ARGENTINE EXPORTS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue 7387, 13 February 1902, Page 4

ARGENTINE EXPORTS.

In a speech delivered at the opening \ of a recent show of the Rural Society of ! Argentina, Dr. E. Ramos Mejia, ex- j Minister of Agriculture, said that the effect of the closing of British ports to ' Argentine cattle had been greatly exaggerated. In 1898, when the exportation of live stock to the United Kingdom was greatest, there were despatched 97,000 live cattle and 16,500 frozen carcases, or 113,500 animals in all. Last year, in the first three and a half months, there were 34,000 live animals, and in the whole year 66,000 frozen carcases, making 100,000, showing a decrease of only 12 per cent. This year the total is expected to reach 150,000. Now that chilling instead of freezing has proved a success, judging from shipments under the new process, Dr Mejia believes that more carcases than ever will be exported, and he quoted figures to show that a steer slaughtered and exported as chilled meat would give 20dol. (gold value) more profit than if it were shipped alive. His only doubt was whether the estancieros would be able to furnish the 250,000 four-year old steers of the requisite quality and weight which, he believed, would be demanded.