H.—3o.

The stocks of meat held in store in the Dominion at the 26th July were as follows. The comparative figures to the nearest date of the previous season are also shown : —

Stocks in Store.

SHIPPING. The much restricted shipping programme for meat for the second year of war created many difficulties in the planning of shipping allocations to avoid congestion at freezing-works. Sudden changes in shipping programmes have at times occasioned inconvenience to shippers, which has, however, been cheerfully accepted by them as due to war conditions. The Department continued during the season to allocate the shipping space as equitably as possible amongst all shippers in proportion to the stocks awaiting shipment. This objective could not, however, be completely realized as the more important requirements were to obtain the quickest " turn-round " of overseas ships and to make the best use of available shipping tonnage to prevent works from becoming congested to an extent which would stop killings at a time when stock were ready for killing. The Department records its thanks to the Overseas Shipowners' Allotment Committee for its help in this vital matter. The United Kingdom Ministry of Food's monthly priority requirements of dairy-produce were also a factor which influenced the ships' itineraries and the space available for frozen meat, and consequently affected the meat programmes at various ports. The reduction in the number of ports of loading per vessel effected in the interest of expeditious loading and despatch of overseas vessels, accentuated the difficulties of obtaining an even flow of meat from all works. These difficulties were, however, mitigated to an appreciable extent by the employment of the two feeder vessels placed at New Zealand's disposal by arrangement with the United Kingdom Ministry of Shipping, also by the greater use of rail transport in bringing meat from inland works to main ports. The New Zealand Kailways Department's action in granting special facilities and special reductions in railage rates, and the United Kingdom Ministry of Shipping decision to pay extra charges occasioned by the longer haul, enabled what may be described as a major change in New Zealand's meat-shipping arrangements to take place without extra cost to the freezing companies concerned. The thanks of the Department are given to the New Zealand Eailways Department for its organization of rail transport arrangements to provide main port loadings of ships. There has been constant consultation with the Railways Department throughout the season. The additional storage space erected by freezing-works during the first year of war proved o f very real benefit, whilst close packing, which was introduced from the beginning of the season, also assisted materially in conserving storage space. Economies in packing, such as boning-out of quarter beef and the converting of baconer pigs into Wiltshire sides, were factors which contributed to the most effective utilization of storage space at freezing-works and on overseas ships. SAVING OF SHIPPING AND STORAGE SPACE BY DE-BONING AND TRIMMING OF EXPORT MEAT AND BY PROCESSING. The restricted shipping programme for export meat from New Zealand during the 1940-41 season stimulated the development of every economy which would reduce the bulk of the meat to be shipped overseas. During the 1939-40 season a major step in this direction was the telescoping of all carcasses of mutton and lamb, resulting in a saving of space equal to 25 per cent, over all. Early in 1940 a trial shipment of boned ox beef was made to the United Kingdom, and this proved so successful from the point of view of saving of shipping space and quality that instructions were later given that all ox beef and prime cow beef should be boned for shipment instead of being shipped in quarters. In addition, an order has boon secured for regular monthly shipments of packaged ox beef.

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North Island. South Island. Dominion. 26th July, 27th July, 26th July, 27th July, 26th July, 27th July, 1941. 1940. 1941. 1940. 1941, 1940. Lamb (carcasses) .. .. 1,858,051 754,660 2,425,238 1,195,913 4,283,289 1,950,573 Wether mutton (carcasses) .. 287,427 307,190 73,760 75,668 361,187 382,858 Ewe mutton (carcasses) .. 639,512 267,397 659,981 372,697 1,299,493 640,094 Beef (quarters) .. .. 414,203 318,572 3,940 4,723 418,143 323,295 Boneless (60 lb. freight carcasses) 384,402 343,407 23,914 18,910 408,316 362,317 Pork (freight carcasses) .. 240,120 141,982 8,664 10,766 248,784 152,748 Ofials (freight carcasses) .. 26,920 58,724 3,153 10,473 30,073 69,197 Total (freight carcasses) .. 3,420,835 2,249,574 2,044,813 1,090,068 5,465,648 3,339,642 I