OTTAWA DISCUSSIONS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21258, 11 August 1932, Page 9

OTTAWA DISCUSSIONS

BRITISH MEAT SUPPLY DOMINIONS SEEK QUOTA RESTRICTION OF FOREIGN PREFERENCE NOT ADEQUATE EARLY DECISION LIKELY By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright (Received Angnst 10, s.'> p.m.) OTTAWA, Aue. f The question of a restriction of Britain's foreign meat imports is the immediate, paramount problem at the Empire Economic Conference. Although it is officially announced that 1 lie British negotiations with Australia and New Zealand are " nearly finished," this vital matter has not been decided. Involving as it does proximity to thn danger zone, of food taxes, which might easily split the British Cabinet, the British delegates at Ottawa arc giving the Dominions' firm request for a quota inost serious consideration. It was tho earlier view that Britain could not contemplate imposing a quota. That view has been considerably modi, j fied since the arrival at Ottawa of the I Australian and New Zealand delegates solidly backing their expressed view that a quantitative restriction of Argentine chilled beef is a matter of first im- ; portance to the primary producers of tho i Dominions. Problems lor Britain to Decide Australia and New Zealand have temI porarily lost Canada's backing, seeing that the Canadian Cabinet is threshing out its own position and is faced with the necessity of making greater concessions to Britain. Probably this will cause some misgivings among manufacturing interests, but it is regarded as certain that the Prime Minister of Canada, Sir. R. B. Bennett, will heal any differences among his colleagues quickly and present a compromise plan. Mr. S. M. Bruce and Mr. J. G. Coates j maintain the strong front that a quota is essential, holding that preferences alone would be ineffective. They are even prepared to drop preferences if an adequate quota is granted. There have been very frank discussions of the position in tho past 24 hours. Tho British delegates obviously have been impressed. They are deliberating whether it is possible to accede to this main request of the Dominions without giving the impression that the British housewife will be compelled to pay more for meat without seeming to introduce a rationing of chilled beef, recalling the wartime restrictions and without harming the enormous British- interests in Argentina. Dominions' Favourable Terms Figures showing the preferences given to Britain have an important bearing on to-day's discussions. They show that Argentina has not offered Britain anything like the favourable terms Australia and New Zealand have given. In the meanwhile Argentina is doing a huge trade'with the United States. It is expected that the decision regarding meat will be reached at aDy moment. An agreement regarding dairy products and fruit is imminent. This docs not present the same difficulty'. The chief Australian and New Zealand delegatus spent a long day with two groups of British Ministers and engaged in a point by point discussion of the preference scheme. Messrs. Bruce and" Coates are satisfied with the further progress made. The indications are that the British delegates are impressed with the need for some restriction on foreign meat and butter. PEOBABLE AGREEMENTS NEWSPAPER FORECAST CONCESSIONS TO DOMINIONS (Received August 10, 5.45 p.m.) LONDON, Aug. 10 The Ottawa correspondent of the Daily Telegraph says the Australian delegates' negotiations have reached the stage of drafting practical proposals. The negotiations have raised some knotty problems for the conference. It is now regarded as certain, says the correspondent, that the agreements with New Zealand and Australia will provide for a tax of three farthings on foreign mutton and lamb, and a quota for butter. The agreements with the Dominions generally are expected to embrace a tax of 3d a dozen on foreign eggs and a duty on foreign bacon and apples. FROZEN FOODSTUFFS RESEARCH IN BRITAIN PRESERVATION EXPERIMENTS British Wireless. • RUGBY, Aug. 9 Experiments for the preservation of the flavour, freshness and vitamin value of food under refrigeration, and their importance to the United Kingdom, whose imports of food still cost £1,000,000 daily, aro dealt with in tho report for 1931 of the Food Investigation Board of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. The work is being aided by a consultative group of representatives of the .Dominions, India, tho Colonial Office, the Empire Marketing Board and shipping interests, and £50,000 a year, equivalent to the cost of one hour's imports of foodstuffs to the United Kingdom, is being spent on research which covers fruit, meat, fish, dairy produce and canning experiments. The report shows that transport to the United Kingdom of unsmoked, mild-cured bacon from Australia and New Zealand is impracticable under existing commercial conditions, but frozen pork can be successfully shipped and used as pork, or for the manufacture of bacon. It is anticipated that imports from the Dominions to the ! United Kingdom of animal tissues for the preparation of medicinal products can be 1 largely increased. i Experiments are being conducted with new methods of gas storage, already successful with apples, and for the prevention of mould growths on oranges by the introduction of ammonium bicarbonate into the storage chamber.