NEW ZEALAD LAMB.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20630, 20 August 1932, Page 7

NEW ZEALAD LAMB.

PRESERVATION OF BLOOM. SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION. .rROM OUtt O-WX CCBKMPOHDJCKT.) LONDON", July 15. The I'ood Investigation Department 's report ou the Freezing, Storage, and Trar.sporfc of New Zealand lamb has now been published by H.M. Stationery Office at a price of 7s Cd. The problem of tho investigation, it w;ii be remembered, was to ascertain how far the conditions of fraezia,* storage and transport of New Zealand mutton and lamb could be modified so as to improve its "bloom" and general quality. The actual survey occupied about 120 days. In that period? 23,000 miles were covered by land or bv sea, and 18 freezing works were visited and the conditions in six of them analysed. In addition, 58 special lots of lambs, comprising 809 carcases, were selected, and followed right through the whole of its processes, and countless exact observation were made, recorded, and analysed. The accomplishment of so much in so short a time was made possible only by the most exacting efforts on the part of the members of the expedition, by careful planning, and by most thorough team-work. Finally, the bodies which co-operated in the survey, and which contributed either directly or indirectly to its cost, were the Empire Marketing Board, the British Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, the New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial .Research, the Australian Commonwealth Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, the New Zealand Meat Producers' Board and the New Zealand Tonnage Committee representing the shipping lines trading between Great Britain and New Zealand. Laboratory Experiments. Previous laboratory experiments, according to the report, had shown that loss of bloom could be caused by an increase in the capacity of the connective tissue or skin covering the carcase, by excessive drying of the superficial muscles, and, in some eases, particularly after long storage, by actual chemical change of the red muscle-pigment, haemoglobin, to the brown oxidised product, methaemoglobin. It had been shown that these changes could be prevented or minimised by not allowing the carcases to sweat, that is coming into contact with the outside air; by storage at a constant temperature and high humidity at or below —8 degrees C., (17.6 degrees

P.), and by storage at very low temperatures. The problems of bloom and loss of weight, as might be expected, involve considerations not only of the conditions of storage, but also of the prior cooling and freezing of the carcase. Another problem of practical impor? tance considered in the report is that of misshapen or distorted carcases. Tile report states, that "although thif physical conditions throughout the chain of treatment from the slaughterfloor to the wholesale markets of Great Britain are probably the chief factors determining bloom, further study of the :rnte-mortem factors is urgently required, since the greatest care iii preventing loss of bloom cannot compensate for an initially poor appearance." Why Chicken Wing is Wliite. "Given an adequate diet," say 3 the | report, "the depth of colour of the animal's muscle depends mainly its functional activity and, a limited extent upon the breed. In birds this correlation is well illustrated by the dark wing-muscles of the partridge, accustomed to rapid flight, and the pale wing-muscles of the domestic fowl. It is to be expected, therefore,, that certain breeds of sheep habityplly pastured in hilly country will produce carcases cf deeper superficial colour than breeds

associated with fiat country. Rigid differences between breeds are, however, unlikelj' to exist, since the colour of the muscles will depend largely on the habitat. For instance, the superficial colour of the carcases of Eomney Marsh sheep grown on the native pastures of Kent is said to be poor, but in New Zealand a large proportion of this breed is pastured on hilly and sub-mountain-ous country, and is not noticeably different in colour from breeds wihch originated (in England) on hilly country, e.g., Cheviots." "Bagging" the Carcase. "With the present methods of cooling, freezing, transport, and storage," says the report, ''a good deal of bloom must necessarily be lost by a considerable proportion of the lambs exported from New Zealand. If the freshly-lcilled appearance is to be preserved, evaporation from the carcases must be cut down considerably. The most feasible means of doing this appears to be by covering the carcases with bags as quickly as possible, which are impermeable to water vapour. Bags should be odourless, sufficiently strong to withstand handling, and the difference between their cost and that of the usual stockinette wrap should not be such as to cancel the monetary advantages gained by the lower losses of weight and bloom. Three types of bags, other than the normal stockinetto wrap, were tested. Two were too it agile for commercial practice, and one was unsatisfactory, because the liquid used to render it impermeable adhered to the carcases. The ideal bag has still to be evolved." A number of experiments have been carried out with a number of materials. The order of the permeabilities of the piaterials examined, commencing with that having the lowest, was white waxed-paper, calico impregnated with mutton-fat, brown-paper soaked in medicinal paraffin oil. and parchment, paper. Creasing or crinkling the waxed paper or calico impregnated with mutton-fat increased the permeability very considerably. Conditions at the London Docks. The general conclusion reached in the report is that although there is no need for radical alterations of techniquo in the storage and transport of the lamb, improvements at each stage of the chain of treatment are possible. For example, in dealing with the conditions of transport from the London docks to cold stores, the report points out that delays at the London docks arc due to the time taken in sorting numerous small parcels of carcases, and inadequate organisation for the quick dispatch of meat from the sorting platforms to the barges and road and railway vans. In the case of transport by barge, the average time from the commencement of loading to discharge is approximately 24 hours, but individual times vary very considerably. "Under the present slow system of discharge and sorting on the quayside," the report states, "it is essential that carcases should be removed rapidly to the cold stores. This cannot be done

GOOD TURNIP CROPS

by rail, since vans must be accumulated until a train is formed, and the added delay has frequently been found to result in the in6at being soft on arrival at the store. Insulated road-vans are far preferable."' In the one case of rail transport studied, from the boat to u store at the opposite side of the docks, the time occupied from commencement of loading to discharge was six hours. The carcases were distinctly soft on discharge, and some distortion was evident. The rise in temperature was largely due to delays during the sorting of the parcels, and to the doors of the van beiug continuously open during loading. Transport by road between the doclcs and London cold stores, and between the docks and Birmingham, was studied. In both cases the condition of the meat on discharge was satisfactory. The report consists of some 178 pages, and it is extensively illustrated. The sheep returns of the Commonwealth show an increase of 1,278,74(3 head. The flocks iit the end of 3931 were set down as 107,965,971, compared •vvith 106,687,225 a year previously, and 106,234,581 in 1929. T?io New South Wales flocks of 52,000,000 compared with 49,870,000 and 50,740,000 in the two previous yea?:. Queensland and Victorian flocks show a defease —the Satter very slight —and So?th Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania show increases. New Zealand flocks are given as 28,606,219, compared with 29,792,516, and ,30,841,287 in the two previous years. The Australian and New Zealand total is 136,572,190, compared with 136,479741 the previous season, the highest total' with one exception (in 1929) ever reached. The proportion or merino wool, taking Australia and New Zealand as a whole, was 72 per cefit., and of crossbred 26 per cent., the figures being identical with those of the two previous seasons. The Commonwealth figures came out as 84 per cent, merino and 16 per cent, crossbred, also identical figures with the previous season.