr. Sheat said .that to prevent a recurrence of last season's glut, it" was suggested that producers should combine and that perhaps cool stores should be provided at .this end, where the meat could be kept ;jintil it was time to place it on tiie London market. » 1% Mr, 11. Acton Adams seconded the motion, and said that shippers really, did not know who sold their meat at .Home. There was an idea of storing meat in New Zealand, as suggested by. Mr. Sheat. At ftome there was nothing known as to what meat was coming from New Zealand, and probably they •did not want to know. The Argentine -people, however, knew what stocks we:e going forward, and fixed their prices accordingly. lie favored the grading cf meat in the same way that butter and .cheese are graded. After discussion it was decided to refer the matter to a committee of en.quiry set up by the. conference. ' A FARMERS' TRUST. A remit from the .Nelson Farmers' Union that a New Zealand farmers' .trust be formed to check any"" fort ijjH combination inimical to the fanners' in .terests bv controllinu a -ullicient number of retail outlets in Home and Continental markets run by New Zcaland,crs and ensuring to the consumers delnandiuL' Now Zealand [Vi'dtiec a reliable and regular supply of the genuine iriicle was referred to tlx- committee of enquiry. MESSAGE I'ROM THE PREMIER. A telegram was received from tba iVmie Minister regretting hi» inability to attend tin* conference and stating that Hon. T. Mackenzie would represent the Government, promi-ing anythin,! the Government could do to assis- 1* the promotion on sound lines of_ the ' .frozen meat imlusirv of the Dominion J .would ho most readily done.