National lamb pool idea

Press, 14 August 1982, Page 12

National lamb pool idea

Nelson reporter "We have to stay competitive, and quite frankly we are not competitive in the world markets,” said Mr Mervyn Barnett, of the New Zealand Meat Board. With this comment, Mr Barnett, who is also a member of the Joint Meat Council, introduced 45 farmers in the Nelson region to the board's proposal to create a national lamb pool. At a meeting. on Thursday ■ evening Mr Barnett set out for the farmers the problems in processing, marketing, and transportation — all of which are well known to farmers — before outlining the board's proposal. Although much of what he had to say would deal with the marketing proposal, he asked that it not be forgotten that the board had been active in cost savings just as ' it had been in market areas. “Although the might not come overnight, we believe that we are getting into a position now where.in processing, internal transport, and other areas we can see where substantial costs can be saved for the farmer," Mr Barnett said. What had come out of all the talks and investigations was .

a “proposal” and not a “decijsion,” he said. The statutory powers, in the proposal would only be used in the'marketing operation where direction was necessary to ensure that the policy of the Joint Meat Council was'Carried out. The board had tried in the exercise to'retain as much private enterprise as possible; and again he emphasised that the board own no product. “It will only own product on behalf of the farmers if . they have to,” he said. One point in the proposal was a national lamb pool which would ;-be called a lamb distribution centre. Lambs would be distributed from that pool according to guidelines established by the Joint Meat Council and before lambs, passed into the pool every company would act in exactly the same way it had done this year. This would mean that farmers would be offered either a weekly schedule or a company ■ pool. Companies would run their own pools. ■ “The only time the board will own lamb in that distribution centre is if any company in the country did not offer a schedule or a pool.

“In other words, the'board will guarantee farmers'that. every farmer in the country will have the-opportunity of, that choice, and it will only be when companies do not offer these schedules that the board would come in with.its schedule along with other ‘ exporters or the choice bf a pool.” Mr Barnett said. “All lamb that passes into the national pool js then going to be classed as lamb that is available for world markets. “The company bought it the company owns it. it

passes into the pool, and .• there, will be ways of getting it out of-the pool." Many of the' details still' had to" be discussed with the industry and the farming community; he said. .57;Mr lan Jenkinson, general manager of the Primary, Producers’ Co-operative Society, commented on some , of the points raised by Mr Barnett. He detailed possible pitfalls, and concluded by saying that meat exporters would not like to see a ~ system brought in that was irreversible.