N.Z. MEAT EXPORTS

Greymouth Evening Star, 31 August 1934, Page 5

N.Z. MEAT EXPORTS

MR JONES’S REVIEW. [PEP. PRESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON, August 30. The question of a reciprocal arrangement with the United States that might give New Zealand an entry into that country again with her meat was referred to by Mr D. Jones, the chairman, at the annual meeting of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board to-day. He said that the Customs Minister was approached in June last to see whether he thought it advisable to try and arrange some reciprocal tariff through President Roosevelt, who has been given executive power in this matter. Mr Coates had suggested that it would be advisable, first, to get New Zealand’s own customs tariff through Parliament. Then, he said, he would be in a better position to deal with foreign countries, including America. That course, was adopted. The Board would be approaching the Minister again at an early date. Mr Jones remarked that the drought in America, with a resultant enormous loss of stock in that country, had opened up further possibilities that were being investigated. In discussing new markets, Mr Jones siad: “We must"* recognise it as a plain fact that the greatest barrier to trade to-day is the inability to pay for goods that are required;” The Government should provide machinery, he said, by which they could take the fullest advantage of the exchanging of goods for goods, and they also should use the imports into New Zealand as a bargaining weapon to assist in the export of meat and dairy produce.

With regard to the suggested restriction of the New Zealand meat exports to the United Kingdom, Mr Jones emphasised how seriously New Zealand would be affected. He said: “We have a remarkably productive country, and a small population, and only consume six per cent, of our lamb, 47 per cent, of our mutton, and 42 per cent, out of our total meat production. Australia consumes 79 per cent, of its beef, mutton and lamb, and the Argentine consumes 75 per cent, of its meat. The Fat Stock Commission in Britain has recommended that a levy be put on all of the meat imported into Britain, in addition to a restriction on the quantity. That would be a complete reversal of the policy that was agreed to at. Ottawa, viz., to rise the price level —because the result of the levy would be not to raise the price level but to give a better return to the British farmer. It would appear that the amount of the levy required from New Zealand would be greater than the value to the farmer of the whole of the beef that is exported from the Dominion, and, clearly, that could not be considered as within the range of practical politics, and it could not be agreed to.” In regard to the pig industry, Mr Jones said that there had been a reduction in the foreign imports with Britain of about 2,000,000 cwts. annually. This, and the increase in the exchange rate, had led to a substantial increase in the price of pork for New Zealand, whose exporters had received this advantage. These facts, together with the low price of dairy produce, had combined to more than treble the export, of frozen pork from New Zealand in the last two years. This season the export of it would bc approxi/inately 20,000 tons, that was, if no limit were placed upon our export. No agreement had yet been arrived at, and the result of the forthcoming conference was awaited with anxiety.

Mr Jones justified the exchange policy that New Zealand had adopted. It had been of great assistance to producers during the past season, and fully justified the strong action taken by the Meat Board in supporting it. The Board was strongly of opinion that a reversion to the former exchange rate would be disastrous to export industries and against the interests of the whole Dominion. FURTHER RESTRICTIONS. WELLINGTON, August 31. The New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board has received cabled advice from the London manager that the British Government lias informed importers of frozen pork that their quotas from July to December must be 40 per cent, less than they were in January to June Imports. This will check the heavy increase in foreign importations and make a 10 per cent, reduction, compared with the JulyDecember period last year.