LONDON'S MILLIONS

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 13, 15 July 1936, Page 14

LONDON'S MILLIONS

MEAT CONSUMPTION

IMPRESSIVE FIGURES

(Special to the "Evening Post") LONDON,, June 18.

- The annual report of the superintendent of the London Central .Market XSmithfield) has just been issued. It states that the total weight of produce handled in the meat, poultry, and provision sections during 1935 totalled 476,777 tons, as compared with 464,748 tons in 1934, an increase of 12,029 tons, or 2.6 per cent. r Beef and veal totalled 248,269 tons, Argentina supplying 153,184 tons, or 61.7 per cent, of the quantity marketed, Great Britain and Ireland 45,855 tons, or 18.5 per cent., the Dominions 33,705 tons, 0rT3.6 per cent:, and other countries 15,525 tons, or 6.2 per cent. Mutton and lamb supplies at Smithfield totalled 142,846 tons, of which New Zealand supplied 68,747 tons or 48.1 per cent, of the quantity marketed, Great Britain and Ireland 32,062 tons, or 22.4 per cent., Argentine 15,413 tons, or 10.8 per cent., Australia 25,064 tons, or-17.6 per cent., and other countries 1560 tons, or 1.1 per cent. V Including 3382 tons of bacon, Smithfield's pork and bacon supplies in 1935 totalled 50,273 tons, of which Great Britain and Ireland supplied 35,441 tons, or 70.5 per cent., the Dominions 10,421 tons or 20.7 per cent., and other countries 4411. tons, or 8.8 per cent. Poultry and other supplies at Smithfleld .during the year amounted to 35,389 "tons, of. which- Great Britain and Ireland ' supplied 20,140'tons, or 56.9 per cent, the Dominions 5583 tons, or 15 8 per cent., and foreign countries 9676 tons, or 27.3 per cent. BRITISH PRODUCE.

.The supplies of meat produced in Great Britain and Ireland and available tor London are only sufficient to provide Londoners with a weekly ration of 3.90z per head of beef, 2.80z of mutton and lamb, and 3.10z of pork. The .Dominions provide weekly 2.90z of beef per head, B.loz .of mutton and Jamb, and 0.90z of pork, while foreign countries provide, per head, 14.50z of ■beef weekly, 1.50z of mutton and lamb, .and 0.40z of pork. The foregoing ?ln«n^ show, how dependent- the .8,500,000 people of London are upon overseas countries for their supplies of

...■■Reviewing the trend of prices during the year, the markets superintendent points out that the average wholesale prices of Scotch and English beef .respectively were and 3d per 1b .lower than in 1934, veal was -Jd per lb higher; prime;. chilled Argentine beef hindquarters remained constant at the level of 1934, and forequarters from that source were about |d per' "lb lower. Scotch mutton averaged id per lb wholesale lower, tegs ?,d per lb •higher, English mutton id per lb ■lower, tegs 3d per lb higher, lamb id ■per lb lower; New Zealand mutton id ■perlb lower. New Zealand lamb was ■practically constant at the average of 1934, and other supplies of frozen lamb and mutton were £d and Jd per lb lower respectively. English and Irish pork "prices averaged Jd and Id per •ID wholesale lower respectively, sows iwere sd per lb lower, and frozen pork ■was Jd per lb lower on the year. NEW ZEALAND SUPPLIES.

The superintendent's report goes on to say that New Zealand meat supplies inr K io^ ndon'l .Population comprised 10,512 tons of beef, 68,747 tons of mutton and lamb, and 7947 tons' of pork an increase of 1879 tons of mutton and lamb and 1812 tons of pork, but a.decrease of 322 tons of beef when com.pared with 1934. New Zealand in 1935 supplied 48.1 per cent, of the total .quantity of mutton and lamb marketed at Smithfleld, as against 48.1 per cent. in 1934. Miscellaneous goods from New 'Zealand and Australia—namely, Australian frozen rabbits—totalled 5203 tons, a decrease of 1259 tons, or 19.5 .per cent., as compared with 1934. Supplies at Smithfield from New Zealand aggregated 87,819 tons in 1935, or 18.4 per cent, of the'total supply, while supplies from Australia totalled 49,484 tons, or 10.4 per cent, of , the total supply.