LAMBS SELECTED

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21216, 10 December 1938, Page 5

LAMBS SELECTED

Cup Won by Gray Brothers District Competition Held Judges Well Pleased With Quality South Canterbury’s quota of lambs to represent the district at the annual competition in London, were selected yesterday when the district competition took place at the Pareora Freezing Works. The competition which is heid under the auspices of the New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board, was organised and carried out by the Timaru Agricultural and Pastoral Association, and the result was very gratifying. In spite of a difficult season the lambs came forward in good condition and the selected pens compared very favourably with previous years. Farmers from all parts of the district assembled at the Works, and keen Interest was displayed in the judging on the hoof and hooks, and in addresses which were given during the afternoon. Quality Well Maintained A total of 93 entries was received, and while it was slightly down on last year .quality was well maintained. The judge of lambs on the hoof, Mr A. Webb, of Christchurch, told a reporter of “The Timaru Herald” that he was agreeably surprised at the condition of the entries, considering the season. Some of the lambs lacked hardness that was obtained in a normal season, but the standard was uniformly good. The results on the hoof were as follows: Short Wool W. Black (Waihao Downs .... 1 A. S. Elworthy (Holme Station) 2 Estate I .Cuthbertson (Glenavy) 3 Long Wool C. D. Wilson (Hook) 1 W. Hill (Pareora West) 2 A. Fenwick (St. Andrews) .... 3 During the killing of 'the entries the Wirt were thrown open for inspection and farmers were able to take k- r interest in their stock which travelled along the chain to the judges on the hook. Messrs M. Hannan, I ew Zealand Meat Producers’ Board grader, and D. Miller and G. Lennox, Canterbury Frozen Meat Company’s graders.

The winning pen on the hooks was the property of Gray Brothers, of St. Andrews. Other entries selected to make South Canterbury’s quota of 15 to compete against other districts at the London competition were as follows: —S. A. Marshall (Hadlow), Estate, M. J. Crowe (Morven), C. H. S. Johnston (St. Andrews), W. Dorman (Fairlie), L. Fenwick (Otaio), W. Fletcher (Willowbridge), N. T. Beil (Southburn), A. H. Freme (Fairlie), G Bolderston (Clandeboye), McFarlane Brothers (Winchester), B. Horgan (Temuka), Donald Grant (Timaru). A. S. Elworthy (Holme Station) and A. Dent (Temuka). The quality of the selected lambs was very good, commented the judges. In selecting the carcases they had endeavoured to avoid fat and waste, z cnd pick lambs of good shape which were meaty and even, in keeping witli the London demand. The heaviest lambs handled during the day had been 371 b Gathering Addressed Tlie president of the Timaru Agricultural and Pastoral Association (Mr C .H. S. Johnston), in welcoming the gathering .said that what they had seen of the lambs that day revealed that they were just as good if not letter than those of previous competitions. They would await with interest the decision of the London judges. Mr Johnston thanked exhibitors, drafters and all who had made the competition such a success. If it were not for the enthusiasm of the drafters and farmers who went to the trouble of bringing their lambs in, there would, he said, be no competition. This year the committee had limited the weight on the hoofs to 641 b. The chairman of directors of the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company (Mr John Deans), of. North Canterbury, congratulated the district on the quality of its lambs and the success of the competition. The Meat Board, he said, had been endeavouring to ascertain which was the most suitable breed fo lambs for export, but he doubted if it would ever be possible to find that out. He emphasised that farmers had to stand on their own feet, and endeavour to breed from their own ewes, and in his opinion .hey could get good results by building up their flocks from a long wool ram : :d half-bred or Corriedale ewes. In appealing to breeders to make quality a paramount consideration, Mr Deans said that a number of farmers bought the cheapest rams they could. They were, however, the dearest in ’ '.re long run. Must Maintain Quality Mr J. D. Ormond, of Waipukurau, one of the producers’ representatives on the New Zealand Meat Producers’

Board, apologised for the absence of Mr H. D. Acland, another member of the Board. On behalf of the Board, Mr Ormond thanked the Timaru A. and P. Association and the Company for the facilities that had been provided, and all who had supported the competition, which the Board thought was a good thing in improving the quality of lamb and bringing farmers together. At a recent competition he had attended, the A. and P. Association had 10 lambs of very substantitl weight on exhibition, one tipping the scales at 571 b. It was in their estimate of value worth 37/6. He was asked what he thought the lamb would be worth, and replied that if farmers produced lambs as heavy as that for the Lcndon market they would be worth only about 4d a lb. It was .quality that producers had to aim at ,and the demand was for lambs about 281 b to 301 b.

“We have a very good Home market, and our competitors want it too," said Mr Ormond. The English lamb had never been so close to New Zealand lamb in price as it was to-day. and Dominion producers must see that quality was kept up or prices would go down. It had been suggested that New Zealand should be part of an Empire Council to discuss the amount of meat that should be sent to i'le Home market. From New Zealand’s point of view that would be a very bad move. The Dominion was jealous of her trade and other countries ere j.alous of thei rtrade, and New Zealand’s trade and wanted some of it. He hoped that farmers as a whole would say that they were satisfied with the present system.

Mr Ormond expressed the opinion that New Zealand’s lamb trade had a great future. They had no doubt all noticed the friendly feeling between the United States and Great Britain,

and there was no doubt that there were markets in America and Canada. Chilled Beef Prospects The chilled beef industry, continued Mr Ormond, had meant a great deal to the North Island, where good weauers were bringing six and seven guineas as a result. He hoped that the trade could be extended to the South Island. Many shipments had brought equal to the best Argentine quality at Home, the New Zealand beef having a most appealing flavour. “Wherever you grow one blade of grass to-day, grow two to-morrow, and we will endeavour to find a market for your produce,” he concluded. Mr D. J. Shea, secretary of the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, congratulated Mr W. Black on winning one of the sections on the hoof. Mr Black was in his 85th year and he had shown that he was still able to hold his own with the best in the district in 1938. A suggestion had been made, said Mr Shea, that there should be a higher price for the best quality lambs. He did not want farmers to run away with the idea that they had not been paid a fair price for good lambs, as last year they had been paid right up to the hilt, and id more than that realised in London. Second qua..ty lambs, however, had shown a considerable loss. Under a normal season second quality made a good price in certain parts of England, but last season there had been more second quality than usual and they had slumped badly. Mr Shea pointed out that there was a tendency for farmers to draft in anything that would go to the W; 'ks. There was no need for farmers to get “windy” early in the season and rush their lambs in. It was far better to send forward only Prime Canterbury—the type that was wanted at Home. Referring to the shipment of meat, Mr Shea expressed the opinion that it was vitally necessary that the ports in the Dominion should be better equipped for the handling of meat than they were. Cup Presented Later in the day the Association’s Challenge Cup and the Company’s immature were presented by Mr Johnston, who congratulated the winners on their success. He thanked the Company for the excellent hospitality that had been provided. The trophies were accepted by the secretary of the Association (Mr H. H. Fraser) on behalf of Gray Brothers, who were unable to be present. The Company provided lunch and afternoon tea and was cheered for its hospitality. Mention was made by Mr Herbert Elworthy of the valuable assistance f. t had been given by the ladies in dispensing the refreshments.