THE FROZEN MEAT TRADE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1795, 8 January 1884, Page 3

THE FROZE N MEA T TRADE.

|f||E^f6llowing valuable letter appears in Rg* last Austialasian to hand : — BwSir- — We have much plcasuie in comBying with the request that lias been Sade to us to write a few words on the frozen , rfieat trade, now grown to such |aree prppoi tions between Now Zealand wid this countiy. It is now no lousier Wfecessary to argue about the possibility vf bringing meat from any distance in a fresh" state, unpreservod by any other procfeßS than freezing ; that is an accomplished fact, a genuine and brilliant success. It only remains, theictoie to ttiake such suggestions as experience dieates to render the operation moic perfect and therefore more pi ofi table to the exporting colonist. To that end lfe&hons may be learned even fiom the few cargoes that have been failures. fWheu.the engines connected with the lefrigerating chamber bieaU down beyond immediate repair, as happened with one cargo^ .the loss is dhcet and the cause keif- evident. But it is not so geneially recognised that the whole piocebs of exportation is one ieq ni ling in eveiy step the greatest possible caie and attention. Great care should be taken as to the fclassof mutton sent to England. On the whole we have nothing hut piaise to award aa to the quality of Now Zealand sheep generally sent; but theic is one feature 'we think cm, as yea is ioll on, be materially altered with groat advantage -we mean the ago, of sheep. We believe that most of the sheep sent hcie .uc tluoc, and m many cases four yeai s old. Tins is a mistake ; the old thorny ot four year old mutton being the iinest is now an exploded fallacy. Such may have flivour, but it is generally tough and stiing\ ; sheep are at their host .it about tv o yoai s old ; in this countiy we geneially iegar.l three and four-year-old sheep o' ° do not allude to ewesfas evidence of bid fuming. Of comse, we quite undeistand that this will not apply to Now Zealand, where sheep have been hied and fod mainly for their wool; but wo belioe JJjlit now a mavket is opon foi them as Epd, the fanners in th.'t countiy will wring their sheep to culier matuiity, which will be one means of their mutton growing in favour hoic. Sheep should be selected fiom 00 to .SO pounds in weight, and should ne\ci be killed directly after a long journey ; they should rlways bo allowed to ic-t for at least 24 hours with veiy little food, should be dressed quite plainly, no water being used, and the kidneys and suet taken out hot; they should then h uig singly in a cooliniHOoni till quite firm, and all the animal" heat explicated, aftci which they may be packed in wi tipper*, each with the ownci 'b mark on it, ard put on board ship. We would insist strongly on the liteial canying out ot the above directions, They may seem to Borne tri\ia], but they aie necessary to success. The tailuie of the cir<.'o ox Mataura was piob.ihly due to the neglect of these piecautions ; the mutton on board that vessel was found, v hen the refrigerating chainbeis woio opened, to bein a frightful state, o\ ci :>OUO condemned were peifecth, putud. and wo do not think we are exagaoi.iting m sa> ing tlioic "was scarcely a sound sheep in the ship. Although, doubtless, the ownos aio annoyed at their loss, it has an en fu.m perfectly pieventible causis, if, as we believe, the leason is that the sliccp ncie not properly cookd and linn hefoie being put into the chamber on boaid ship. We think it only fair to say that those sheep not condemned woie ably managed by the film (not om seises) to whom they were consigned, and that the pi ices realised, from 3d to .">d pei lb, weic, considering the condition they Meie in, decidedly good. A few woids, Sir, as to the manner of disposing of the sheep in England. Ab a matter ot lact all the ho/on sheep, -with the exception of a few sent to piovmcial [towns, aie sold in this market for consumption in London, and we think that lair some yeais such must continue to bo Re case. The salesinan'b commission is two per cent, on the ietiuns» The usual course seems to bo for the owner of the pheep to consign thorn to some shipping, and, or finanual company, who agun sonsign them to the salesmen, the said JOinpany doubtless chaigmg a commission or so doing ; in one caso, indeed, a com>any which if. laigely impoiting sheep iocs not e\en take the tioublo to do that, )ut employs \et another agent to do it or them. Now, why should tins be so r ' i the sender is 1 calling so much moncj >y his ventuie that he is caieless as to ;he payment of one or two e.xtia comnissions, we have nothing fuithei to say, )ut if, as we believe, it is necessary for toe success of the tiade that as much noney as possible should ) each the pocket )f the sender. wh\ these lepeatcd exteuses? There aie scores of salesmen in ihis market above all suspicion, and inswerable for any leasonable amount of noney, and, indeed, the usual couise of msiness in England, Scotland, and the Continent is for goods to be consigned direct to the salesmen, who sells them md returns the money by return of post. Why should not the same s\ stein obtain n the frozen meat tiade ? We make the suggestion and leave the matter in tlie lands of your readeis. In concluding this letter, which we brnst will not be con^deied tncsome 01 annecessai y, we would utter a void of :aution. (jrieat as i=? the success of the wade, it must not be forgotten that theie ire difficulties on this side ; the tune will aever come when fio/en sheep, howe\ei rood, realise hcie as high a pi ice as lome-killed ones ; they lose colour in ihawing, and aftei a shoit time become pery unsightly, on which account the Hemand is limited. Our ad\ ice is that for the next year or two, at any late. tfter which time perhaps the demand ■toy be greater, a fair a\euge ot about JBoO sheep weekly, all the year round, is ps much as the maiket will fauly take; if 3000 or 4000 are sent w p do not say ;hat they cannot be sold, but the in ices will materially fall. We aie perfectly xware that it may be said against us ;hat in giving this advice we aie stopping ;he supply ot food to the .so called storxug millions of this countiy, but as icents for the colonists we leol bound to sonsider their inteiests and to advise them, so far as we are able, for theii wrelfare, believing that the interests ol fche poor themselves will be best sened by doing all we can to pi omote the proitable export of meat from New Zealand ;o this country, knowing full well, as we io from experience, that if the element of )rofifci s l° n # absent, the tiade itself will anguish and die —We arc, &c, ,), Hksry Hicki and Sox. I 32 Central Meat Maiket, London, pg, As we write sheep ate being old' here ex Biitish King and Catalona ; bey are in capital order, and many of hem of first-rate quality.

,» The following letter addressed to Mr bunningham Smith, manager of the New Zealand Refrigerating Company here, has been handed to ns (Otago Witness), for publication :— I wrote you last on the 9th inst., and now merely send yoii a line with reference to the result of divided agency, which I considered important enough to sound a wain\ne note against some fame ago. W3 have now an opportunity of finding out, ouro >ur jjopt, the unwisdom of such a mode < f deallug with our produce. S'Tbe British King's and Catalonia's shipments are now on the market, and having tjeen consigned to so many diffeient firms, ire being crowded into it without any system ss to regulation of supplies. Each talesman is underselling the other, and the Sbhsequence is that splendid sheep are be|ur sold to-day at s\d per lb, equal, if not Jbperior, to any Home-killed mutton on the stalls ; and at the same time the price hi the Home-killed has not declined, simply because the same salesman will not let it &>l»low a certain price. U Some arrangement must be come to unongst the various consignees so that khly mKy' work together, and it will be for bne gEE&e r 8 *& * a^ e . * nis ma^ r } n tne ' r own f^dsand, if possible, get their agents to Sffinisio*Bome such course, otherwise it is tf?ev i Wel »°* tho a g ent > wno w^ nave to glP'lQas, ' I fvm certain that I do pot

overstate the amount of this loss to the sheep-farmers when I say that it ia making a difference to them of id to Id per lb, which moans 3s to b's a head on their sheep, which is by far too serious a loss to be tnfled with. I hope your directors will take this matter up, and endeavour to bring some piessure to boar on the principal consignees (of course, with the con-ent of the \aiious shippeis), in older that they may take some united action to protect their constituent-, pioduce fiom being uunecessaiily saciifieed. —I «un, &c. .John Rkid. The writer of the above (Mr lieid, of TCldeishe) lias been devoting a gieat deal of his time since he has been in London to tho frozen meat trade, and has had sever.il consignments from Oamaru sold under Ins own supervision. He is thercfoie an authority on the subject, and being connected in no way with loan companies 01 mci chants, may lie considered an entiiely disinterested one.

The Now Zealand Refiigeiating Company liii\c received the following telegi am fioin London dated 10th ])ec. : — "The Fenstanton me.it is turning out in excellent condition, and is selling at an .iveiage price of 6d^. The following extract from a letter from London, dated October 20, has also been handed to us .-—(Witness) The sheep winch we sold have realised neaily lid pei lb. and should have ni.vdc moie but for the way in winch the consignments ha\e been handled. Most of the salesmen m the niaiket ha\e sheep, and as many of them aie left to soil a-, tbev like tiicie has been no geueial supi'i vision, and bineis ha\e just taken advantage of tile situation, and knocked prices down to .V,d. The salesmen aie too independent to act togithi'i, and in the piesent instance each man's ob]ect has a])])aiently been to yet nd of his sheep befoie his nei^liljom-.. It just shows how ncccss.in it is that theic should be soiiieune to h\ a limiL at which the sheep aie to be sold.

Vuu will do well to furnish join- house from Girluk md Cianu ell's Uuy haw now the most < oni],lctc Furnish ins Wan bouse in ml turmtuie to '«uit .ill disses, good «tr- „<, ,iik\ (hoip llio\ ha\c lapusti} C upets . <)in 2- till \ici y ird, llitissils Irom ,5s lid per V u<l l.tnolium turn .M)d to ">•>, Oil Clntlis fmin Is Oil Id 4s (nl per ■v ird, jjond 12 foi t wulc Oil Llollis Tt ■!■> Oil pt r \.u tl Imnicnsc .issortment of lion licdstc.ids tioin Inlants' Cots to "> Ici't wide h ill -tester J'n'd-.tcuU Double non Hod'tc.uk irom 2-1-,. ISO IJi-dsti .ids in stnr Lto sdei t f-o.n J'udiiiiifjs oi .ill kinds md s| /( -b kipt in rcuunrss Dining, Sitlin^, ])i iwinif-room I'utnituie, .md and ilaiife.issoiliii'Mit of Mam liostcr and I'iiinibhuiK (mods, nuludinsj a lot of Cutonn-s Hook Catalogues sent free to inti'iidmir purchasLrs Garlnk and Cranwell, C'tv II ill Arndc Oni'on-etrpcr An.Unnd