The Dunedin Meat Supply

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15301, 15 November 1911, Page 21

The Dunedin Meat Supply

THE ERECTION OF ABATTOIRS A LONG STRUCCLE. . No otw thing in any city is probably more important than the provision of a pure supply of water and of a supply of suuiid food for tho inhabitant. Upon • tho wholesomenes3 of their food tho health of tho people depends; and upon their health ia depewlent nil happiness and jirocperity. \ct up to 13 years ago Dunedin had no system of inspection whereby the soundness* of animal food offered for sale in tho city could bo guarantee. In 1898, however,"tlie city abattoirs—the first municipal abattoirs to be established in New Zealand—were officially opened and aii inspector of meat vraß appointed in the interests of tho inhabitants. Tlio Otago Daily Times played no small part in tlje accomplishment of thatond, aa it was by its revelations of tho objectionable conditions under which meat was killed in 6ome of the private establishments which supplied tho wants of tho city that the necessity for tlve institution of a method of supervision of tthe slaughtering of animals for human consumption was brought homo to tho minds of the residents, and the City Council was forced into the crcction of thn present buildings.

It was on the 24th of February, 1894, tint an article appeared in tho columns of tho Daily Times specially directing attention to this vital matter. It detailed the experiences and impressions of a memIter of tho staff who had paid an unannounced visit to tlie six inivato Blaughtcr-hoiistti at which all tho slaughtering of cattle that went into human consumption in the district was. done. These slaughter-houses were all situated in tho vicinity of the Kaikorni Volley, two b;ing in eaoh of the threa districts—Maori Hill, Rosjyn, and Taiori County. Tho quantity of meat disposed of by tihcm each week for consumption in Dunedin was carefully calculated to bo on the average 165 cattle, 2172 fat sheep, and 819 lambs. The system was for any one of the 50 bulchcm doing business iii the district to buy such animals as he required at the regular mlc at Burnsido, and thereafter hand tlieni over to a slaughterman for delivery to his shop in town in a condition ready for sale. An inspector exercired fiomo * control at liuniside, but this waa only of a limited nature, and there was absolutely no inspection whatever of the moat* after it was killed and before it \m Bold. Mentioning tho general feeling of uneasiness which had bccomo manifest regarding the conditions of supply, the writer ot tho af tide proceeded to outline the stato of affairs that 119 had found at each of tho places he liad visited. Thin was such as to call imperatively for remedial measures. While it is only fair to ray that one or two places were conducted in a manner to which very little exception could be taken, the buildings in other cases were old and dilapidated. In the worst places the steircli from tho blood and offal was almost overpowering; dirt prevailed inside, and tlie buildings had tho appearance of having never known limewash; a. piggery near by addfd objectionable features, and a cycling rookery of seagulls in places told its own tale, 'in concluding his article the reporter stated that the method of disposing of ofTnl by feeding to pigs or spreading on the ground would probably attract tlie public attention it deserved; and on the subject of inspection he was at pains to point out that the only safeguards against the abuse of public confidence lay in tho conscience of the slaughterman or tho fears of the butcher, so that tlie public was at tho mercy of either ,ignoranw or cupidity. 'Cha attwJ/ort drawn to this subject by

this timely article resul&d in action being taken—though certainly but slowly. As a matter of fact, n suggestion for tno erection of public abattoirs bad been broached many years previously, but had met with fierce opposition from privato interests, and had c.mo to nothing. Mr H. S. Fish, at that time Mayor of the city, became impressed, however, with tho wwl of reform, nnd to his powerful advocacy of the provision of abattoirs the action that was eventually taken by the City Council was directly due. Aftor lihe publication of tho article in tho Daily Times in 1891 the matter was taken up by the City Council, and in April, 1395, the qucetion of raising a loan of £6000 for the provision of municipal abattoirs was submitted to a poll of ratepayers, and carried by 1108 votes to 461. The venture being th'ua authorised, steps wero takc« to procure a site, nnd, after a emit, deal of trouble, 13J acres at liurnKwo were 'selected. Other otetaclcs had, however, to be overcome lieforo the owetion of buildings could bo undertaken, The site of the proposed works was within the l>oun<la.ry of tho Taicri County Council, awl tho City Council required tJie i«rnui«ion of that body to procccd with tlve erection of tho abattoirs. This permission was given, whereupon Mr Charlca Samson, who had _ consistently op])o6cd tlio project, applied to the Supremo Court for an injunction to restrain tho Citv Council from uroceeding with tho building He secured this injunction, and it then becamo necessary for the City Council to secure such an amewlnveiit of the law as would permit it to build witihin half a mile of tho boundary of a borough. Another matter that had to receive attention before tho council could build was that of drainage. Tlio law as it Iheii stood ww that the drainage from such works could not go into a staeam that ran through ft boroujjn. This was so amended that ]*rmiFsion might bo granted for such drainago to bo effected provided that it was purified in tho first place. Finally, all obstacles having hern overcome, the building was erectcd, in accordance with plain prepared by the architect Mr James Hislop, whoso competitive-, design had provod successful. The contactor was Mr George Morison, tho amount of the original tender being £6973. Subsequently various additions wero mado and other items of expenditure incurred, 60 that the final oo«t of the building \m approximately £10,000. Tho official opening ceremony was held on Hay 5, 1898, in tho presence of a very re [>rc<erotative Rathermg of members of the City Council and local bodies, prominent citizens, and. professional men and othws. The Mayor at tho time waa Mr E. 13. Cargill, who, in a spcech, dealt intcrrotingly with the later history of tho movement which had that day been brought to fruition. "Mr C. S. Reeves, anolhor speaker, mentioned that in 1877 a deputation had waited upon the City Council seeking tho construction of abattoirs. At last, after 21 years, abattoirs had ken completed. It would, ho added, bj interesting to know how many poojtla JwJ pMrcd into tho other world during those years through consuming diseased meat. Another speaker was Dr Ogston, who claimed that tho opening of tlw works was oiw of tthe most important cvonta that,had occurred in tho city, if not in -tho colony, for sonw time.