WINTER SHORTAGE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26775, 19 May 1948, Page 6

WINTER SHORTAGE

Meat Supplies in South . Island

INQUIRY BY COMMISSION

Special Correspondent.

WELLINGTON, May 18. The short supply of meat in the southern part of the South Island in winter months is one of the major problems to be dealt with by the commission of inquiry into fresh meat supplies which opened its sittings to-day in Wellington. The commission received submissions from the New Zealand Master Butchers’ Federation and,the New Zealand Stock and Station Agents’ Association, and was told that special local evidence was to be presented for both organisations at the Dunedin and Christchurch sittings. Mr A. T. B. Green, for the Master Butchers’ Federation, argued that the cost of meat to butchers under the present marketing system was frequently out of proportion to the prices they were permitted to charge to customers under the retail price orders. Mr Green proposed that a system of schedule prices similar to that operating in the export meat trade should be, applied to meat bought by butchers. He submitted that the auction system could be maintained but could be governed by ceiling prices. For the New Zealand Stock and Station Agents, Mr L. A. Sisson submitted that the auction system should be maintained but that the proposal for a local market schedule similar to that operating for the export trade was impracticable. He proposed that to ease the supply position a greater quantity of ewe mutton and cow beef could be labelled as first grade (red stripe) and would be acceptable to the public, which demanded red stripe meat. These were the chief arguments placed before the commission.

The chairman of the commission is 7 Mr A.' A. McLachlan, S.M.. and,the other members are Mr R. B. Tennent, assistant director-general of the Department of Agriculture, Mr A. P. O’Shea, general secretary of Federated Farmers of New Zealand. Mr J. W Perry, president of the New Zealand Master Butchers’ Federation, Mr W. G. Simpson, Labour Department, and Mr L. C. Webb, Director of Marketing. Main Points for Inquiry Six points fn its order of reference which the commission is required to answer are:— , , 1. Whether the supplies of fresh meat available for the retail market are adequate at all times of the year. 2 If not; whether steps should be taken to make, available at certain times of the year additional quantities of fresh meat or' if this is not thought possible, chilled or frozen meat. ~ ~ . 3. Whether it is practicable to piovide for butchers to buy meat for local consumption by means of a schedule similar to that adopted for the export trade if so, what margin, if any, shoulcrbe paid over and above the export schedule price. 4 If the purchase of meat for the local market on the schedule basis is deemed desirable and practicable, whether the auction system of disposing of stock at the local market should be continued and, if so, to what exWHether, in the event of the auction system being continued, it is desirable to encourage the practice of group-buying by butchers. 6. Whether extension of the practice on the part of freezing companies of entering into the wholesale and retail butchery trade is desirable and to what extent this practice affects the operation of abattoirs by local authoriGreen said it was contended that no other trade was forced to operate under such blatantly unjust and impossible conditions as the retail meat trade. In the absence of a fixed basic price in the market in which the butcher did his buying he had been compelled to absorb the increasing costs. The federation asked that its members be permitted to have a reasonable trading margin between buying and selling prices. Mr Green said that, in the event of emergency shortages in any one area, supplies of fresh, chilled, or, as a last resort frozen stocks could be made available from other localities. It was recommended under this head that a permanent council or board be set up to administer the retail meat industry and control supplies. Under such circumstances the federation favoured a maximum domestic market schedule staggered during the winter months to ensure continuity of supply. The auction system could be retained. The federation was firmly opposed to the extension of operations or the entry of freezing companies into the retail butchery trade. The federation considered that the wholesale operations of export houses in their present unrestricted form were an undesirable feature. Wholesalers. should be licensed, with the condition that all killings for local consumption must be done in an abattoir. - Relaxation of Grading Mr Sisson said that, while the Stock and Station Agents’ Association contended that the supply of fresh meat was at all times of the year adequate, it seemed that there was not always enough first grade (red stripe) meat available to meet the public demand and that the demand since grading was instituted had been for red stripe meat. This fact, together with decreasing numbers of the types of stock required for first grade meat, had brought about unduly high prices for these types. The position in the South Island was more acute than in the North, he said. In the past, shipments of fat livestock from the North Island to the South were made during winter months in bad seasons in the South Island, but because of shipping difficulties this procedure was not at present possible. There was also a large decrease m the numbers of wethers and dry ewes farmed in New Zealand because of the changed farming methods. If there were some relaxation in the grading system whereby a greater quantity of cow beef and ewe mutton could be classed at first grade, and bear the red stripe, it would greatly ease the supply position, since this meat would prove acceptable to the public as first grade. If frozen meat were sent to short-supply areas it would be necessary to avoid depressing prices so far that farmers would be discouraged from producing winter meat. His association, said Mr Sisson, considered that a domestic market schedule would be impracticable. The auction system must continue, and without ceiling prices. If the auction system were abolished it would cause a major upset in the farm economy throughout the country. The association had no objection to the practice of freezing companies participating in the wholesale and retail meat trade provided that their operations did not extend to give them control or partial control of the wholesale or retail meat trade. The association favoured municipally-owned abattoirs, so that butchers had killing facilities at all times outside the control of the freezing companies. ' . The commission adjourned to sit in Auckland on Thursday.