OUR PRODUCE IN ENGLAND

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 253, 15 March 1913, Page 8

OUR PRODUCE IN ENGLAND

BETTER. METHODS BEQI'IRED. DIVEIITIXO THE TRADE. MPv. LYSXAR'S SCHEME. A subject of paramount importance; to fanners and producers in general, in i the shape of the handling of New Zea- | land produce, embodying a proposal to i divert the trade to the West Coast ports of England, was outlined at length in the Whiteley Hall last night by Mr. W.j D. Lysnar, of (Jisborne, who has been : specially commissioned for the purpose. Side by side by the proposition is a proposal to establish the Bristol and Do-, minions Producers' Association, Ltd., to handle and market all New Zealand produce. Mr. J. Connett, President of the Taranaki Metropolitan Agricultural Society, presided, presided; and briefly introduced the speaker. There was a poor attendance, wholly incommensurate with the importance of the subject. In his introductory remarks the speaker explained that lie was here, on behalf of the New Zealand Producers' Association, which was formed two years ago for the purpose of inquiring into the causes of complaints regarding the handling of our produce at the other end, ami how best to remedy it.

Mr. Lysnar, who was well received, re-, ferred to the handling and marketing of this Dominion's produce in England as one of the most important problems we had to face at the present time. In this movement the promoters invited the cooperation and enquiry and aid of the whole of the mercantile community. Nothing they proposed would in any way conflict with the bankers and mercantile men, but, on the contrary, would help their business. Buyers at London were organised against us. and we, as producers, were not organised against them. A MATTER OF MILLIONS. Continuing, Mr. Lysnar said: "It is not a question of a few thousands sterling a year, but a question of several millions which the Dominion is losing each year for want, of better facilities for handling and marketing our produce in England. It is a case of necessity, and I cannot see what has allowed you to be so lethargic in allowing matters to stand as they are. . . . The disad-

vantages of the present trade do not aid us, but aid the speculator and c.i.f. buyer of our produce. This statement does not come from me alone, but from the committee set uo by the Christchurch conference in 190!), Mr. J. 0. Wilson, president of the Farmers' Union, was chairman, and there' were several other influential men. including the Xcw Zealand representative of Weddell and Co. in Christchurch. WEAKNESS OF THE PORT AUTHORITY.

''The result of all these investigations." Mr. Lysnar went on to say, '•'comes to this: we.must regard London as hopeless. We have made long, insistent requests for reforms there, without any result. Two years ago, the New Zealand committee which investi-' gated the matter decided to recommend the producers of New Zealand, to divert their trade from London to the' West Coast ports; On the earnest request, of Lord Dcvonport. chairman of the Port of London Authority, that request was deleted; on his promise to give us all we desired in London. He acknowledged the difficulties under which we ■■ were working at the Port of' London,, and instructed the Engiueer-in-Chicf. to prepare plans to. provide better facilities at London. These improvements are no nearer completion to-da}' than they were then. Lord Bevpnport, I believe, was sincere when he made the offer to provide these facilities, but he did not know the power of the vested interests of the people of oLpndon.j , The.: whole of the blame is .attachable t». .the- London importer and to the iweakness ■of the Port of London. The port has acknowledged frankly and fairly that it is at the request of the importers that they have changed-their minds on the question. On February 10, 101-2, the followinz cablegram was sent from the Port of London Authority to Mr, F. J. Slielton:— "Importers desire new scheme and meat business kept Victoria Albert docks." On June 27, the Autliority wrote to the Association's London representative as follows:—"Whilst .you were in New Zealand proissme was .-brought upon the Authority, to provide the additional facilities; :at the.Albert dock. Influential interests have expressed a wish that the Albert dock scheme would be a permanent measure." "You would not." Mr. Lysnar went on to say, "get anything plainer than that." SMITHFIELD MARKET. .. Dealing with the subject of the (lis-1 advantage of Smithfield market; Mr. Lysnar said it was used to the -detriment of producers who'shipped produce Home on their own account. • AT A LOW EBB. ' \'

In order to give a practical demonstration of the way in, which Xew.Zealand prices were kept at a low.ebb on the Smithlield market, Mr. Lysnar produced and quoted from charts of prices issued by the different London firms for j l!)l)!l-10-ll. New Zcahmd mutton, he said, was better than Scotch, mutton. In WO!) Scotch mutton was up to /''Ad,, while Xew Zealand was down below 3d. In IIHO Scotch mutton .was- up to SVod a pound and Xew Zealand ?>%d. and, for one day only 4%d. In Mil .Scotch mutton averaged fi%d, and Xew Zealand 4%d. During all this period retail prices remained practically the ,same ; rE'he reason is." said Mr. Lysnar, "that the ' Scotchman is there to look after his rights and the Xew Zealander is not." There could be nothing stronger than their own evidence. liy the organisation he was putting before them, they would get for Xew Zealand what the, Scotchman could get for Scotland. That I could only be done by the assistance,'of the producers standing shoulder to shoulder, together. I The market was rigged to suit the! buyers at Home, and not to suit the producers. If they allowed that con-| dilion of affairs to go on, they were, not doing their simple duty to themselves or to the Dominion. The Smithfield market prices were fixed by the weakest holder. Prices wore influenced by the weakest holder and Smithfield 1 was simply used for the purpose of meatl buyers at Home, who were acting as

organisation going,

A BOfiEY OBJECTION. The objection reaisecl by the meat speculator that nearly all the meat was sold at this end, and that therefore the producers should not interfere, was not well founded. .Figures showed that over

50 per cent, of meat shipped in the North Island was shipped on owners' | account. He asked, ''Are not those who ( do ship and would ship, if better facilities were available, entitled to consideration. The meat buyers had not a t total monopoly of the export trade. THE HANDLING OF WOOL. The conditions under which wool was handled were most unsatisfactory. Pales I were dumped on open wharves, and left | there for days, and sometimes weeks, | with tarpaulins over them. The dumps I were broken, to facilitate handling, and , it remained in that condition, waiting I for b'f.rges. | The producers, Mr. Lysnar said, could not do better than utilise Liverpool for their wool. The consolidated charge Was 4s 4d and 5s Od for London and 2s '4d for Liverpool. They had facilities to show 20.000 bales at a sale in Liv'eripool and sell it in a day. I DAIRY INDUSTRY.

Did the dairy farmers get the fullest I value for their produce? No. they could not depend on getting full value as matters now stood". The heads of the various lirms now met in Tooley street and fixed prices. He only knew of one firm in London which did not handle produce in a speculative way. The firms met every week to fix the prices. The pro-, ; (Inters were not protected at present as most of the firms were buyers. Australian people were working in regard to this matter, and Sir George Beid, representative for the Federal States, bad said, in regard to the subject:—"The Colonial committee in London and the co-operative agents held weekly meetings, at which, in the most barefaced manner, prices were fixed to suit one agent one week and another agent the other."

Mr. Lysnar asked, did the Danish people send their veal and pork to London? No. they sent it to outside ports and left London.

It took 200 men to unload frozen produce from one ship in London while it took 75 to handle it at Bristol, and a ship could lie unloaded in half the time at the latter place. In Bristol, the facilities were- admirable, the '■ freezing and storage chambers being alongside the wharves, and the railway vans ready to convey the frozen meat to SmUhfield or elsewhere.

Many producers were selling at. this end, rather than face the. disadvantages at the other end. Remove these, disadvantages, and the producers would be ready to ship Home on consignments. Proceeding. Mr. Lvnsar explained the obfects nf the 'proposed''association to be called the' "Bristol and Dominions Producers' Association,"- which was outlined recently in .a-Press Association 5 message in ' the News. The: Bristol' people"-had.; he saido spent several millions in equipping their port and their leading business . men were .prepared to assist in the management. ,of the Association, at their end and also, to assist financially. . THE CHEAPER ROUTE.

The speaker also quoted .the opinions of the, High Commissioner,,which' favoured Smithfield in several' respects, and. touched upon Australia's desire to cooperate with New Zealand. * 1 As a further advantage in 'favour 'of, [the port of Bristol, Mr. Lysnar quoted figures giving the charges on "frozeiV produce. These showed' that'prodube can lie put into Smitlifleld through Bristol at a rate of lid per ton: cheaper than through the port of London, allowing for one week's-cool storage at each place. Should the period of cold storage be increased to six weeks, Bristol would'be the cheaper port by 7s Od per ton. Mr. Lysnar said that he had since received a letter, dated January 11, from' | the general manager of the Port of I Bristol to the effect that if the proposed Association shipped over 1400 tons in any one year they would make, an allowance of •")() per cent, on the charges. .If the Bristol •allowance was compared with the London charge, it. would be at the rate of Is Cut per week for Bristol, 'as against 22s Od for the first month in London. The London estimate, he said, included, the increase' of 3d per ton, which came into operation op January 3 last. • In the cost of transport alone they would save—he quoted from official estimates—2ls 2d per on in the consignment of produce to Birmingham through, Bristol, in preference to London. In addition a factor in favour ofBristol was the big depreciation of produce in London through damage' in handling. Tn 'Bristol there Was almost a total absence of this depreciation. STRIKING ILLUSTRATIONS.

A scries of pictures,, vividly descripJtive of the undesirable conditions existent in London, for the kindling of our produce and showing the.apparently better all-round state of a flairs oil the West Coast, were projected from a lantern (kindly lent gratis and operated by 'Mr. J. C. Morey), and warmly appreciated. They sufficed to show' more effectively than any treatise the disgrace,fnl state of alfairs at London, conditions of handling and transit that would not (be tolerated at the smallest flag station in the Dominion. Frozen meat, cheese, and the like left lying on the unsheltered and congested wharves for hours at si stretch, sometimes, as the photographs disclosed, in the pouring rain. Tu many eases there was nobody in charge of I'sonie of the produce, and dogs—as the speaker' asserted—frequently took ad-' vantage of- this laxity. Tallow was shown oozing out of the casks anil in-, termingling with crates of cheese lying adjacent, and all sides a general bumping and rough-handling of our produce, j unavoidable in view of the total inadequacy of proper facilities and the I total absence of shelter. On the way to !the markets it was the same story. Open uninsulated vans containing meat exposed to the pouring sun or. as sometimes happened, the teeming rain, were seen jogging along their way. Arrived at Smith field there was the same shocking modus operandi, involving much "man-handling" of the meat. Photographs were screened of dozens of carcases frightfully mutilated. At Bristol on the other hand, the facilities shown were all that could be desired. From the moment the produce left the ships

agents and buyers at the same time,! bold till it reached the markets it was so that there might lie a semblance of] always under cover. Armies of huge fairness in the deal. The producers i electric cranes were shown, and within should stop this e.i.f. selling, and get the'; a few yards of the ship's side there were

large and roomy sheds, insulated in the

case of perishable produce. Even the wharves themselves were covered in. In short there could be no comparison between the two ports. At the conclusion of his address, Mr. Lysnar was accorded a heart)' vote .of thanks.

Owing to the small attendance, Mr. A. Morton said he did not deem it wise to move any resolution, lie agreed with much -what Mr. Lysnar had pointed out, particularly with regard to the question of eur market prices this year. He (Mr. Morton) had said for "some time past that our butter had been selling from 10s to 15s per cwt less than its actual value, for reasons that were not creditable to those concerned at the other end. This state of affairs could not be bettered until the facilities had been greatly improved, and if Mr. Lysnar's proposals were likely to remedy this they were deserving of the hearty support of producers. Briefly returning thanks, Mr. Lysnar said lie appreciated what Mr. Morton had said, in view of the important position he held in the dairying world. He (the speaker) could substantiate everything he had said. In addition to the support of men like Mr. Morton,, the promoters were aiming at enlisting the co-operation of Australia. Concluding, Mr. Lysnar said that those desirous of taking up shares in the proposed association should place themselves in touch witk Mr. A. Cliff.