BRUISING OF LAMBS

Press, Volume C, Issue 29681, 27 November 1961, Page 8

BRUISING OF LAMBS

Higher Incidence Noted From inquiries he. had made recently the incidence of bruising of lambs seemed to be unduly high, Mr W. M. Cleland, general manager of the New Zealand Refrigerating Company, said at the North Canterbury district export lamb competition. He said it was obvious that many carcases were being relegated from export grade to rejects and also from prime to second grade quality. Mr Cleland urged that farmers and carriers should exercise care in the handling of early milk lambs.

Mr A. E. White, a supervising grader of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board, said that he had seen more bruised lambs this season than in the last 10 to 15 years. This was mainly due to wool pulling. Mr Cleland also drew attention to the amount of raddle—great stripes right down the back of the lamb —and paint used on wool, damage done to lamb pelts by shear marks where they are shorn and by faulty inoculation, and urged farmers to comply with Department of Agriculture instructions requesting that they hand in prohibited dipping materials and use D.D.T. strictly in conformity with the regulations to protect New Zealand’s meat export trade. "Do you know that you have only got to have a small shipment caught, and you can have the whole United States market completely closed to you," said Mr Cleland referring to the lamb market in the United States. Further, other countries might also decide that what was not good enough for the Americans was not good enough for them.