ITS EXTENDED USE AND PROSPECTS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2668, 3 May 1905, Page 10

ITS EXTENDED USE AND PROSPECTS.

(Fbom Otra Own Correspondent .) LONDON, March 25. In the course of a conversation which I had yesterday with Mr G. D. Greenwood, who acts as a board of advice on this side of the world to the British-New Zealand Meat Company, he mentioned to me that his company and the New Zealand meat trade generally had just had what he regarded as a stroke of good luck in securing an important contract for the supply of five leading asylums. [ "My company, as you doubtless know," said Mr Greenwood, " was formed when Mr Seddon's scheme _for establishing retail \ meat shops in this country fell through. ' It has now been at work for nine months, ! and has carried out the function of the re- ' tail distribution of New Zealand meat ! with much success. I have been acting for j some time as" the board of advice in Eng- ' land, and I shall continue to act until my departure for New Zealand in August next." It certainly was very fortunate that you should have secured that contract just now after Mr Cameron's exposure of that fraud on 'the Oolney , Hatch and Banstead Asylum's. " Yes," said Mr Greenwood, " and it will give the authorities an opportunity of realising how excellent the quality of New Zealand meat — mutton and lamb— really is. Of course it means a good thing for, the company too, because these big asylums" will take a very large quantity both of mutton and lamb. We are now going to tender-for meat supplies for the War Office. There is, of course, a great advantage to the shareholders in our being thus able to sell the meat ahead before arrival, and it will, enable us to pay a better dividend than we ooxild if the mjeat were sent to the London market to take 'its chance. " What do you think of the present position and prospects of New Zealand meat on this side?" "Of course," said Mr Greenwood, "it is still being largely sold as best British meat. But that is really not our business ; that rests with the consciences of the middlemen and retailers. We have nothing to do with any sale on false pretences. We simply sell the meat for what it is worth, and get the money. Whatever deception there may be occurs afterward, and quite outside our sphere of control. But what I do complain of, and what every New Zealander ought to protest strenuously against, is the persistence with which infeiior meat from Australia or South America is palmed off on the British consumer as genuine New Zealand meat. That is a rank and utterly indefensible fraud." Do you- find much of "this sort of thing going on? Have you come across many instances of. it? " Only a few days ago," replied Mr Greenwood, " I was in a butcher's shop in Chelsea where several carcases of what professed to be New Zealand meat were hanging up. It did not look at all good, and I spoke to the salesman about it. He assured me it was genuine New Zealand, J and • best Canterbury ' at that. I remarked to him that if so it must be very stale. He said, " c No, it was 'the new season's meat ; prime Canterbury brand.' ' But what brand?' I asked. He hesitated. I then named several well-known meat export companies in succession. No, he admitted that the label was none of those. At' last I got him. to show me the marks, which I promptly recognised as having no connection whatever with Canterbury, and as representing- an utterly inferior class of meat. The best-looking of the carcases did certainly bear the brand of a company in another part of New Zealand ; the others were low-class Australian or Argentine." *' Then, further." continued Mr Green- \ wood, " I find that many people, after < tasting New Zealand meat, and liking it, go to certain well-known shops which profess to sell it — and don't ! (Here he mentioned a name which I had better omit). Consequently they become disappointed, and often are lost as consumers. I was very glad indeed "that Mr C%meron pressed that | case so hard, and that a conviction was ob- j tamed. I should like to see him do a lot j more in the same direction. The mere securing of a single conviction . like that is worth all the money the colony pays him, I and the move he can do in the same way j the better. I wish most earnestly that some satisfactory system could be discovered of marking the carcases, but at present there seems no sign of that. If we once could make it clear and mdi sou table that the good meat came from New Zealand and that the i

inferior meat sold as of New Zealand origin never came from that colony at all, it would be an immense pull in our favour. But for that we evidently must be content to wait."