HIGH MEAT PRICES IN AUSTRALIA

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29227, 10 June 1960, Page 17

HIGH MEAT PRICES IN AUSTRALIA

New Zealand housewives may console themselves with the realisation that they probably enjoy the best and cheapest meat in the world, according to Mr H. A. Seifert, a spokesman for the New Zealand-owned freezing companies, who arrived in Christchurch last night from Australia. Mr Seifert has been spending a “busman’s holiday” in Australia convalescing from an operation and while there he studied the meat industry in Victoria.

On Wednesday he attended Australia's largest market for fat stock and saw bullocks sold at £Aloo—“a fantastic price,” he said.

“Victoria suffered an extremely dry autumn until early May when torrential rains with chill weather arrived and created a shortage of fat stock." he said. "As a result prices shot up. "At the sale on Wednesday, beef sold at the equivalent of £lO 8s to £ll 8s (New Zealand currency) per 1001 b for ox beef, and up to £l2 for vealers. Prices were approximately 50 per cent, above the New Zealand level.” said Mr Seifert. “At the previous sale, a line of 2000 wethers made £5 4s each, equivalent to 84s New Zealand currency. “Because of these increases retail meat prices jumped to extremely high levels by our standards, not only for beef but other meats also.

"About the cheapest roasting meat available is loin of hogget at 4s a lb corned silverside beef at ss, wing rib roasting beef costs 5s and porterhouse steak at 7s 6d lb,” he said. Other meats affected included poultry, where a medium-size barbecue chicken (ready roasted) cost 19s lid. Bacon retailed at 4s a jib and ham off the bone was seen in a large department store at 14s a lb. Pre-packaged Meat One interesting observation that Mr Seifert made was that pre-packaged quick-frozen meat, so much advocated in the Dominion from farmers as a means of enlarging their export markets, had definitely not "caught on” in Melbourne.

“Traditional butchers* shops there seem more plentiful than here and the demand for the pre-

packaged product has actually declined over the last two years. ” said Mr Seifert. After looking around the country Mr Seifert said he considered that Australian farmers “have not been so infected by socialism as those in New Zealand.” They fully comprehended that competition inherent to private enterprise governed trade and made the market.

“On the other hand, having seen Herefords at Newmarket which looked like Texas Longhorns one could not but feel that New Zealand farmers were to be commended for de-horning their beef cattle and thus avoiding the heavy losses that must be suffered by the Australian beef industry from the failure to do so,” he said.

“Due to the large scale, the loss caused must run into several million pounds a year—a really wicked wastage.”