EXPORT OF PORK.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20619, 8 August 1932, Page 6

EXPORT OF PORK.

TRADE WITH BRITAIN,

INVESTIGATION PROCEEDING.

The theory that the transport of mU6V cared green bacon ffpm Australia and New Zealand to the United Kingdom can bo carried out successfully by ordinary commercial methods and give better result? than the export o| frozen pork if exploded in the ftnn«al report of the Iftupire Marketing Board'§ investigations of the ->ubjeet during the year just ended. Tfca report explains tint other methods are being investigated. "Ab regards pig products, imports from Australia and New Zealand can be treated in two ways," the report states. "In the first place, frozen pork can be exported for the pork market or for the manufacture of bacon in England. A large-scale experiment has shown that bacon of good quality can be made from frozen port*, and that any defects which may arise can usually be traced to deterioration of the frozen pork during storage, rather than to the effects ef freezing and thawing. Within the, last few years an increasing amount of frozen pork has been successfully used for the manufacture of bacon in England, and considerable quantities of frozen pork are now imported annnallv for this purpose p*d for the pork market. In 1931 New Zealand sent 121.503 cwt and. Australia 85.805cwt of frozen pork to Great Britain. PossibiUtiea Investigated. "It has been suggested that, instead of exporting frozen pork, it might be advisable for Australia and New Zealand to export mildrcured bacon in the green condition, i.e., unsmofced." This, however, has proved to- be unsatisfac* tory. Owing to the risk of spoilage by the superficial growth of micro-org4.n-isms, it would be necessary to freeze the bacon and transport it at -30deg. C. (14deg. F.). Large?scale experiments have shown that by freezing at C. (-22deg. F.) and storing at -lOdeg. C. (14deg. F.), the lean of inild-eured bacon can be kept ia excellent condition, even after five months' storage, but that the fat will become rancid even, when the storage lasts for only aix weeks. This is due to the fact that the fat of bacon continues to take up oxygen even when frozen. It has been shown that the fat of smoked bjicpn keeps better than that of tuisjnoked baean, but rancidity develops" even in smoked bacon after it has been stored for nine weeks at -lOdeg. €3, (lsdeg. F.). Thus, the transport of mild-cured, green bacon in the, frozen condition from Australia and New Zealand -cannot be carried out successfully fey ordinary commercial methods. "Other methods, however, aro being investigated,'* the report concludes.