Promotion Of N.Z. Lamb On Japanese Market

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31506, 21 October 1967, Page 16

Promotion Of N.Z. Lamb On Japanese Market

The promotion of lamb on Japanese television and cooking demonstrations in stores with samples are among selling methods suggested by the general manager of the New Zealand Refrigerating Company Ltd (Mr W. M. Cleland) and representatives of the Tower group of companies who recently visited Japan. Television advertising programmes were first class in Japan, Mr Cleland said yesterday, and there must be millions of sets in use. In-store demonstrations could also be effective, when samples were prepared and handed to customers. Other promotion methods suggested by Mr Cleland included: education in the many cooking schools in Japan and the inclusion of lamb in school lunch programmes and in factory cafeteria meals. Looking to the future of meat trade with Japan, he said that with a lowered domestic production and a rising standard of living, Japan must import ever-increasing quantities of meat. “We think that lamb could well fill a proportion of this short fall at a price attractive to New Zealand,” Mr Cleland said.

i While meat was sold in ■ Japan at so many yen per 100 ; grammes, the approximate re- • lationship between the vari- > ous types of meat in a typical , retail store was: brisket beef - in cubes, $1.20 per lb; local i sliced beef, $2 to $2.40: ten- > derloin beef, $3.60: sliced i pork, 72c: sliced lamb, 57c: sliced mutton, 37c; boneless . lamb leg, 72c: boneless lamb i shoulder, 57c. Because of the lack of ■ Western-style cooking facili- • ties, all meat was sold in a ■ boneless form and usually in ■ thin slices, Mr Cleland said. . The Japanese also did not like too much fat in the meat. i Questioned on the form in ■ which lamb should be exported to Japan, he said that i until it was found which was ’ the most acceptable in the ■ new trade, it would be pos- ■ sibly better for the Japanese to buy in the carca,se and pre- ’ pare the meat to their local i requirements. Many manufacturers had ■ erected and equipped plants i for the processing of mutton ; and lamb, and naturally would wish to use them to the I fullest capacity. This, howi ever, did not preclude experimental packages in boneless i form being produced in New I Zealand.