Wairarapa Standard Published Tri-weekly, Price 1d. MONDAY, JANUARY 11, 1886. The Frozen Meat Trade.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume XIX, Issue 1781, 11 January 1886, Page 2

Wairarapa Standard Published Tri-weekly, Price Id. MONDAY, JANUARY 11, 1886. The Frozen Meat Trade.

The speech of the Chairman, T. S. W. Thompson, at the recent annual meeting of the Gear Meat Freezing and Preserving Company, threw much light on the causes of the present condition of the frozen meat trade. The Gear Company has declared no additional dividend this year, the last dividend having been one of five per cent. The reasons of this are not far to seek. The prices realised for frozen meat in the English market have been steadily falling for a long time past. With regard to the statistics of frozen meat the Chairman remarked :—” The statistics of frozeu meat sent away by the Company were as follows : 1883, 2255 carcases ; 1884 70,851 ; 1885, 93 694. The reduction of Jd in the freight of frozen meat made in November represented a profit to the Company of £6624. The 4 *'*al shipments of frozen meat from tli. *-'• the three years was—lß23, colony • 1684, 408,364 ; 1885, 126,365 carcases , ' —‘or*, a gradual 489,554. There was,* theiu. ", ’•bile increase in the export of frozen meai, ... boiling down was decreasing. The prices realised for meat daring the six months ended November for the last three years weie— June. Jnly. Aug. Bept. Oct. Nov. 1883 . ,7J 6J 6 6 of 64 1884 .. 5 44 44 5 6| Cl 1885 ..54 4} 44 44 4| 4 This'showed an enormous reduction in the price of frozen meat during the last three years, and especially the year just ended, and showed a large loss to the company during the last six months of the year. The prices ruling at Home for English mutton during the six months of 1885 were— June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. 74 61 61 5J 54 54

It would, however, be seen that New Zealand mutton was forcing its way into the English markets in spite of the opposition it encountered, and tire prices were becoming more equalised.” Then with respect to tallow there has also been a fall in price. 0 i this poiut the Chairman added ;—“The tallow export iu 1883 has been 1105 tons : in 188-1, 1149 ton-; in 1885, 1020 tons. The average prices during the three years had been In 1883. £37 15s per ton ; 1884, £36 2s 6d per ton ; 1885, L2B 14s 6d per ton. In that period their export of tallow had decreased rather than increased, but that was to be set down to the fact that their boiling down works had been at a standstill ; whilst there had been an increase iu the frozen meat exported. The tallow they were sending Home was bringing top prices, and. the product could not bo improved upon. [There had been a fall of L 7 8s per Uon during the last year, representing L 7592, which had to be found out of the profits of some other products during the year. With regard to utilising the tallow, the directors were taking steps to ascertain whether margarine or buttenue could be profitably manufactured here. The exports of tallow for the whole colony had J *r«ing the three years as follows : f!S“ : 1884, 22,022 casks ; 1885 a2|(J|)u Cti&a • j ,1 I 1 io U7A ‘ , T . therefore be Been 18,870 casks. It wouiu v,„ that the boiling down of sheep was . ouluul ß « thing of the past.” It is quite clear from the information in our possession that the Gear Company has been well and carefully managed, and its operations energetically pushed in every department of the business. That the operations this year have not proved so profitable as to warrant the declaration of a further dividend is a circumstance due to causes beyond the control of the directors of the Company. Other frozen meat companies have experienced worse fortune. The Central Meat Export Company, Rockhampton, the largest Company in Queensland, bad on the 10th of November last to ask their creditors to renew their bills for six months, end shareholders to increase their holdings by 50 per cent, or it would be necessary to wind up. Since then the Company has stopped work. The Australian Frozen Meat Company, Melbourne, at their meeting in September, showed an annual deficit of L 43,756, and the Company' t were at present in liquidation. The New Zealand Frozen Meat Company, Auckland, has not been able to pay a dividend for the last twelve months. Nelson Bros’ Company, at [Hawke's Bay, at their annual meeting, held in London iu October last, paid a dividend of 6 per cent, while their called-up Capital was much greater than that of the Geir Company. It will thus be seen [that while the (leer Company has been able to hold its own, the other oompeaiei mentioned , tare lUtyUMd

serious losses. It is to be hoped that the prices realised for frozen meat in England will improve, so that the trade here may revive and get on to a satisfactory footing.^