MEAT FOR THE ARMY

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2407, 12 March 1915, Page 8

MEAT FOR THE ARMY

FIRST SHIPMENT LEAVES

QUICK WORK

Tho ' first shipment of meat purchased and shipped by the Now Zealand Government to tho order of tho Imperial Government is on board the Rualiine, outward bound for England today. ; As far as is known, this is the first shipment to leave Australasia under the arrangement mado with the colonial Governments, a faot .which i 6 the best and most effective reply the Prims Minister • could havo given to thoso of his detractors who, a very few weeks ago, were making comparisons to liis disadvantage between tho New Zealand and the New South Wales Governments in regard to the meat acquisition schemes. The first request from the. Imperial Government came to the New Zealand Government on February 13. On February'l9- a conference of representatives of shipping companies, freezing companies, and members of the Board ■of Agriculture war- held-in -tile Prims Ministers office. That .conference was adjourned until February 25, on which dale full details of. the scheme were submitted by the Government, and approved by the conference. • It was intended that the shipment of meat under the scheme should be commenced on March 1, but authority did not come to hand from the British Board of Trade in time, and .th» scheme actually came into operation on March 3. Now, on March. 12, the first shipment is leaving. '-'The-.Government meat in the ship comprises 27,274 carcasses of mutton and lamb. There are 5766 carcasses of mutton and 21,508 carcasses of lamb, of which th« bulk, 1831 carcasses of mutton, and 19,258 of lamb, were loaded at- the port of Timaru. The rest was loaded in" Wellington. "This is not a full shipment," Mr. Massey explained to a reporter. "Space for private shipments had been arranged before tho Government took over the export of. meat, and tWt portion of the meat on board has been allowed to go to the original consignees. The next boats to take meat shipped under the scheme will be tho Matatua and the Tainui, to sail -about 'March 25.

"Statements have been made that certain of the freezing companies have declined to afford facilities to producers for putting meat through the .works on their .own account, and selling it to the Government f.o.b. I have communicated with all the freezing companies, and I 'have received 20 replies from them. In every case the effect of the reply has been that facilities are afforded to producers to put stock through the w;orks. Owing to tlm stores of certain .works. being full or henrly so,' the companies have not always been able to take all the stock offeripg, but it is not correct to say that the companies have refused to allow producers to have: meat frozen on their own- account.". /