UNREAPED HARVEST OF THE SEA

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2579, 29 September 1915, Page 20

UNREAPED HARVEST OF THE SEA

THE FISHING INDUSTRY 'VALUABLE SOURCE ; GF;FOOD SUPPLY NEGLECTED : : SOME STRIKING FACTS ■i ! ~ v.i

' Every development of tlio wealth and resources of Now Zealand adds not only to 'the'-Strength. of this country, but also to that of the Empire. This ■ is' especially. itHi/rase with, respect. to ■'foodstuffs ind primary products... New ; Zealand (already, producesan abundance ! of foodstuffs in the,-shapß...'of meat and ■ ! 'Uairy : produce. Sheep and' cattle ■ have. • wlieeii brought from long distances overi' s6as, and great .flocks: and herds-built ■' jvp,saud'a groat export trade' developed. [ curiously enough la practically m- • ("exhaustible- sourco,of food- supply-pro-hvided for us by" : ' Nature-right; at': our ■ doors is comparatively neglected. Last ■'year Professor Prince, Commissioner of •Fisheries tor Canada, visited Now Zealand and drew :up> a valuable report on '- Zealand.;:: That; re-. ■ port did not .receive - very much attention at the tune, and is well North lecallmg. : : ;V . -'Professor., Prince, in- discussing. the, possibilities : of developing tho industry, . "refers' to .' ; two; criticisms—namely, ■'t'he ! alleged limited domestic demand in New Zealand,':.aiid" its : isolated ■ position, geographically,vwlucli it is thought would i prevent. -'any;-large- ' extent . Ho says:: '.""My reply "'admit^.Jv.tliihfc,' v'ofvno :_de-. ma!. A million-people, should; I claim, ■ uselannually one-eiglittof .the quantity of fish used by eight 1 mdlions. .'New; •'Zealand, according to information Which' f his'vbeen furnished me, requires for domastic use at present between five and; six .million pounds of fish per annum, which is at the rate of over five pounds of fish per annum for every man, woman, and child; whereas Canada' uses over 150 million pounds of fish—about twenty-five pounds per head.. It will ho Jseeri, therefore, that the' domestio demand for fish m New Zealand is certainly not one-fifth. of that which it' ought to be under normal conditions. Tho reason for this abnormally low demand will bo dealt with in the body of my:report. Nor is there any more foroe . in; the argument, that geographical distances are too great for easy transportation. of fish. In Canada cities like Montreal, Toronto, and Winnipeg are .-situated 800, .1000, and 2100 miles respectively from the Atlantic coast, and .:yet;they receive Tegular supplies of fish . from the sea. Vancouver City, 3600 . miles from Nova Scotia, is supplied with smoked fillets of cod from the ,Bay ./'of.Fundy fishing portsj'-and'it is plain that no centre of population in New Zealand, and'.not even.'the Australian cities/ are situated. at distances com-' parable in any way with the vast distances. just mentioned. Further, the cost per pound for transportation; for long distances in Canada- exceeds the small duty (Id. per pound) imposed on -Dominion fish entering the. Australian market, so that such small duty need bo no.barrier- to the importation of New Zealknd fish into New South Wales and other States. , - ,

Fishing Areas Available; • I estimate that New Zealand possesses about 20.,t100 .'square miles ot inshore waters, 10 to 30 fathoms deep; 'about '25,000 jquarp:! miles '40'; to 50 fathoms deep; and outside these areas a:.'deeper .water area .'extendingi,..ten. to twenty .miles from; to ,300 and 400 faiihoros.' At. a . very moderate. estimate/Clie'.Somihidir''.possesses .50,000 of; fishing:, grounds' available ands accessible.'• it -is. interesting to compare tliis estiraattkl- area with the available .' sesiTfisliing . areas oil the east and west"seaboard., of .Canada.. Thus. on;, the Atlantic' -coast"of Canada j it is estimated that 20,000. square miles, and oa flic Pacific coast 40,000' square miles',valid oil the great lakes. 35,000 .square 1 ; milos are accessiblo ; to tile Canadian fishermen, and yield a. totals annual catchywhich exceeds £7)000,000 in value.: It is, of coursc, impossible to ilifer that because New Zealand lias inshore waters/somewhat greater probably, than one-fifth those of Canada her fisheries, should yield £1,000,000 to £1,500.000 vahiej'of fish. The argument would Jbo legitimate - as regards population and the possibilities' of; commercial development^but; -the fact',, eaniwt.i'be ignored? that the Atlantic tlio smelt,the capelin, and other.'important 'species, which-'are the main food or tlio most valuablo commercial. fish, including the ccd, haddock, Atlantic liake,: etc., are absent, from the South Pacific—or, lather?, they arc 'represented by fish •less valuablo and' less abundant from. the present point of view. I liave not been able to secure any .very data for an estimate of the total area of the-inland. waters— the larger and smaller, lakes—but in all tlidy must embrace a total freshwater jaroa of nearly 15,000 square a little over 12,000 square: miles in the South Island and about' 2500 square miles in the North Island;;: These estimates, are, of .course, , far less'vast than tho estimates of tlio areas 'of tho Canadian portions of tho great Makes of North America; for in Canada; are Lake Ontario, over 6700 miles; Lake Erie,. 10,000 square miles ;':Lakc Huron, 20,000 square miles; and Lake Superior, 31,000 square miles. 'Aboutlone-half of the total area of these, lakes -is within the Canadian boundary, and tho other half within tho United States. '.boundary. With such estimates and comparisons before tis there is every ground for being ■ optimistic in Tegard to tho.futuro of Now Zealand fisheries.. Their and possibilities have not ibeon adequately realised.

The Fishes of New Zealand. 'A surrey of the. fisheries of New Zealand and oj the various important species; inhabiting the. Dominion waters emphasises the contrast betweon tho southern fish and fisheries and those of the north, especially the great fisheries | of the;'" North' 1 Atlantic.'- The various 'kinds "of fish most abundant in New. ■Zealand waters recall tho species familiar in-tho markots of southern Europe. /J?lie great abundance of .the spiny-finned . fishes: corresponds with the food fishes "found : off the Spanish and North African ' coast, and along the shores ' of-, the Mediterraneanv' There is,little_resera'bianco between these/fishes and those of the'northern waters, such as the Canadian, British, or. Norwegian fisheries. The most important species in the great waters of tho Northern Hemisphere are gadoids, such as cod, haddock, pollack, whiting, mackerel, halibut, turbot, etc. ;, whereas the principal species in .New Zealiuid seas, are spiny-finned fish like peTches, - aparoids, bream, groper,imullet; gurnard, and the shark family. Most of these Now Zealand species resemble very lriiich the kinds which are ' seen in tho markets of Lisbon, Genoa, Marseilles, and Naples. Most of them are exceedingly good-food-fish, and, though not the^stapjo/kinds jin.tho^British am^

European markets-generally, they could readily find large sale in some of the markets .to-which-I refer in this report.

Large importations. Olio startling fact presented by the fisheries of New Zealand is the comparatively large amount of fish'products imported annually from Britain and other countries. "For instance, .'in 1912, the value of dried, salted,, and canned fish imported into New Zealand amounted to ho less than.£loß,lßs. With the superabundance of fish in . the waters. 'along, tlie coast-lino and in'the rivers and lake's there should bo no -necessity' for importing any such quantity of fish products as stated. The harvest of the sea-has'-ibeeii recognised as a sourco of ' fdod , supply ior the people, and a . remunerative'afield for the employment of labour and'capital; and, iis the Chief Inspector of Fisheries in one of his reports points out, "to allow this great wealth: to lio ebmparativelj - .. ungarnered at 'our, "doors - seems -to indicate a lack ; of enterpriso, and energy, and certainly a lack of appreciation of the groat resource'sV,of.itlio sea. which* are readily jvailable." .-<. I have myself seen quantities^:'of* ismokeid- cod,' kippered herrings, boneless cod, cod ..fillets, and a great variety -of.- canned, herring, sal- ■ mon, etc., in all the best shops in every New Zealand _ town.' This implies a. large sale of imported fish, whereas if the fishery resources of New Zealand were properly - utilised," instead" of importing . fish, the , Dominion could pro-.videj-'ato abundant supply for domestic uso and have •' an; extensive export fish , Canada has developed a very -largo'i'-export,trade to the -West Indies, the Mediterranean,; France, and other countries', and it has a large fish business even with Fiji and the. Pacific islands within easy distance of New Zealand. ' ■

Larger Fishing Craft. The fishing operations carried on hitherto have on the whole been somewhat' local in their , character, :and not to: be compared with the fishing trips made by fishermen in other countries. For instance, the Scotch liners mako trips of fifty to a, hundred.'and fifty miles-from shore, and secure some of their best catches out on the more distant grounds. Even the herring fishing in Scotland, which is regarded as an inshore fishery, is largely conducted many miles from the coast; arid the steam vessels, both liners and trawlers, going out from British ports make trips Of from twenty-five to thirty-five days, extending to distances of; one thousand to one thousand five hundred miles. They are specially fitted for these trips, and carry supplies of ice and provisions for lengthy trips. Large wells are provided ju addition to fish cold-storage rooms, so that the catches .are kept cool and fresh, and arrive in a sweet and firm condition as though they had just :been ciiuglit.' In' operating; "the Steam liners use from five to seven miles of gear,' baited with \ herring/-. and steam four or five , miles per hour, operating in 100 to 150 fathoms, and they haul up their catch very rapidly by means 6f steam - liauling-gear. The best Canadian, boats fishing from Nova Scotia ports are fine craft suitable for long .trips ,;to 'the fishing banks. -They are from tens and over, and usually' ; carry' pight dories or small.' boats, and maiiy'-of it-hem have; specially built gasolene dories .or. boats'. in;;:wliich. the ;men-fisli on the-banksyand.co.iivey:' tlieir catches to V-The> fishing trip ; lasts...map ' month's, some vessels being five or six- months absent from port. Their'catches:-oil.- - the Atlantic banks are cleaned and salted on board , the-vessol,:and undergo the drying process after the-termination of the voyage. y .:.

Crants or. Bounties for Fishing. In various countries, it has been found beneficial to the fishing industries;and a stimulus to their development, to? carry out a scheme of loans, grants, or bounties to parties engaging in fishing—(l) by improving fishing boats and 'means of fishing'; (2) by .increasing the catches through the exploitation of new," and, itmay be, more distant fishing grounds worked; (3) by encburagihg; the tinning, curing, and commercial preparation of fish foods on an extensive scale; (-1) by rebates on tho cost of transporting fish, by ; rail or boat, and on ice, salt,, and other'necessaries for fish preservation and curing; (5) by a system of insurance of-fishing-boats, and gear. lu many countries such a system of fiecuniary encouragement from the pubic funds has been tried spasmodically, and; indeed, a permanent system of loans or bounties does not appear necessary, for new fishery' enterprise's soon ivould put themselves on such a 'paying basis as to render Government aid unnecessary. There is no doubt that the French deep-sea-fishing operations on the great,,cod banks, off Canada and Newfoundland have been maintained by Government bounties. But for such bounties the competition between Canada, United States, and Newfoundland fishermen; and the vast distances to be traversed' from the Trench ports to tho banks and back—six thousand'mileswould havo. discouraged the fishery and probably brought it to an end long ago. It still continues', as it has done for over a century, a largo and flourishing enterprise.' The fishing bounties .grant-ed-in Canada, amounting to £30,000 annually, differ from usual fishing.bounties, Inasmuch as the amount is; really the interest on an indemnity paid by tho United States as a result of the Halifax Fishery Award, 1883, and it cannot: bd _tr.uly said that it has adequately stimulated deep-sea fisheries. The development of the industry at important fishing centres such as Lunenburg, Canso, and Digby, Nova Scotia, especially seen in the improvement of tho ; "fishing. boats, -is due less , to the bounty than to the business enterprise of merchants and owners, and to the rivalry between Canadian and United States fishermen.

In Britain loans or bounties havo at tinies been granted for encouraging fisheries.- The Scotch herring industry, it ■has been.'claimed, rose to prominenco thiough - bounties - originally ■ granted; and in\recent-., years' the British Treasury has made advances to various fishing localities for the purpose of improving fishery'methods. Thus the sum of £4000 was granted by t'he Imperial Government from the "Development Fund," as it is called, at a -rate of 3 per cent, per annum, on the security arranged by fishermen's societies, subject to tho approval of - an administrative committee locally-appointed by the Cornwall Sea Fisheries.'-Committee. : It was recently stated iii the. 1 House of Commons, London, that much of this grant would bo devoted to installing 'mechanical power in fishing vessels; and a similar grant, amounting to about £2000, wag mado_

to the Devon Sea Fisheries Committee for tho purpose of making ..experiments with motors in trawlers, and withtypes of boats used inshore where fishing is enrrcid on from open boats. The grants from this British Development Fund have done much to stimulate' the industry in certain localities.

• There is a feeling in various localities in Mew Zealand in favour of fishory grants or advances on terms similar to those provided in the Advances to Sottiers Act.

Japan affords a good illustration of tlie benefits of Government grants, and has with great success distributed over £■10,000 (200,000 yen) annually in loans nt low rates of interest to —(1) fishermen or companies of three.years' standing; (2) fishermen or: companies recommended by the local officers. Tho Japanese grants are expended in building improved boats, -making tackle, erecting fish storehouses; wharves, and any public utility connected wtih the fisheries.

The agricultural progress of New Zealand during the last twenty years has been largely, ascribed to tho Government encouragement in the shapo of advances to settlers, according to prominent authorities, aiid 1 am strongly of opinion that cortaih new lines of fishery business and improvement in the size and character of fishing craft would be rapidly- accomplished, by'a system of Government grants or bounties. It is, .or course, impossible to ignore, the fact that individual'fishermen can do much foi- themselves; and there is every evidence that an active and able fisherman can make good,wages. There is therefore less urgency for Government' assistance in providing boats. and gear. I have been supplied with accurate returns of the earnings of fishermen in various parts .of New Zealand, and it has been demonstrated to me that an able fisherman can' make very ample earnings.

New Markets for Fisn. ' There is abundant evidence, that a much larger demand for New Zealand ttsii could be easily created by. . such stops as those which I am now about to suggest. Tho homo markets could bo vastly increased: by better transportation and .marketing facilities; but it is tlie export market, after all, on which a largo fishing industry in the Dominion would depend.. There aro live different methods of putting up fish for the export; market which arc well worth con- : ; (1.) Dried fish powder: This can be readily prepared; and for this class of fis'h product there is an unlimited market m Japan arid China and the Bast generally. Fish regarded as inferior for table use can bo utilised for this fish powder, which consists;of-the solid meat removed from;the bones, the'water extracted, and the dry material ground up by special machinery in the form of ,a fine powder. . (2.) Boneless fish either in the shape of • dry bricks or smoked fillets: Such fisli as tho ling; which are at present wasted to a'large extent and which are fish of large sizo and thick solid flesh, could be readily made into boneless cod ; and, as I suggested, there are other fish, such as elephant fish, with Which experiments might be made iu tliis direction.

(3.) Salt/dried fish: There are a number of species of iis'h'.in New Zealand waters which it is found can. bo dried in the manner of the salt cod of t'lie North Atlantic and Pacific. Canada exports great quantities of dried saltfisn to i;ne Mediterranean, the West Indies, and to someof iho Pacific islands., ft is quite possible, therefore, to develop ■an industry in the preparation and marketing of such fish. (4.) ; Chilled fish: .1 have pointed outelsewhere m this report-thai fish when properly handled and chilled and kept in cool chambers at a steady temperature slightly above freezing-point can be kept for long periods in a oondition which is practically ihat of fresh fish. I am convinced that eels, if properly treated by the removal of the slime, etc., and chilled immediately, and kept under cool conditions, can be shipped at a profit to some of the great European markets. Apart from London, which takes an immense supply, eels are in .demand in Germany, Italy, and other countries, and many American cities,; such 1 as New York, will take an unlimited quantity of eels and pay a good price for them. I refer to this' subjcct under another heading.(5.) Tinned fish, iis'h-paste, etc : New Zealand lias a great many very excellent • fish which :would Make capital tinned fish, or which •might bo-worked up into fish-paste with i yery,. little,. la T bouiv Eels,' liapuka, crayfish, and other kinds make excellent paste, which when canned will keep for a long time. Some of the fish which could bo tinned might, I think, be coloured so as to resemble -trout or salmon. . The-use of aniline or other harmless dyes . would"' doubtless improve -the appearance of some of the White-lles'hed lish, and they could be marketed not as salmon, but as "table fisli-paste," or some such general name; I - myself have seen hundreds of cases or the poorest kind of Pacific salmon landed on the Fiji Islands, and am convinced that tinned iisli slightly coloured and shipped to Fiji'would bo as much in demand as the somewhat poor class of salmon shipped in great quantities from North. America, to . these Pacific communities. 7Any one acquaint.ixl with the Norwegian fisheries will bo aware of the large number of different kinds of tinned fish products which are prepared, many of tnem from fish of inferior quality, but so' well prepared that they make capital food. 1 regard tlio eel, which is superabundant in so many Now • Zealand rivers and lakes, as a. vory promising fisli for experiments of this nature. It is not esteemed by British people generally, excepting in London and some of the other large cities, but it is rightly regarded in such countries as Italy as ono of the prime fish, and if prepared by proper cooking or by curing and, smoking, or being made into a fishpaste; can bo made a,, most appetising and important dish for the table, j : The taste of the public in different parts of the world, is certainly most I peculiar and erratic, amd a ftvmous Chinese authority connected with the Embassy at Washington, D.C., once told me that the deep-sea fishes which are -so highly esteemed by most nations cannot be sold in China at..any, price, as the Chinese more highly eslcem perch, carp, jellyfish, cuttlefish, sharks' lins, and other edibles, 1 which they regard as of a very superior character;

New Zealand Fish Agents Neooss'ary. My experience has been that it is impossible to gain entrance to some of the best markets in the world through the ordinary trade channels. The finest qualities of fish will be discounted and shipments excluded unless judicious steps are adopted. For example, it was found impossible to place chilled, frozen, or smokecl British Columbia salmon on the London market owing to fishery rules and regulations and the prejudice of the trade. It'was only after some very strong reports, Which 1 prepared for the Canadian Government, and after strenuous efforts by. Sir Charles Tupper, the High Commissioner in London, that such Canadian salmon found entrance. After the preliminary obstruction had been overcome, a very large .trado rapidly developed, and this has continued for many years with great advantage to the Canadian shippers. It would seem necessary, therefore, that if shipments'are to be sent to London, or even to Sydney, or to any other largo citic.s in other countries.' the task of looking after the New Zealand shipments should be undertaken by some recognised agent or officer; possibly the High Commissioner for New Zealand in London miirht act in this way.. Otherwise llie ordinary lisli firms, shinning in tlia usual channels would probably find that their products were treated most unjustly. Business is established on ccr-

tain lines, and the large fish firms are accustomed to handling only tho products of certain countries. For instance, Scotch salmon and Norwegian salmon will find ready access when salmon from Canada or the United States would probably bo impeded and might evon not find sale at all. Denmark has for many years adopted the plan which 1 suggest, and through a very able agent in London has been able' to build up a large business in fisli..' This agent takes pains -to seo that tlio Danish shippers and fishermen rccoive the full benefit of the products which they send to London. The trade agents which I refer to should have some spccial knowledge of the fish business, and should bo men of somo. ability who can readily overcome trade prejudices and. any obstruction to tho entrance of hew fish products.