MEAT COMPANIES.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13713, 21 April 1910, Page 9

MEAT COMPANIES.

(from ock own correspondent.) LONDON, March 11. Messrs Eastmans have made- a net profit for the year of £146,600—-the best year since the company tvas floated in* 1839. The chairman, at this wood's meeting, soid that all the circumstances connected Tvith the imported meat trade w"e much more in their favour than diiung tho previous 12 months. The total imports of beef, mutton, and Lamb, alive and dead, in li>o9, -ivcro about 6-IS,OOO tons, against fj2G,OOO tons in 19C8, notwithstanding the fact that there was a further great falling off of 528,090 tons of chilled iieef. 01,000 live cattle, and 70,000 live hhrep from the United States and Canada. That meant that the additional shipments which came from the Argentine, New Zealand, and Australia considerably more than made up for the smallor shipments from North The- home consumption of mes.t in the United States was rapidly overtaking the supply, and shipments from the States to this country were likely still further to diminish. That would not affect the company's business so long aa there wtas plenty of good meat to be had from other parts of the world. A dividend of 10 per cent, on the ordinary shares was declared. Presiding at the River Plate Meat Company, Mr J. A. Wood said that in view of tho climatic conditions in the Argentine during tho past year it was satisfactory that tho company had done so well. Drought had put up tho prices of sheep and cattle thero, and in addition the prices ruling on this side for frozen beef and mutton )iad been lower than in the previous year. A counteracting feature had lieon the better prices the company had obtained for by-products, such as hides, pelts and wool. The enormous increase in tho export of sheep and lambs from New Zealand and Australia hod been tlie main feature'that had kept down the price of frozen mutton in this cotijitry. No fewer than 7,700,000 cheep and Jtanibs were exported in 1909, agdnsl 6,000,000 in 1908. The markets on this sido continued to absorb th« shipments, and "altogether the outlook was favourable. A dividend of 10 per cent, on both the preference and ordinary shares β-gs declared.