FISH AND OYSTERS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 16613, 10 December 1919, Page 3

FISH AND OYSTERS.

THE INDUSTRIES IN NEW, ZEALAND. POSSIBILITIES OP DEVELOPMENT Mr. L. F. Ayson, Chief Inspector of Fisheries, has just returned trom Aus» truua, alter making there an exilauSH tive inquiry into' me hshing industry as earned on in the various states, and , he is to report to the Government, on tlie results of his investigations, no doubt, with-A-view to the adoption of some schemes for the development of the industry on the New Zealand coast, and the development also of marketing methods: Mr. Ayson has always been* an op>timist about the possibilities of the industry in New Zealand, and he has come back from Australia more convinced than ever that in our sea fisheries New Zealand has an asset the value of which is scarcely realised by anyone in the country. Discussing this matter with a reporter last week lie said that New Zealand certainly had the best fisheries South of the Line, if they were developed. Our fish were, he thought, infinitely superior to those of Australia. Also, he said that the prices charged in Australia for fish, both wholesale and retail, were very much higher than was the rule in New Zealand, even at this time, when it was generally considered that the price of fish was abnormally high. Mr. Ayson could not, of course, discuss the recommendations he may make to the Government in connection with his inquiries. OYSTERS. Mr. Ayson made some remarks about oyster fisheries. “All the oysters coming into the Sydney and Brisbane markets,” he said,' “come from leased artificial beds on the foreshore. The price in Sydney, Brisbane, and Melboumd runs from £3 to £4 10s a sack of 120 dozen. This is a very high price compared with that charged in New Zealand for oysters from our natural beds. Rockoysters are sold by the New. Zealand Government from the depot at 14s per sack of from 90 to 100 dozen. -This is an enormous difference. We have no artificial beds in New Zealand. In thr north we have improved and extended the natural beds, but with the increasing demand for oysters the Government must one day take up the culture of oysters on prepared beds on a more extensive scale than has yet been done, I am of the opinion that we have on the shores of the Hauraki Gulf and in the Bay of Islands and the estuaries in the north a very large extent of foreshore where the cultivation of oysters could be carried on by methods similar to those used in Australia. With regard to the Foveaux Straits natural beds, I think that these may be extended by continuing the planting of oysters on suitable bottom in Cook Strait. To find the places suitable for planting it will bo necessary to test the bottom. This may be done also in parts of Foveaux Strait, where oysters do not exist now.” STATE TRAWLERS. Mr. Avson was asked for his opim ions on State trending ventures and State marketing. He indicated that nothing he had seen in Australia had caused him to change his opinion expressed to the Industries Committee before he left. His opinion then was ,i that the State should not embark on trawling enterprises, hut should rather I encourage and assist fishermen in the purchase of boats and gear, and in the erection of cold storage depots. In { trout hatcheries, and in th; j stocking of rivers with trout, _ Mr. Ay. . j son says that New' Zealand is far i advance of any of the Australia;’ j States." He mentioned that there wen, j some fair trout streams in Tasmania, 1 and Tasmania w r as making a bold bid •’ for tourist traffic, offering as induce- | ments the trout fishing and the seen- ■ ery of the State. But Mr. Ayson says ; that neither in fishing nor in scenery can Tasmania or any of the othej i States of the Commonwealth compare ■ with New Zealand. He has come back v] much impressed with the possibility of J developing the tourist traffic between ■; Australia and New Zealand, and urges j that generally more should ‘be made of i our scenic beauties and other attrac- . j tions. I