The Dominion FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1917. PRODUCERS AND THE MEAT TRUST

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 27, 26 October 1917, Page 4

The Dominion FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1917. PRODUCERS AND THE MEAT TRUST

The Meat Export Trade Committee, which reported to the, House oi .Representatives on Wednesday, has done useful work. In the first place i its .findings emphasise tie fact that the commercial organisation commonly known as tho_ American Meat - Trust, is operating in this country,' with the evident intention of capturing and controlling its meat export trade. In addition, the committee has clearly indicated the bold' and farreaching departures in policy—lmperial as Well as national—that are necessary tosccuro for the produce of the Dominion an unrestricted passage to a free market. The problem of protecting New Zealand producers and the consumers whoni they ultimately supply from exploitation by.' outside commercial organisation is' not in. any real sense local to this country. Of necessity the committee's recommendations deal very largely with matters such as the control of shipping and of the_ distribution of meat in Britain which the Now Zealand Government cannot handle wholly on its own account and the treatment of which it can infhionoe only in _ virtue of the position of the Dominion as a partner in the Imperial concern. . Most of the measures recommended by the committee will take_ effect only when they are enacted in the British Par-, liament as well as in the Parliaments of the Dominions. It is, of course, incumbent on the Government of this country to do everything it can to counter, local measures taken by the Meat Trust in furtherance of its operations. There is useful work to be done in suppressing unfair trading within the Dominion and in defeating thedevices by which foreign monopolists seek to secure control of the output of New Zealand meat, and also to prevent the evasion of taxation. It is very necessary also that our producers should combine and act unitedly in their own defence. All farmers should give full attention to the statement of the committee that "in this Dominion the producers, except as shareholders in freezing companies, have not, up to the present, suffered frorn the operations of large firms, but'keen competition has induced high prices. There is, however, a distinct danger in the growth of ftny combination which may endeavour to control values to the injury both of tho producer and the consumer." The established method _ of tho Meat Trust, as the committee also points out, is to first kill competition by inflating the prices'; of stock and then to exploit the producer by- forcing prices down to a minimum, and the consumer by imposing excessive prices. Farmers in this country are well able to perceive that al-. though their turn as victims has not yet come it certainly will come if the Meat Trust is not checkmated. Trust methods elsewhere leave no room for doubt on this point. In the discussion on the committee's report on Wednesday, Sir Joseph Waiid expressed a belief that farmers, who benefited by keen and active competition among _ buyers, would demand free and active competition again after the war. An elementary exercise of foresight, however, will enable farmers to rccogniso that to grant au increasing place in'tho market to the buyers of tho Meat Trust is to disastrously mortgage tho future—a future probably not very distant—for tho sake of temporary and precarious prosperity. There is a plain warning in the committee's statement that some freezing companies have suffered heavy losses as a result of the artificial inflation of prices, and that one company was compelled to close its works for part of last season. It cannot bo too strongly cm- ] liasised that by every act which tends to intensify this state of affairs farmers are helping to hand themselves over to the Meal. Trust, bound hand and foot. They are playing a part in all respects

ajnalogous to that of tho "lloubs" of American fiction who become the victims of confidence men and other ! lawless clespoilers. I So far, however, as the main problem is concerned, anything that Happens in this country in connection with the campaign against the Meat Trust can be little more than an affair of outposts. If producers and consumers are to be adequately protected against exploitation there must bo not only due regulation of trade in this and other producing countries of the Empire, but also effective control of shipping- and shipping freights and of the distributing agencies in Great Britain. The problem-is seriously complicated by the fact that the beef market, as Sir Joseph Ward remarked on Wednesday,! is almost wholly controlled by tlja Americans. By its control of beef supplies, tho Meat Trust is enabled for tho time being to interpose to its own profit in the distribution of mutton and lamb in Great Britain. It has contrived to exercise-this power even during the war period, as appears from the fact that it has handled and levied toll, at the expense of the consumer, on a certain amount of New Zealand meat released by the Imperial Government i'or retail sale. 1 It is to be noted as emphasising the need for energetic action that the restraints at present imposed on tho operations of the Meat Trust in Great Britain aro chiefly in the nature of special measures devised and imposed for tho perio'd of the war. Unless the Meat 'Trust and similar organisations aro to be granted an interval of comparatively unrestricted operation perman- i ent measures of trade control must be agreed upon to come into operation when peace is declared, or as soon as - possible afterwards. Tho facts which havo been touched, upon and others demonstrate that tho problem of defeating the Meat Trust is part and parcel of the problem of fostering trade within tho Empire which was ifightly given a prominent place in the deliberations of the historic; Imperial War Conference which sat in London in the early part of this year. ' De : veloped with due energy, the trading policy which was shaped in broad outline at tie'! Conference will make provision for ousting tho Meat Trust from the markets of the Empire, while it also promotes much larger objects. The Conference, it will be remembered, unanimously passed the following resolution : — The timb has arrived whfcn all possible , encouragement should bo given to the development of Imperial resoarees, and especially to making tho Empiro inde- , pendent o£ other countries in respect of food supplies, raw materials, and essen- ■ tial industries. >

r Tho Conference further expressed itself in favour of "the principle that each part of tho Empire, hav- ; ing due regard to the interests of our Allies, shall give specially favourable treatment and facilities tc tho produce and manufactures oi other parts of the Empire." It i? manifestly on 'theso lines that action must be taken to solve the f problem of defeating tho Meat Trust with which we are immediately con- ! cerned. Tho institution of such, a ;■ policy opens some very big qucs--3 tions, each one of which demands careful and 'detailed consideration, 1 but action is greatly _ facilitated by 3 tho exhaustive preliminary inquiries whicK have been carried out, notably by tho Dominions' Royal Commission. A section of tho Commission's report which has a vital bearing on tne problem of coping with organisations like tho Meat Trust relates to shipping. It recommends, amongst other things, thai the contractor for all Government subsidised shipping services should bo required to submit freight schedules for approval, and that tho rates approved should not be altered without consent Anothei and more comprehensive _ recommendation is that tho British and Dominion Governments should set .up boards for tho purpose of making inquiry • into action on the part of steamship lowners ior conferences adversely affecting _ tho interests of shippers. . It is contemplated by the -Commission that the boards should have power tc order tho abolition of differential rates which are found inimical tc Imperial trade. Control of shipping and, the' systematic development of production within the Em- ' piro are factors of cardinal importance in eliminating illegitimate interference with trade, and safeguarding the interests of producers and consumers. Given production of the necessary supplies and their unimpeded conveyance to the market distribution on sound lines will present no insuperable difficulties. It is necessary that the Aow Zcaland Government exercise every possiblo means to (stimulate the Imperial- Government in shaping a policv that will enable practical effect'to be given to the recommendations of the Meat Export Trado, Committee. Fortunately there is fairly satisfactory evidence that its efforts in this direction will not be wasted. In August Mr. Walter Long (Secretary of State for'the Colonies) announced that the British Prime Minister had appointed a committee, consisting ot Ministers representing all the departments concerned, to inquire into and report upon the best of giving effect to the Imperial Conference resolution wliich has been 'quoted. A late indication of the activity of the British Government in this connection, and one which has a special bearing on tho problem of tho Meat Trust, is conveyed in a cablegram published to-day. Jt; is an announcement that a confer* ence of Board of Trade authorities and the High Commissioners of-tlio Dominions has appointed a committco to devise a scheme of obtaining the United Kingdom's meat supply within the Empire. This is a sten in tho right direction, but H is only an initial step, and' progress of a practical kind is not likely to be made unless the Governments of the overseas Dominions keep the question alive by repeated and urgent representations on every possible occasion. And never have they been in so strong a position to command the attention and consideration of tho Imperial authorities as they are to-day.

Replying to a question asked in llio Houee of 'Representatives by Mr. W. A. Yeitch llio Minister of Marine (Hon. 6. W. Russell) said that the Department internal to deiino extended river limits for tin port of Wanganui. Hitherto it had not been possiblo for river and harbour steamers to go beyond Ihe bar without complying with tlio manning wale requirements for deep-sea trade. They coull not go out into the roadstead at all. The extended river limits wou'd 1)0 thrao miies from tlio arc lights ii!; (ha Ilejds. The stock slaughtered at llio abattoir during September comprised 3082 sheep, 473 bullock?, lit lambs, U7 alves, cows, .'l3 pigs, and 1 bulls. Of fho sheep slaughtered 13 were condemned, alsixJJ bullocks, 0 cows, and 1 pig.