Corriedales link N.Z. and S. America

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33904, 25 July 1975, Page 7

Corriedales link N.Z. and S. America

Mr D. G. A. Cassells, a stud stock officer with Pyne, Gould. Guinness Ltd. who recently flew to Chile with a consignment of 138 New Zealand stud sheep—mainly Corriedales —was impressed bv the great goodwill that exists between New Zealand and the sheep breeding countries of South America and is confident that there will be a continuing trade in sheep between New Zealand breeders and their South American counterparts.

The 137 Corriedales in the consignment, which were flown to South America by way of the Antarctic, were for breeders in the Magallanes province of Chile, and Mr Cassells said that the Patagonian breeders in Chile had been “quite thrilled” by this demonstration that the two countries were so geographically close. The polar flight was greeted with much more

enthusiasm than one would have expected, he said. Newsreel and television rival of the sheep at the airport and pictures of it were beamed bv satellite throughout South America, so as he travelled northwards he found that anyone involved in sheep breeding knew all about it. During about a month th South America Mr Cassells also visited Argentina, Uruguay and Peru. It was his second visit to the continent.

In Argentina, where he was entertained by "the Corriedale society, he said that interest in the New Zealand Corriedale sheep was as real and as intense as it ever had been, but economic conditions and a general air of uncertainty in the country made it difficult to transact any early business, but given even a measure of stability he was sure that the Argentinian breeder would purchase stud animals. It was only the top stud animals that they were interested in. The general level of their flocks was every

bit as high as it was in New Zealand, and the situation in Chile and Uruguay was similar. The result was that they wanted a reinfusion of New Zealand blood to supplement the importations that had been made over the last 50 years. Uruguay, which on the surface had a greater degree of stability, both social and economic, was also probably the most enthusiastic supporter of the New Zealand Corriedale. The last consignment of stud rams to go there from New Zealand was exported

early last year by his firm and" these sheep had created a lot of interest and their subsequent sale after stud use in Uruguay attracted buyers from as far south as Patagonia and as far north as Brazil.

The main topic of conversation among sheep men in all of these countries was the world conference of the Corriedale breed which would be held at Lincoln College in November this year. In early June a meeting had been held in Buenos Aires of delegates from Brazil. Argentina and Uruguay and Chile to discuss the matters that the South American bloc of countries wished to raise at the world meeting.

Quite sizable delegations intended to come from these countries and both Ecuador and Peru had also indicated that they would be attending. It seemed that trade with those countries op the Pacific coast would be more in the commercial grade Corriedale than in the elite stud animal, he said- In Peru a programme of communal agrarian reform was in progress and at their particular stage of development their requirement was large numbers of commercial sheep. Ecuador was only beginning its pastoral experiment and last month it had purchased 5000 Corriedale ewe hoggets from the Chilean breeders in the Magallanes province of that country, which had beer, flown to Quito in Ecuador in 16 air lifts.

It seemed that there was a certain amount of trade in Corriedale sheep between the South American republics, which was satisfactory from a New Zealand point of view. It indicated how well the New Zealand Corriedale had prospered in these

countries and that there would be a continuing trade between the New Zealand breeder and his South American counterpart. But he warned that! much of the future trade would depend as much on political as mercantile considerations.

Tenders for bulk commercial consignments were mainly decided at ministerial level, and the advice' given in such situations was not always based on, purely genetical considerations.

Mr Cassells said that one. of the main reasons for the holding of the world Corriedale conference was to review at five-yearly intervals the various standards’ and requirements that were necessary for the control of the breed.

A world type standard had first been adopted in 1950. This provided a gen-j era! standard of speeiriea- • tion and type for the Corriedale sheep world. One of the great features'; of the breed was its adapt-1 ability to different geographic and climatic condi-; tions but one of the problems had been to adhere to the general standard and at the same time make allow-: ance for differing national, conditions and even at! times differences in national temperament.

It was most necessary, said Mr Cassells, that people deeply involved with the breed from an administrative, breeding or trading aspect should cross each others boundaries andcritically review the situ-, atien.