Stamp Story No. 135 New Zealand's Frozen Meat Industry

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30218, 24 August 1963, Page 8

Stamp Story No. 135 New Zealand's Frozen Meat Industry

[Specially written for “The Press” by

KENNETH ANTHONY)

settlers in New Zealand soon found the net/ country was ideal for rearing sheep and before long wood was being regularly dispatched to Europe. But no use could be found for the carcases. There weren’t enough New Zealanders to eat all the meat themselves, and in the absence of adequate refrigeration there was no practical way of exporting it in quantity to far away countries.

By 1882, however, the science of refrigeration had advanced sufficiently for a first trial cargo of frozen meat to be shipped from Port Chalmers. The meat was carried in a clipper ship, the Dunedin, which reached London after a somewhat anxious voyage lasting 98 days. The primitive refrigerating machinery proved a success—though the ship’s crew had to fight a number of small fires caused when sparks from the funnel of the refrigeration

plant set light to the sails. From this development dates New Zealand’s modern reputation as a leading exporter of lamb and dairy products. This trade, which has come to play a dominant part in the national economy, has been geared to the particular needs of the British market. So important to New Zealand is the export of lamb that the 75th anniversary of the Dunedin’s historic voyage was marked by this special stamp, issued in

February, 1957. The design contrasts the Dunedin of 1882 with a modern refrigerated cargo vessel. The story of this stamp also includes a mystery of the sea. In 1890 the Dunedin was one of three clippers which took part in a race to Britain. But the Dunedin and one of the other ships failed to arrive and were never seen again. They are believed to have struck icebergs on the voyage round Cape Horn. — (Central Press Features, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.)