EXPORT IN BULK.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 115, 18 May 1933, Page 9

EXPORT IN BULK.

CANTERBURY WHEAT. ! LOADING AT TWO PORTS. ; FIRST DOMINION SHIPMENTS. ( Keen interest is being taken in shipping circles in the bulk loading of wheat into the freighter Welcombe at Lyttelton ( and the Dalmore at Timaru. This is the first occasion on which wheat has been exported from New Zealand in bulk. The wheat which is being shipped , from Timaru and Lyttelton is being conveyed to the ships' sides in sacks and these are opened on deck and emptied into the holds. No New Zealand porte have storage acommodaction for wheat in bulk, although this is common in other parte of the world. In Canada, particularly, wheat is never bagged as it is in New Zealand, but is transferred from the farms to huge storage buildings, commonly known as elevators. From these the grain is transferred by chutes to the holds of steamers and is carried to j England, where it is removed from the holds to the stores by suction. It is understood that the arrangements for the loading of the vessels at Timaru and Lyttelton provide for 6000 tons beino- loaded in bulk into the Dalmore and '3000 tons in bulk and 5000 tons in j sacks into the Welcombe.. _ j j Regulations governing grain shipped 1 in bulk from New Zealand similar to j those operating in Canadian and Aus- j j tralian ports have been issued by the j Government. It was explained by the I Minister of Marine, the Hon. J. G. I Cobbe, that the object of the regulations primarily was to provide for the safety of the ship to prevent cargo shifting. The regulations were issued in view of the sale recently of quantities of wheat for shipment overseas. Cases were on record of ships with cargoes of j grain in bulk capsizing through cargo j shifting. I i The regulations provide for the longi- j tndinal division of the holds in graintight compartments, to be filled to the , deck, feeders to be built between decks j so that as the cargo in the lower hold settles the compartments are kept full.