LAMBS FOR EXPORT

Waikato Times, Volume 125, Issue 20989, 16 December 1939, Page 9

LAMBS FOR EXPORT

RECORD EXPECTED LARGER FLOCKS NEEDED LAMBING PERCENTAGE GIVEN (By Telegraph.—Press Association) CHRISTCHURCH, Friday “The meat industry has never been in a more favourable condition than this season,” said the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. W. Lee Martin, in an interview tonight. “Even if climatic conditions are not good in all districts in New Zealand, the number of lambs which will be available for export will far exceed the number in any previous season.” Apart from export, the Minister said, there would be opportunity to retain more than the usual proportion of ewe lambs. “As our essential function in the supply of food to Great Britain is along the line of meat and dairy products, any real expansion of the amount of these depends very largely on the replacement animals which are available,” said the Minister,

“and it is to be hoped that larger than the ordinary number of lambs should be retained to increase our breeding flock, satisfactory as it is at a number of approximately 20,000,000.” The latest information on the estimated lambing percentages and the number of lambs for the whole Dominion was given by the Minister. The figures showed that from the 19,960,299 breeding ewes in the Dominion the estimated percentage of lambs was 85.26, the number being estimated at 17,017,595.

SPECIAL APPEAL PORK AND BUTTER OUTPUT BETTER DAIRYING PROSPECTS (By Telegraph.—Press Association) CHRISTCHURCH, Friday Two fields of production in which the Dominion was given a wonderful opportunity for the expansion of trade were pig meat and butter, said the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. W. Lee Martin, in an interview tonight. The Minister made a special appeal to all farmers to co-operate in an effort made through the Primary Production Council and subcouncils to supply to the utmost limits the foodstuffs required by the Imperial Government, both for military and civil purposes. Indications of a substantial increase in the amount of butterfat production for the Dominion over that for last season were quoted by the Minister. Last season’s production, he said, was considerably affected by unfavourable climatic conditions and the aftermath of the outbreak of facial eczema. Culling of Herds “Great emphasis has been laid on the fact that during the past two or three seasons the herds of New Zealand have tended to be reduced in number,” said the Minister. “It must be remembered that the reduction has been brought about largely through very extensive culling. At the present time our cows are individually capable of producing far larger quantities of butterfat than the average cow in the past. “It is clear that in the forthcoming season there will not be the necessity to cull as heavily as has been done in the past two or three seasons. If this policy is adopted a very large increase in butterfat could be recorded. Next season, by saving of further calves, it should be possible to bring herds up to numbers even greater than in the past, at the same time continuously increasing our production.”