MUTTON & LAMB

Wairarapa Times-Age, 29 December 1938, Page 5

MUTTON & LAMB

REGULATION OF BRITISH IMPORTS EMPIRE COUNCIL TO PREPARE SCHEME. TAKING EFFECT EARLY IN JANUARY. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Received This Day, 10.45 a.m.) LONDON. December 28. The Australian Associated Press says the Empire Beef Council will stwork next week on the preliminaries of a licensing scheme for the regulation of mutton and lamb imports from the dominions on the lines of the Government’s decision.

It is expected that the scheme will take effect early in January. It is learned that Australia and New Zealand have accepted the new policy, though New Zealand at first raised strong objections. Britain finally pointed out that restrictions were becoming so essential that she was obliged to institute them, with or without the Dominions' agreement.

Replying to claims that foreign imports could be restricted before there was a limitation of Dominion products. Britain pointed out that although the Ottawa Agreement fixed the foreign quota at 35 per cent, the Dominions were supplying 80 per cent. An important aspect of the Government’s new policy is the retention of the Beef Council, not only to control imports, but also to investigate possibilities of increasing meat consumption at home and abroad. There is little doubt that control is necessitated to a large degree by the success of New Zealand's publicity, which has resulted in housewives asking for frozen mutton and lamb instead of fresh United Kingdom products.