Meat Trade

MEAT TRADE. The principal meat-exporting countries are Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and Uruguay. The total Brazil exported 24,183 tons of beef in 1927. Canada exports live cattle and sheep to the United States and in 1927 also sent 22,979 tons of beef to that country. To Great Britain in the same year she sent 8,263 head of cattle and 26o tons of frozen meat. South Africa is developing an export trade in beef and in 1927 shipped 6,044 tons, mostly to Italy. The quantity in that year was reduced by the effect of drought ; in 1926 it reached 15,184 tons. Patagonia is an exporter of mutton and lamb and in 1927 shipped 27,76o tons.

The total quantity of frozen and chilled meat exported from all sources in 1927 is calculated at 1,256,900 tons. Of this quan tity about one-fifth was produced in the British dominions and practically all the remainder in South America.

The total quantity imported into Great Britain and Ireland in 1927 was 949,304 tons, leaving about 300,00o tons, for all other importing countries.

English Meat Production.

It appears on the face of it, anomalous that while the quantity of meat imported into Great Britain is known, the quantity produced in Great Britain is un known, and can only be approximately estimated. The reason, however, is obvious. The annual agricultural returns give the number of cattle and sheep in the country on a given day, but there are no returns of the number slaughtered in the course of the year, or of the quantity of meat which was thus produced.

The average numbers of animals sold for slaughter off farms in 1926-27 were estimated as:—cattle 1,285,000, calves 834,000, sheep and lambs 5,588,000 ; and the meat produced as—beef 360,250 tons, veal 32,400 tons, mutton and lamb 129,75o tons, making a total of 522,400 tons.

The following table shows the estimated total consumption in Great Britain and Ireland for the years 1922 and 1927, respec tively :— It will be seen that in 45% of the beef and 471% of the mutton and lamb consumed were imported.

British Imports.

The total imports of meat in 1927 into Great Britain and Ireland, including carcasses of cattle imported alive, amounted to 949,304 tons. The quantities received from

each of the main sources of supply are shown below :— Of the total imports of beef 77% is "chilled" and the remainder frozen, while all mutton and lamb comes in a frozen state.

It should be added that there is a considerable importation of tinned or canned beef and mutton. This is distinct from what is commonly termed the "meat trade" and is subject to different commercial conditions. In 1927 the imports of tinned or canned beef amounted to 52,025 tons and tinned or canned mutton and lamb to 2,535 tons.

The International Meat Trade.—The development of the vast commercial organization by which some 1-1 million tons of meat are collected, transported across the sea, and distributed, has taken place in little more than fifty years.

The American people were first confronted with their own con tinental problem and from the solution of this came the develop ment of a meat export trade. In the development of the in ternal trade there were three stages. During the early settlement of the United States and down to about 185o conditions were similar, all over the country, to those prevailing to-day in Great Britain where meat is produced near the centres of population. As the eastern States became more thickly populated cattle-raising moved west and droving to market became general, as in Great Britain. When the railway system rapidly developed the trade was organized and centralized at a few great collecting and dis tributing centres, of which Chicago was chief. The "packing in dustry" originated in America long previously when pork was "packed" in barrels for the West Indies. The term "packing-house products" or "packed products" thus came into use and was applied to all dressed meat. At first the industry was carried on only in the winter months but the artificial creation of winter con ditions in the packing-houses during the hot summer months en abled them to continue operations without interruption through out the year.