SPACE SHORTAGE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 19892, 21 March 1939, Page 4

SPACE SHORTAGE

KAiT! FREEZING WORKS NO BOAT FOR A MONTH KILLINGS STILL HEAVY SOME CONCERN FELT A .shortage of freezing space at Kaiti is threatened, and if heavy killings continue before relief is provided consideration may have to be given to a restriction of killings. At Kaiti the position is not nearly so acute as in some other centres where restrictions are already operating, and there is no suggestion yet of killings being curtailed, but the situation has developed to a stage where il requires close attention. Shipments of frozen meat from Gisborne have not been frequent this season, and following the Port Denison's departure en March 11 no further boat is scheduled for loading meat in the Gisborne roadstead until the middle of next month. The Port. Denison's shipment, from Gisborne was only a small one, comprising 1334 carcases of mutton, 8766 carcases of lamb. 434 quarters of bee;', 645 carcases of pork. 1(12 sides of pork, 116 bags of 'boneless beef, and 1110 packages of frozen sundries. Large Killings Continue Speaking on the matter to-day, Mr. F. Tolerton. manager of the Gisborne Refrigerating Company, Limited, stated that the freezing chambers would be full by the time the next boat arrived, if killings continued as at present. The dry weather was causing fat stock to arrive at the freezing works in large numbers, but it was impossible to say how long that would last. The butchers were still dealing with approximately 4000 sheep and lambs a day and about 150 to 170 cattle a day, and the freezing chambers were filling rapidly. The killing tallies for sheep were ahead of those at the corresponding date last year, although lambs showed a reduction.

The accumulation of meat in freezing works is fairly general throughout the Dominion, and in Hawke's Bay the position is more serious than it has been for many years, killings having been restricted there. A Hastings report states that more meat has 'been shipped this year than during the same period last season, but, despite that, there is much more meat in the stores than for many years. Unless some relief is given, it may be necessary to stop killings altogether in Hawke's Bay.