NEW ZEALAND'S MEAT TRADE

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 12868, 2 January 1906, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND'S MEAT TRADE

ADVICE FROM LONDON. The following paragraph* are clipped fron the London letter, dated November 6th ; to the Australasian " Pastoralists' Re view":—• There lias been a widespread notion the holding of New Zealand mutton and lamb is very heavy; as to the former thii is not the case. The Chrictchurch Meat Company are light holders,- the C.C. and D. Company hold the main supply of Nortt Islands, and arrivals, and are, light. Bottom price is'likery "reached, »iul •the next- movement-shonid be-upward. A great deal of New- Zealand lamb is stale; in' this section Las' been the chiei weakness. 'The opinioilto which I havf drawn attention before,'held by practical men, that the very high prices* ruling foi the fiiat six months of 1905 for New Zen* land mutton and lainb have proved a mis fortune in letting in cheaper Argentine meat is still* incontroverted. Arrivals of New Zealand sheep in ,0c tober were moderate—only 140,000. Busi ness has . been dull, demand dragging, anc prices sagging away.- The influence of cheai beef and lamb is felt strongly, and onlj the knowledge of light stocks has kept quo tations from going lower: Canterbuty light sheep are a. shade higher than North Island but' there are only fractional differences be tween the various kinds of New. Zealanc mutton. Messrs Heniy S. Fitter and Sons say that the heavy supply of tegs is inter fering -with the sale of prime small sheep. A better tone is apparent during this weel owing to the firm holding of storai apods. . Only 55,000 New Zealand-lamte "Wired in October. There are" stitt betweM 100, 000 and 200,000 in storey .Prices are nomi nally ljd -under .last year -at same. time, and the output is what is re quired to liquidate- stocks by Christmas. Long storage signs are apparent in the New Zealand lambs all round the market. -Last week a collapse took place/ 4d being marked as the extreme price Canterbuiy, other qualities, being at mutton values, and the objection to the heavy carcases if not- so marked. Messrs Gordon, Woodroff* and Co. state that " the present position is fho worst that has been experienced foi years;" at. the moment it looks as if stocks will last, well into the new year, causing lower prices for New" Zealand early shipments in 1906. Almost a complete absence in demand is spoken of. This is a reaction following the enhanced prices earlier in the year, and something like a rebellion is noted in Smithfield in this connection. " It is absurd," said one of the largest importers lately to me, "for-them to demand that- I should make 6d per tb of a'4o-lb lamb. New Zealand expectations, are getting higher and higher; • they must remember that there is other meat here New Zealand." Another large Smithfield man tells me that it was a mistake in the middle of the season to try to raise prices; the effect was to check the already weak demand. He says that the big stores, like Sainsburv's, work at the extreme minimum profit. New Zealand lamb this season cost them 6d to put in their shops, and. they only cleared at 6jd. Such stores, wishing to attract buyers for their butter, etc., of course, beat butchers, so one sees how little temptation there has been this season for the retailer to go in for New Zealand lamb. The large importers immediately reduced their market values when they saw large quantities coining forward, but this was too late to do good.. At the end of October I saw a lot of vfiry stale New Zealand' meat. sheep and Jambs;, this meat would eat tallowy.. As the carcases had. retained their shape,' this was not brought about by the meat, getting spffc on board ship, and it had receutly arrived. This staleness—whether produce! by long storage here or in the colony—u one of the current features of the market Speaking of' the fault on meat just arrived, .Hie underwriter, ofcourse. has to suffer, probably, iu the. case above deferred to. to the extent of 20 per !cent. >6ff market value. A salesman is quoted as follows—."There is. practically 110 demand at all for lamb. Tf only New Zealand could be persuaded to let the meat come in at a reasonable price for one or two years, there is a big fiel dfor it "in the north of England, but the worst of its is, ok soon as we get the trade .goincf up goes the pi ice. - antl ye .'rave no otlieV* alternative . but- to -put i:i some other, article/ or,: practically' close the shops, because'the price gets higher tluui .the public can be.persuaded 'to pay."