BEEF FOR BRITAIN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21248, 30 July 1932, Page 10

BEEF FOR BRITAIN

ARGENTINE'S ADVANTAGES PROBLEMS FOR DOMINIONS HEAVY LEEWAY TO MAKE UP "The cable message from London published yesterday, in which an English expert predicts that it will be five or ten years before any of tho meat-producing Dominions can seriously compete with tho Argentine in the markets -of Great Britain, either in the quantity or quality of chilled meat exported, is a fairly accurate conclusion," said the principal of a leading firm of New Zealand meat exporters yesterday. "Tho quality of Empire stock has not made any notable improvement in recent years and very little money has been spent on importing good breeding strains," he said. "Tho Argentine, Uruguay and Brazil, however, havo continuously applied themselves to developing and improving both livestock and the conditions which would make for improvement of their beef products. The Argentine, in particular, has of late years made great strides in producing the so-called choice baby beef which commands a premium in London. "It is difficult for a New Zealander to appreciate the tremendous amount of leeway the Empire has gob to make up if our beef exports are going to make any impression against the steady flow of Argentine beef products," he continued. "The Argentine has had a wonderful start and the quantity of chilled beef of superior quality sent from that country to Great Britain is in the neighbourhood of 600,000 tons a year. We have got to build up practieally from zero." The Empire's Problem Rhodesia and Australia, ho said, were the two principal Empire countries possessing the best facilities for the production of beef, but neither country was at present able, nor seemed likely to be in the near future, to ship beef regularly to Great Britain all tho year round. There had been experimental shipments from Australia and South Africa of chilled beef and especially of sterilised beef, none of which, however, could bo called successful. Several shipments of live cattle were made each year from South Africa to Liverpool, but the animals were not of consistent quality. Rhodesia's drawback was the long train journey to Capetown, which occupied at least two days, and the longer sea journey to Britain. Both Australia and South Africa depended upon seasonal rains for fattening their herds and neither country had yet done on an adequate scale the necessary fencing and dipping on which to lay a sound basis for cattle-farming and the breeding-up of their stock. Some areas of Queensland had decided possibilities, but tho seasonal rainfall, tick and also the distances made it difficult to secure the necessary numbers of highquality cattle at any one port—so essentia] to successful handling of a highlyperishable product. Resources o! the Argentine By comparison, the Argentine possessed tons of thousands of square miles of perfectly fiat plain, with a rich alluvial soil covering a porous water-bearing substrata, which supplied the .of tho alfalfa grass and ensured rich, luscious feed all tho year round. Tho Argentine was not subject to droughts or gcrious cattle pests and the magnificent inland watering of tho River Plate enabled tho beef to bo brought quickly and cheaply to tho huge freezing works and shipped from some of tho most modern docks in tho world by fast steamers making tho voyago to London in 17 or 18 days. By killing some 3000 to 4000 head ..of cattle a day in these largo plants, it was possible to fill several hatches every 24 hours, closo them up and control the atmosphere accurately. It was impracticable, the exporter added, to collect chilled beof in small quantities at a variety of ports, as was dono in New Zealand with frozen beef, mutton and lamb. Brazil a Growing Factor "Brazil has immense areas of good cattle country and is becoming a factor in the chilled beef trade with Britain," ho said. "But with Brazil, as with tho meat-growing countries of the British Empire, the rainfall problem makes her business seasonal, and she is unable to ineej; the Argentine in serious competition as far as best-quality beef is concerned. She is a serious competitor with tho Empire's frozen beef trade, however, because she is selling a good-eating quality of chilled beef, distinctly superior to any frozen meat on the market, at prices very little above the cost of our frozen article. "As far as New Zealand beef is concerned, the position is somewhat difficult.. We have country that can produce cattle good enough for best-quality chilled beef, but it is a question whether that land would not be worth far more to the owner as dairying land. New Zoaland, of course, must continue to use cattle to keep her sheep country in order, but after cattle have been used for crushing, they are not suitable for chillers when fat, and this is a powerful economic difficulty in the way of providing choice chilled beef for tho English market. As far as inferior chilled beof is concerned, New 2!ealand would meet strong competition! from Brazil and South Africa, both of which have very cheap labour, cheap land and only half the sea carriago. There is only one other area in tho British Empiro that has good possibilities and thai, ill Nigeria. Probably moro will bo heard of that country in tho years to come."