STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES.

Otago Witness, 1 June 1910, Page 7

STOCK AND GRAZING NOTES.

By Drover.

We-ekly Stock Sales: Bumside, Wednesdays Aahburton, Tuesdays »•■■•• i w j = j„,. o Adamgton, Wednesday s Waiareka B«lw.j Juncaon, Tuesdays Fertnightly: Bulclutha, Fridays Gore, Tuesdays Oamaru, Tuesdays Inrercargili, Tuesdays

( Monthly: | Ngapara, first Tliur»- ! day in each month Glenavy, second W ed- *• h Duniroon, second Fridfty mQnth Clinton. Palmerston, Winton, and Waikcuaiti. Periodically: Heriot, Kelso, Kyeburn

The markets at Addington and Burnsid© last week were firm at the previous week's quotations for mutton and lamb of best quality, but prices for secondary and inferior were easier. All the freezing works are kept going at their fullest capacity, but are unable to cope with the quantities offered for freezing. They- are getting away large shipments, but by no means as much as they would like. The shipping companies should shortly be able to overtake the heavy offerings for shipment. This year the shipping facilities for frozen meat have proved as inadequate in Aush;alia and Argentine as in New Zealand. There is a good deal of growling all round, but I really believe this state of matters will eventually work out as a blessing in disguise. 'Shipments will, 1 think, prove heavy enough for the London market, and it is', I believe, a good thing that they should be spread over a longer period than in the past. Last year the crowning cause of the disastrous slump in London was the enormous May shipments from New Zealand. This will not be tic case this year. We may expect that ©rices will be maintained at a fair level. Present London prices are remarkably good for lamb. The mutton' market, however, is weak, owing to. heavy supplies from Australia and Argentine, but mainly because nearly all the mutton is of a common sort—heavy tallowing carcases. The public —the 'better class householder especially—are not partial to this class of meat. They like small mutton, and when they cannot get it turn to lamb, beef, or pork. i don't wonder at this. Even in the colonies it is difficult to get good mutton, and butchers tell me that the_ consumption of mutton is decreasing while that of beef and pork is increasing.

The Aoril shipments.of frozen meat were as follows:—New Zealand. 194.655 carcases mutton. 464,370 lambs, 24,360 quarters beef; South America, 300,000 carcases mutton, 100,000 lambs, 225,000 quarters beef; Australia, 237,397 carcases mutton, 55,461 lamb, 15,942 quarters beef. All lines show a fair increase on last April, but it is expected May shipments will be considerably less owing to scarcity of tonnage. Writing on the Australian meat trade position and prospects, the P.astorali'Sts' Review of May 16 says: The dearth of freight room has to a considerable extent impeded operations recently, but in Victoria and New South "Wales the quality is falling off now, owing to the dry weather which we have been experiencing. In Queensland supplies of sheep for export will soon pinch out, as the quality Df the lines offered is going off there also. The prospective supplies for the London market during the next month or two from Australia, New Zealand, and South America. iare heavy, but the British home-grown stocks likely to be available will be comparatively small, as the season at Home is late, "and it is thought they will only be moderate throughout the year. North America is sending presently to England much less than has been the case at anytime since she developed her meat export trada, but the latter has only been a factor of importance in the supply of beef. The imports into the United Kingdom from the countries mentioned, excluding North America, for the first four months of this year show an increase over the corresponding period of 1909 of 127,000 caroases of mutton, and 100.000 quarters of beef, but a decrease of 189,000 carcases of lamb, which indicates a change from a month ' ago. Australian mutton alone showed an increase of 270,000 carcases, but this figure was reduced to the net increase shown above by diminished supplies from the other two sources mentioned. In beef we also show a substantial increase, and this position is likely to be maintained during the next few months, as all the works in Queensland are fiJIIy booked for some considerable time ahead. South America shows huge increases ir chilled boef, but is going back slightly ir the supply of the frozen article. Large available supplies of chilled cleprc ciate the value of frozen, as the former hai

t:> be disposed of quickly, not being capable* of storage to any appreciable extent. Turning to the shipments, we find that the position in regard to Australia is, indeed, abnormal. The mutton and beef shipped last month are about quadruple what was shipped in April of last year, and in the current month this condition may. even be accentuated. New Zealand is not shipping so extensively in mutton and iamb as wa3 anticipated, and it is now expected! that at the end of the season they will pan out about the same as last year. South ' American shipments are increasing rapidly, as, of course, is very apparent from what we have said about the imports into tho United Kingdom. She must have very recuperative powers, as it is only we ' were writing of the droughty conditions i obtaining there. The costs of her stock are : falling, and freight is not over plentiful. In fact, the latter is a disability . which | apparently all shippers of frozen meat have- ! to contend with this season. ' There is a pood deal of correspondence* - in some of Ihe Queensland newspapers suggesting a conference between the freezing companies and growers and others interested " in the meat trade. One of the writers alludes to the conference held in New Zealand (Christchurch) as an example of what should be done. I sincerely trust I that more good nvy come from the suggested Australian conference than appears to have resulted from the Christchurch conference. The results of that conference were practically nil. Questions of importance, such as regulating shipments, were practically shelved, and since then every one concerned has been shipping as much as they could possibly get away. Fortu- ' nately/l think the scarcity of tonnage will in a measure-regulate shipments, but no . credit, can be given to anyone for this • result. Meantime the Sydney Chamber ot Commerce have, arged by Mr A. W. Pearce, set up a committee to deal with the matters required to improve the conditions and made the following recommendations to the Comptroller-General of the Customs, who had, on the part of the Government, solicited their advice: No. 1. (a) That the meat, on receipt., is in a hard frozen condition, fit for shipment. (b) That the conditions of shipping aro such as to.conduce to the due care of the meat which is tendered in good order for shipment, and i (c) That the stowage in ship's chambers j should be carried out with a due regard for } an article which not like ordinary cargo, but requires special care. ! As regards (b) and (c), your sectional comI mittee are fortified by official and other reports as to careless handling and damags done to carcases in shipping, i No. 2. Standard for Meat "Wraps. —Tha ! unanimous opinion was expressed that "stockinette. 12in wide, SJJb to 91b minimum i weight per 100 yards, should be used fcr ! sin el e wrappers." | No. 3. Wisdom of Exporting under Certain ; Conditions, or Prohibiting the Exportation | of Emaciated or 111-conditioned Carcases.— j The following decision was arrived at in ' connection with this matter:—' : It is reconimended that the exportation of emaciated j or very poorly-conditioned carcases na | prohibited, as it discredits the quality of the better article exported, and depreciates the value of Australian frozen moat generally." Frozen pigs from New Zealand have been on sale at Smifhnekl. The smaller brought bid per lb. Most of the ,pigs, , however, were too large and brought much . less. In frozen nigs 801 b to 90lb weights | command much better prices than heavier animals. The London correspondent of the Pastoralists' Review has the following in re tho j scarcity of bacon, present and prospective, | which confirms what I have been saying of tho good prospects for an export trans I in pigs from New Zealand: The bacon famine here is becoming inten- ! sified, and provision dealers and associa- ] tiens throughout the country generally ar« i raising prices materially. Statistics pubj lished this week show that for 12 months ! ending December last imports of bacon fell I by 53 018 tons, the grand total from all I countries being 231,270 tons. Of this 53,000 • tons the United States accounted for 33.000. | Denmark 11.98 S tons, and Canada 12.21© tons. Strange to say, on the other hand. ! imports " from other countries " increased ! by 4G56 tons. " Other countries" is the ! official epheumism for China, The decrease* I from Denmark is accounted for by the fact i that the estimated killings last year were! 1,800.000 animals, as against 2,169.370 head] ' in 1908. There is every probability that j the present high prices of bacon in this i country will stimulate feeding in Scandinavia i to a much greater extent in thsj ! future than in the past, if that wers! possible. The American bacon imports ug to tho present are scarcely one-half of of the same month last year, which aecountfj for the fact that Cumberland cut, which i2 mainly sold in the Manchester market, is approximating to Canadian Wiltshire, whic-li ] is _ shillings per cwt better value. So far afi ! Irish is concerned, there is practioally r.tf I ascertaining the real price. Shippers only, accept " open" orders, aid when the in« voices _arrive in the hands of the retailer the price 3 are sufficient to make their haip stand on end. There is very little profit for them, let alone " a living profit." A£ ! *-" ; ■ a

to the future, the consumer cannot look to any quarter for relief. Tt is very questionable whether, for some time to come, we shall have a revival of pig-feeding in this country. For the farmers, the high price of feeding stuffs, especially maize, is discouraging, and cottage pig-feeding, once a profitable source of income in this country is gradually dying out, especially in semirural districts, where it is voted a nuisance by newcomers from crowded towns-. British agriculturists lay a great deal of b'ame upon the stringent regulations '.n regard to swine fever.

Ths shipments of cheese from Bluff and Dun«din for the month of Mav were as follows:—For Athenic: From Bluff, 2653 crates, from Dunedin, 340 crates; for Ton•jariro: From Bluff, 1778 crates, from Dtmedin, 235 crates; totals, from Bluff 4431 crates, from Dunedin 575 crates. This is an increase on last April from Bluff of 330 crates, but a decrease from Dunedin of 1102 crates. The decrease from Dunedin ie due to the fact that five of the Taieri and Peninsula factories making cheese turned to making buter in April.

The Athenic tcok -from the Dominion 11,171 crates of cheese arid shut out some 700 crates, which will go in the Tonpariro. She took only 1903 boxes of butter. The Tokomaru took 100 boxes.

South Island butter factories have not been shipping since March, and now North Island seems to be ceasing London shipments as the market has fallen considerably. There is, however, a fair outlet for South Africa, and North Island factories are selling at to llJkl f.o.b South Island factories are storing for the winter trade. London cheese shipments will \ roba'bly cease from the South Island at the end of June, but probably North Island will continue for some months later. They have had a great season in the North Island, as shown by the fact that Kaupokonui turned out 2500 tons of cheese this year.

The Tongariro sails on 31st, and will probably take 13,000 crates of cheese and a few hundred boxes butter.

Of the proposed Ililelutba frozen meat WOrka I notice the Clutha Leader says: "As a minimum we believe the concern can be ,worked on a basis of: nominal ©apitaJ £50,000, 'subscribed £25,000, called vp £12,500. But while this is so it is advisable that subscriptions should be larger than the figures mentioned." Their hankers, I should say, will need to be more liberal to them in their advances than bankers usually are. I do not think,that freezing works at Balciutha are advisable or warranted'. An up-to-date bacon factory and meat preserving works would, I think, he a more suitable industry for the employment of the surplus capital of Balciutha farmers. The Montreal TraJe Bulletin of 28th March, writing on the coming season's cheese prospects in Canada, says:— Although the old cheese season will not end before 30th April, attention is now feeing directed to the new season, as most mi the large holders in this market have disposed of their cheese, and are filling orders for factory airiplies for the coming season. Factorymen i,re also engaging their lnakers, many having already done so. The wnall stocks left in Canada, therefore, attract very little attention, as they will scon be "disposed of over the cable at current firm prices, there being no fear of any lower rates before the new make comes in. Here comes another discouraging feature for shippers and middlemen, as it looks' as if prices of fodder goods wov.ld open high, which mieans, as a rule, no profits to any one but the farmer. We understand that a few fodders are bring turned out west of Toronto, but in very small quantities, for the usual local trade there. It is reported from the Belleville section that 11J cents have been bid _ for certain factories for their whole April make; but that they wanted 12 cents. This statement is said to have been made By ia factoryman in the above section. If it can be relied upon it is pretty early to •peculate on April fodders. Every year the towns and cities are absorbing largely increased quantities of milk, which tends to decrease the make of both butter and cheese.' The make of fodders this year, it is maid, will be small as compared with former years. It is thought that as butter is three cents to four cents per lb higher than a year ago, a largtj- quantity of milk will go into butter and less into cheese. •But farmers will be the best judges.