THE MEAT INDUSTRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19390, 27 July 1926, Page 7

THE MEAT INDUSTRY.

COUNCIL IN AUSTRALIA,

DECISION TO WIND UP.

APATHY OF STOCKOWNERS

The Australian Meat Council, at a very representative meeting, decided to windup as from July 31. The adverse vote in New South Wales in regard to the proposed levy and the pronounced opposition of the United .Graziers' Association of Queensland were among the reasons for this decision given by the chairman, Mr. E. T. Bell. M.L.A., of Queensland. The council came into being at the latter part of 1922, as the result of strong recommendations made by the Federal Council of the Graziers' Associations of Australia to Mr. Ilodgers, who was then the Minister for Trade and Customs. Mr. Rodgers convened a conference of producers and export (»•->. and the outcome of that conference was the formation of the council. The Prime Minister promised an advance of £50,000 to cover any working expenses until legislation was passed authorising the raising of levies on stockowners. The. present council consists of representatives of the various interests appointed on the' nomination of the organisations associated with the meat industry, but within a few weeks an election, was to have been held, and direct representation would have been given. In opening the discussion, Mr. Bell said that the result of the referendum in New South Wales was that there were 15,672 producers qualified to vote and that only 7050 of them voted; that is to say, close on 9000 of them were too apathetic to vote. Of the votes polled, 5369 were against further levies, 1206 were in favour of continuance, and 475 votes 'were informal, which, it must be admitted, was a most discouraging result. It, of course, had no legal effect on the operation of the Act. Referring to Queensland, ho stated that the secretary of the Advisory Board in that State received an application for a referendum signed by the statu* tory number of producers, but the board had not formally received that application owing to the fact that its membership had fallen below sufficient to form a quorum.

Opposition in Queensland. In order to bring the board to effective strength Mr. Bell said he had waited upon Mr. Forgan Smith, tho Minister for Agriculture, who suggested that the various interests represented on the board should write requesting, him to make the appointments. After some delay such requests were made, and it was understood that Mr. Smith was favourably considering the making of the necessary appointments. But if the referendum were taken it would bo nearly three months before the result could be known.

Mr. Bell considered that a referendum in Queensland would almost certainly result in a vote less than tho 60 per cent, provided for in the and as those opposed to the levy were much more enthusiastic in their opposition than those in favour it was quite likely that the majority of the votes cast would be against. The opposition in Queensland, he was sorry to say, was centred in the United Graziers' Association of Queensland, certain members having been most prominent in the press. It was only natural to expect a certain amount of opposition, but when it came from an association which took an active part in bringing the council into being it forced the question upon them whether they retained the support of producers generally, without which he felt the council could not continue -to function even though it might be legally entitled to do so,

Activities of the Council. The speaker reviewed in detail the various activities of the council, and said that what with fighting in the first instance for legislative sanction and afterwards conducting a referendum campaign, together with the absence of any certainty of permanency, its activities had ont been as extensive as they would all have wished. But producers had benefited very materially from a larger participation in Imperial contracts, without which for -many months past the value of Australian beef on Smithfield would have been such as would have had producers crying out for a renewal of the export bounty. The discontinuance of the Meat Council, said Mr, Bell, would mean an end of the control of the industry by the industry, and very probably would mean in a little while Government control, which no one wanted. Members of the council.had given an undertaking that they would use their best, endeavours to have any moneys advanced by the Federal Government ultimately repaid. The financial statement just submitted showed that to keep faith with that undertaking the council must be wound up without delay, and even then the full amount would not be repaid. Were it not for this he would certainly wait for the result of the Queensland referendum. In conclusion Mr. Bell said that he realised that it was .a very serious step, as it meant ' practically throwing away three years of hard work. He had put the whole position quite recently before the Prime Minister, who had concurred in the action taken.

Another Conference Suggested. The winding-up. resolution, which was carried unanimously, set out that the maintenance of the council and subsidiary State Meat Boards required that a levy should be made upon individual producers in those States in which enabling legislation had been passed. The States of Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia had not passed such legislation, because of the absence of demand for it by producers, though their representatives had undertaken, at the initial conference, that it should be introduced. A substantial number of producers in New South Wales and Queensland had denied the equity and profitableness of the levy, notwithstanding that tho amount has been returned to them four-fold in tho form of bounty on meat and cattle exported in reduced freights and storage charges, and in other ways. Another resolution was passed urging that the Prime Minister be requested to call a conference of the representatives of the whole of the meat producers of tho Commonwealth to formulate such organisation as the producers in conference might elect. It was feared that in the event of this being done the successful development of Australia, particularly that of North Australia, would be impracticable and imperilled. The council also decided to ask the Federal Government to give special consideration by bounty or otherwise to the pastoraiists in the East Kimberley division of Western Australia. A final resolution stated: "That this council views with alarm the desperato position which the greater number of graziers in Queensland are now faced with, and it is of opinion that unless seme Government scheme of assistance is provided to make advances to those settlers for the purpose of restocking, in addition to readjustment of rentals to meet their individual position, great areas of land now in occupation will be abandoned."