OUR MEAT EXPORTS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2911, 25 October 1916, Page 4

OUR MEAT EXPORTS

Although the information available is somewhat vague and indefinite, it is clear that changes are in prospect which should prove advantageous to our sheep-raisers and meat exporters. Id will be recalled that early in the war an arrangement was entered into with the Imperial authorities by which the whole of our available meat for export was sold here to tho British Government at a fixed price. That price, allowing for freight, etc., has since proved to be a good deal under the price ruling on the London market. Our sheep-farmers and exporters have been thus placed at a disadvantage, and their position has been aggravated _ by the fact "that interests prejudicial to them have seized tho opportunity to profit at their expense. The situation was fully discusscd with the Prime Minister fprior to his departure for London, and it would now seem

that his representations to the Board of Trade have had some effect. The price paid for our meat is, wo believe, to he raised and placed on a, fairer basis; but there still seems to be some difficulty regarding the method of disposing of the surplus supplies not required by the Imperial authorities. This latter question is one of very great importance, not so much on account of the immediate cffcct, but because of the possibilities it affords_ the big meat trusts for strengthening their hold on the London market and socuring a control which may greatly prejudice the New Zealand meat producers and exporters after th© war. At tho moment we are not<in possession of the details of the new arrangement suggested as the result of Mr. Massey's representations to the Board of Trade, and in consequence are not in a position to express a (fefinito opinion thereon. The Minister in Charge of Imperial Supplies, however, is to lay the proposals before representatives of the meat freezing companies and representatives of the producers later in the present week, and we may expect that this phase of the question will then be closely inquired into.