N.Z. told to aim for best lamb regulation

Press, 1 May 1978, Page 2

N.Z. told to aim for best lamb regulation

As a Common Market sheep-meat regulation seems likely New Zealand should try to obtain the best regulation from its own point of view, says the chairman of the Meat Board (Mr C. Hilgendorf). Mr Hilgendorf returned to New Zealand yesterday from a trip that took him to London, Paris, Brussels, and Sweden. New Zealand authorities had all opposed a sheep-meat regulation, he said. Any faint differences of opinion among them were really only a matter of emphasis. Now, however, a regulation had been proposed. Although its adoption might be months or even years away, some type of regulation seemed probable.

In the meantime New Zealand’s interests would be best served by trying to eliminate some of the more dangerous possibilities, and ensuring that some of the uncertainties were spelt out.

In Paris, Mr Hilgendorf talked to French farmers who are associated with the Meat Board in a joint lambselling venture in France. This, he said, was getting a little bigger share of the market, which was subject to quota. Mr Hilgendorf said that French farmers would never agree to a sheep meat regulation. They were getting very high prices for their lamb and had an almost complete monopoly of the market, except for some supplies from Ireland and sometimes from Britain.

The French Government was very susceptible to farmer opinion, but the whole basis of the common agricultural policy—the keystone of E.E.C. philosophy —would be undermined if the French continued to offer a blank “no” to the regulation. Eventually the French would have to agree to some sort of regulation, even if it were delayed a year or more.

Mr Hilgendorf said that not much lamb was sold in Sweden and in the last year or two the trade had fallen. But Sweden, a great trading nation, was finding that it could not expect countries to take its exports while it was “particularly obstructionist” about imports. Hence New Zealand’s sales might recover a little.