ARGENTINE MEAT MARKET

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXI, Issue 19032, 9 June 1924, Page 8

ARGENTINE MEAT MARKET

The New Zealand Meat Producers’ Board have just received the usual monthly letter from its South American representative in which he gives some very interesting information regarding the general conditions applying to live stock in the Argentine. He writes as follows:

“There is a la’-ge offering of fat cattle, but the v< best quality are scarcer, and some of the works* have difficulties to get < best quality chil lers. The large swinging flies and other insect pests 1 at this season of the year caused -auch annoyance to live-stock, )ind mobs of cattle can frequently be seen all crowded together in a circle with their heads down. Feeding of fat cattle lose condition under such persecution, which fortunately lasts for only about a month. Small native locusts have caused much damage this year, eating the small leaves off the alfalfa, and leaving only the stalks for the cattle to eat, which have no feeding value, and for that reason large numbers of cattle are lacking in finish. A drought had also z been experienced over a considerable part of the alfalfa zone near Villegas and further to the west, where rain is badly wanted on these light sandy soils that grow alfalfa well, though the tosca or soft stone prevents the roots from reaching permanent water—hence much rain is needed to nourish the plants. The sheep grazing grounds principally to the south of the pronneo of Buenos Aires are very good, .as I could see the other day. Prices of store and breeding cattle are cheaper tn the wesf, though maintained in the south. Prices of sheep have fluctuated somewhat during the month since I last wrote, according to entries at the local sheep market, though best quality hoggets are selling well. Considerable entries of sheep are sifill coming to hand. The three Argentine plants on the south coast killed 227 16 9 head of sheep to end of February. Several boats have already gone there to load. Swifts’ prices are as f ollows:

Chillers. 3.576 d in works; Continental. 2.8?3d: chilled cows, 2.259 d; can nets, 1.882 d to 2.070 d; calves, 2.823 d bulls. 1.694 d. Sheep: Wethers 6.588 d to 6.964 d; ewes, 4.706 d to 4.894 d. Lambs: hoggets. 8.282 d to 8.847 d. Exchange, pound sterling is worth today, 12dol, 75 pesos.”