'Inspectional deficiencies’

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33062, 1 November 1972, Page 1

'Inspectional deficiencies’

Washington and the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries had been notified of “a couple of inspectional deficiencies” at Borthwicks Belfast freezing works, the United States agricultural attache in Wellington (Mr R. E. Anderson) said yesterday.

Mr Anderson said he did not think any major problem was involved, and it was quite unlikely that the works would be “delisted”—hatred from exporting. It had not been suggested that such a step should be taken.

The deficiency had been observed during an inspection of the plant by a United States Department of Agriculture veterinarian, Dr R. J. Weber. He had found that sarco cysts—little, ricelike cysts—had been missed consistently during the inspection of carcases on the mutton chain.

“The plant is clean and in Al condition,” said Mr Anderson. “The dressing is fine. It’s just that an individual inspector in the plant was not identifying that particular cyst on the carcase.

"We don’t want to see the New Zealand mutton chains disrupted in any major shape or form,” he said, and he commented that although Dr Weber had been accused of

stopping a chain, this had in fact been done by a New Zealand veterinarian. Mr Anderson said he thought that the inspection for cysts could be handled away from the chain, perhaps on the cooling floor, and this would eliminate slowing down the chain itself. Mr R. W. Gordon, works ‘superintendent at the Wellington head office of Thomas Borthwick and Sens, said yesterday that the problem was a national one.