CHILLED BEEF.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 10, 12 January 1934, Page 8

CHILLED BEEF.

SULTAN STAR'S CARGO. FIRST AUCKLAND SHIPMENT. PRECAUTIONS IN LOADING. One of the largest single cargoes ever' to leave Auckland will be carried by the Blue Star steamer Sultan Star this : evening when she sails for London, via Panama. The most interesting part other freight is the first shipment of chilled beef to be eent Home from Auckland. Special care has attended the loading of the consignment into the refrigerated holds of the ship, in order to ensure that the meat arrives on the London market in prime condition. When the Special railway vans were run alongside the vessel at the Central wharf on Tuesday the huge sidee of meat were removed from the insulated transport and hung individually on a wooden. staging, in order to facilitate slinging for the crane. It was found that as the men became used to the new type of cargo they were able to handle it without the need of the staging, and their greater quickness meant less delay in transfer from the van to the ship's hold. The last of the chilled beef yas locked in the special chamjrsr at 11*30 o'clock this morning, but the loading of the remainder of the cargo was to go on until late this afternoon. The Sultan Star will carry general merchandise as well as refrigerated cargo. Wool, hides, butter, cheese, mutton carcases, tallow and crayfish tails are included in the ship's manifest for the voyage Home, and this afternoon the vessel was loaded nearly down to her Plimsoll mark. It has, been suggested that in future vans with hinged or sliding roofs should be supplied for the transport of chilled meat from the stores to the wharves, thus allowing for the quarters to be lifted straight from the vans to the hold. This would ensure a minimum of exposure to air at a normal temperature. Experiments with vans constructed along those lines will probably be made in the handling of future shipments.