THE MEAT TRADE

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 7016, 3 January 1910, Page 3

THE MEAT TRADE

IMPORTANT DISCUSSION*. SUGGESTED REMEDY. At a special meeting of the Scargill (Canterbury) branch of tho Farmcis’ Union called to discuss tho present unsatisfactory position of the frozen meat industry the following interesting discussion took place. PRODUCERS SHOULD SELL ES T ENGLAND. Mr C. H. Ensor said if there was a combination of moat merchants exploiting the growers of mutton and lamb, Fho sooner it wa.s met by a combination of farmers tho bettor. The growers of moat had done nothing to improvo distribution, but had lot it drift into the hands of a few who appeared to be able to dictate what tho price should bo from day to day, as Jm (the speaker) understood tho wholesale price was fixed each day at Smithficld, and not determined by auction. One way to meet tho position would bo to form a Farmers’ Cooperative Company, with tho object of building stores in England, and opening public auction markets where butchers could come and buy direct from tho producers. It might even be necessary to open retail shops, as it was possible that tho wholesale tradesmen owned the retail shops also. The fanners’ concern should bo in a position to undersell the merchant, as it would have the merchants’ profit as well as the farmers’ to trade upon. If an American Meat Trust or any other combination ’ was operating against Now Zealand farmers, they should meet it with its own weapon—combination. COMBINATION THE ONLY WEAPON. Mr H. Aoton Adams said New Zealand farmers had no organisation, or practically none. If. it could bo known, or if it were known, what quantities of lamb or mutton Were available or on the market, a sharp rise could not take place. A rise denoted that tho quantities available were not known. Tho recent sharp rise soomed very much like the work of manipulation. It might bo said that a jobber, or a number of jobbers, worked on the supposition of a glut, and forced tho market, bought large quantities, and held for the rise that must follow. There was nothing binding about tho present system of prices. There was room to suppose that agents met one another and bought and sold to one another at prices a shade below the ruling price, to turn it over again at tho legitimate price. There were too many firms operating now, and they had all to get a profit. What was wanted was more organisation and fewer channels. The farmers should see that they liad at least one firm whom they could rely upon, and put sufficient through that channel to bo able to influence tho • other firms, or to keep them in their place. Tiro American Meat Trust had organisation with far-reaching effect; they had bought up at least three out of five of tho individual companies, and so compelled the remaining 'two to meet thorn. Handling live cattle in the British market did not suit the trust, so they issued a tale that there was a disease in the Argentine, with the purpose of getting the export of live cattle stopped. The trust had their own slips, and owned 143 stalls in

Smithfiold. They had control of the beef market to a great extent, and that gave thorn a lever over the mutton, because holding the hoof they could dictate whore the butchers should buy their mutton. Tho moat problem was one outside tho Government’s power. It rested with tho farmer that he got his meat on every available market in the British Isles. It was not in the interests of jobbers to let the trade get too wide a spread, for then they would lose control of it. There was a room in Christchurch where a certain number of individuals met, perhaps weekly, and deckled what the price of lamb and mutton was to be for that week or for the intervening term, and their operations wore regulated by their decision. A RESOLUTION. A general discussion followed the addresses of the two speakers, and it was decided to send the following recommendation to the conference at Wellington :—“ That this meeting suggests that frozen meat should be consigned through an organisation of producers, or a farmers' co-operative distributing association, in order to bring tho producer into closer touch with the consumer, and that a company should bo formed for that purpose, if necessary.”