NEW ZEALAND'S BEST BEEF.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1034, 25 January 1911, Page 10

NEW ZEALAND'S BEST BEEF.

. FROM NORTH IOR SOUTH? .The- quantity: of beef Saw Zealand exports .'.was referred to in an articlo in yesterday's issue. ' During .1910; 55,610,2091b. of. frpzen beef; were sent out of tho. -Do-; niinion. ; Those. sgures , show the magni: ~t.ude of the'.trade, and at .tho , same time .the . importance of maintaining' the standard of - the - industry.: ' '. Thores is no-reason to believe that the Now Zealand: meat is. hot 'of ; first grade quality,- but.; there,; is • never reason for thinking that, improvement cannot be effected. And if improvement can' to made . sow. is the time to do it, -for there are big competitors in the. field. Argentina, ev6r a .powerful rival of ours, is likely, to hepome iriore powerful, for two great r'ea,6ons. The first and'most certain reason is' that Argentina is a great country, capable of, greater things than many. New 1 Zealanders realise, and the. second is that: if the meat-producing business of Argentina is in the hands cf an American trust, the . English' piarkpts .may: be. con-, trolled by our . competitors to' our disadvantage. It behoves us then to make' evgry effort to; Fend Home beef' of a' ; . quality which s will' get such a. hold of the markets;.that : not oven a • trust will - shift it. ■' . - - v -- ■ '.Thero are some-who claim that the beef grown in the south', of" the South Island iS letter than'that grown in this Island. Altual. proof conclusive .is, of course, riot forthcoming, but .the subject is ' a very interesting one;!and if.it can be;shown that, there"-is, reason for the.stateineut, North Island grbiv-ers 'should set about investigating the, matter with a'view; to improving ; the, quality their' meat. .'- * • ■ English";beef is regarded by some New Zealand antlibrities":nsj. tho finc-st. in' the ■world, and they .'account'for- its superior quality by the fact..that the cattle there ar?,. fed on. a,-, variety of • foods,., whereas the cattle in most parts..ofVNe'w Zealand eat : grass - all the year, round,''. and iii pasturing,: tougher, soiiiewha't; through exercise.' -, . -;'- -.. • • Similar arguments, on the whole, apply to the. question .of' the difference in the qualities, of: the North Island and in the southern beef. v In.'.this' Island cattle are on pTas-5 'tho wholp'year through, : and in most, cases they .lira .in exten.rjve enclosures,..where roving and :suoh-lilco exercise is . by no means precluded. -.-Tho, climatic conditions of tho southern portion l of the South Island are verv different to tho. climatic conditions. obtaining 'in' most parts of the North Islnijd, and, consequently; there is a big difference in tho farming. Doipi in. tho colder country things 'remind one more of England. Grass is not so plentiful'all the year round in..the. South as .it is in the-North, and;-; therefore,. it is necessary for thostock raisers'to provide'root crops. The main crop is turnips, which grows re•niarkably well, and returns • great yieldso On these crops the stock are brought to splendid condition, and the meat is excellent. : -' • • ' '' • So important is tho turnip cron that during/ the dry spell a while" ago, "it was the' chief topic of conversation in tho rural districts.' "What effcqt will the dry weather have on the'turnins?"' was the quostion which presented itself everywhere^,,. It is not absolutely necessary, for the North. Inland stock raisers to cron, but if cropping is helping the southern men to-'prow better quality beef than the en-tirely-grass-fed beef, will it not he a great day;for the northerners when they, too, turn'their;hands to tjie plough?