FROZEN MEAT TRADE.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCIV, Issue 14393, 7 January 1911, Page 3 (Supplement)

FROZEN MEAT TRADE.

The adverse comments of Dr. Chappie and 3lr Lysnar, on the methods of handling frozen meat at the other end have caused a good deal of discussion. Certain allegations have Been made by these gentlemen, and these allegations have been stoutly denied by those interested. The other day the Chairman of the Canterbury Meat Company said that the accusations made were the "loud screams -of the sensation-monger." Various companies connected with the trade have denied the accuracy of the statements made by the two faultfinders. and a reply from them may be expected before long. It is probable that very few farmers understood the methods of placing the frozen meat on the Smitlifield market from the shit> } s side. Most of the vessels unload their frozen meat either at the Royal Albert Docks,' or the \ ictoria Docks. These docks are situated far from the freezing stores, near the Sinithfieid market, about 7 miles by road, and between twelve and thirteen by river. The extra distance by the water is accounted for by the windings of the river. About" three parts of the meat goes by barges, and the- rent by road in vans. The reason why the barges are used more than the rans is that the road so crowded by traffic that it takrs the vans a long time to set through. Usually it takes about hours to comnlete the Journey. It is suggested "that the South-We>t Tndia Dock should bo used for the discharge of Xew Zealand frozen mutton. The road journey to the freezisg stores would be reduced crre-half. and the river from 19 OR 13 milea tomtit 3i mile*

COMPLAINTS. The chics complaiiUi mado by Dr. Chappie, Mr Lysnar, anil a committee of -New Zealaiiders in London, are briefly as follows: —Many of the barges lire unfit for carrying frozen meat. The method of taking the produce lo Smithfiekl is unsatisfactory. "It taKes under favourable conditions, auou- -'i hours for a dray of meat to bo taken from tho dock* .to Sniithiield; but ju somo parts of the road tlio trallic is congested, stoppages arise, which makes tho period of carriage longer. to exemplify the disadvantage of t-ho piesent system the committee questioned same of the drivers of the meat vans at tho docks as to tho time it took them to obtain their load. The driver of 01:0 vail stated ho Had arrived, at the dock; at 8 o clock to obtain a full load < f N<-«" Zealand meat to take up to Smitliiield. Uo ri.qu.red 110 to 120 according to their size, xie then had only 54 .011 his cart, and it was 4-10 tl,B afternoon. He stated he would wait 011 until 6 o clock and get as many more lie could, then Bo would have to return to Smithfield with whatever he had. The samo unsatisfactory condition ot loading obtains with the barges, bi.mstimes a barge which can carry a load of from 1200 to 2500 carcases has to go back to Smithfield with only 100 or 200 carcases. HANDLING THE MEAT. ' The methods of discharging seem to come in for a good deal of condemnation at tho hands of the critics. It appears that winches and shng3 are used in some cases, and shoots are sometimes used to send the meat down to the wharf from the deck. Mr Lvsnar also urges that the use of tue shoot for loading ships m New Zealand should bo discontinued, as where tho end of the shoot rests on a carcase, that carcase suffers considerable damage. The Committee of ISew Zealasders says that in unloading by shoots in the . docks the carcases were to a certain extent damaged. In heavier carcases the damage was more than in lighter ones, and wherever the shoot took tlie weight of the carcase, the skin ot t&e carcase became damaged, and in some cases the skin was actually broken, which caused tho damaged spot to "weep" when thawed. It is recommended that the covered elevators should be tsed in unloading the meat. SORTING. Another complaint is the delay caused in tho sorting of the produce. At present it is sorted in t,he hold or the vessel. Mr Lysnar states that "the present system of sorting the meat in the shin's hold is very defective, as it tends to long and irritating delavs, which) add to the cost 01 handling," and tesd to damage the quality of the meat. All connected with the trade agreed that a sorting shed at the wharf at which the ships unload was most desirable, so that the produce could be discharged direct from the hold bv elevators into cold stores, instead of the present method, which caused infinite confusion and delay, .tie quoted instances of the delays which had occurred, some of these being very bad indeed, and amongst others was a statement bv a firm of meat carriers, who said that a. boat had arrived with mutton on 13th October, and daily, for sir days, they had sent dows a number of drays without being able .to obtain a load of meat. The superintendents of ships also admitted that similar delays occurred in the barging of meat from the ships up the river." It is suggested that the Port of London authority should erect cool stores where the meat could be elevated direct from the ship's hold into the freezing chamber after discharge from the ships. It could then be re-deliver-ed into van 9, barges, or railway trucks as required. The point made against this suggestion is that of expense, the, present cost of handling and storage being quite heavy enough. RAILWAY FACILIITIES. . TKere are two railway sidings near Smithfield, but these are not used for meat sent from the London docks. Meat sent in from Bristol or Liverpool comes in through these and the Argentine people send large quantities of their meat to Liverpool. From thence it is Tailed direct to Smithfield. If the Victoria and Albert Docks are to remain the permanent docks for discharging New Zealand meat it is recommended that arrangements should be made to rail the meat - to Smithfield by night. " MEAT FRAUDS, " As to the identity of New Zealand produce after it comes into the hands of the retailer; this raises an important phase which the committee cossiders is best met in the meantime by the freezing companies adopting a- system now in use by the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, which is by having a leaden seal attached by wire to one of 'the legs of the carcase, and if the tag is removed it breaks the seal and obliterates the name of the company. This prevents retailers changing the general tag that is used at present and attached by a piece of string which can be easily changed from New Zealand meat to some other carcase of inferior ♦meat." DOES IT IiiATTER ¥0 THEI PRODUCER,?. Anyone reading these complaints against the present systems, and the suggestions that are made for improve, nients might- be tempted to ask how the matter affects the producer. The most of our meat is bought in the Dominion by the pound, or on foot, by the freezing companies, or- by -large exporters. Comparatively little is consigned on the producers' account. Surely, it will be thought, those buying our stuff and shipping it Home, may b© trusted to do the best thev can with it for their own sakes. There nro plenty of people at Home to see that things are conducted as they ■should be, and ife is in the interests of the exporters that things should be earned out as well as nossible.' This facthasbeen emphasised bv the Chairman of the Bank of New Zealand., and the Chairman of the Canterbury Meat Company. But, it- is argued, by some that the buyers asd exporters here don't care *o long as they (.-ail make a profit on their purchases. If their feeds do not bring n. good price in London, they will, of course, reduce the price they pav h<*re. and the producer suffers in the Icncc run. But, on the other hand, the buyers and exporters are competing arm'nst each" other here, and they would naturally see to it that their goods did not suffer at the other end. ALLEGATIONS DENIED. ! For many years complaints against tlie management and the handling at tho other end have been made, and any allegations made always been denied by merchants sliinp«ng com. sanies others, "ml ln-« nca r n th** rr hy Chapnle. T.y«*r>;;r ciliary. The most sensational nart

Dr. Chappie's statemeutd referred to tho transit of meat by barges, and theso statements were corroborated by Mr W. D. Lysnar. ' . , , A distintercsted reply has been made by an officer of tho Government, Mr A Crabb, M.R.C.V.S., Veterinary Surgeon in London for the Dominion. Tim High Commissioner instructed hint to make a report, and he has reported as follows: . 14 At tho present time approximately 75 per cent, of the frozen meat sent from New Zealand to London is conveyed to the stores by means of river transit in barges, and, while this cannot bo considered an ideal method, I think under tho circumstances there is no option but to continue it. As some of tho largest buyers and owners of our meat have established their stores as near as possible to tho Smith-, hold Market, the barges are a necessity. The lip-town stores arecOnvoment, as the market cau be quickly supplied Trom them, which is not the case when meat is stored at tlie, docks, from whence the meat has to be carted is vans for about seven miles. I While Ido not consider barging to be an ideal method Of carrying meat nor denv that damage sometimes occurs. I do not consider that, tho deterioration arising during up-river transit is sufficient to justify wholesale condemnation of the system. I have frequently examined barges dltrihg loading, and on several occasions have be-eA presest.at- the discharge of .barges lit the but I liavb Uot at any time noticed any damage that could be directly attributed to ihe afcttin) barging. In only one instance was nvy attention called to some tarc.a&es which had suffered during friusit: there had apparently been an accident to the barge resulting in a -leak, as about twenty-five carcases were very wetj and had to bo condemned. On thoso occasions when damage docs t occur during up-river transit, I consider that the damage is not as a rule due to defects in the barges themselves, but to the delay which sometimes takes place in filling up the barge. barge with a capacity for, say, 2.000 carcases may have to wait the whole of a day in. order to get filled up, and it is "this delay which is, I think, one of the worst features of the system; Barging of meat has been, in existence since almost the beginning of the frozen-meat trade, and several conditions have arisen,, and exist, which tend to control the handling, and eliminate as far as possible the risk of deterioration. In the first J>liice, all barges before being used for the carriage of frozen meat miist lie eS&irtiried and certified as suitable by . a surveyor representing Lloyd's aild tine other UUderwrit-er's; this survey is repeated at intervals, and repairs and altcratfohs have to be carried out according to the surveyor's instructions. This m itself is, I consider, a safeguard, as tlib underwriters, being financially interested in the safe carriage of the indat, Would presumably insist upon the. b&rgefc befrig suitable; The cold-storage companies, again, act as a check oil tile condition of the barges, as they refuse delivery as sound of any meat which is damaged; and any damago caused by defects in the barges could easily be traced. I shall from time to time examine the barges in use in the carriage of our meat, and shall report to yo.u in the event of t&em ckusihg dainage. I shall also, in this connection, make a point of seeing barges discharge, in order that I may ascertain the condition of the meat on Arrival. In conclusion, from iiiy own observations during the last two years, and from conversations with the Inspectors on # the Smithfield Market, I am of opinion that the bai-gitig of meat does not give rise to what could be termed excessive damage, and. that when damage does Occur it is mostly due to delay. I am of opinion that Mr. Lysnar. views the condition .of the barges rather too seriously, does not ftlloW for natural wear-and-toair, and places too much importance on tho fact of finding that thev all took in water, or, in his words, ''leaked." I can at present come .to no other conclusion in view of the fact that inquiry has failed, to reveal damage to the iSeat du© to the condition of the barges/ 9