CHAPTER IV. FROM OVERSEAS PASTURES TO
BRITISH PORTS.
It is a long journey from the wide open spaces of the southern
hemisphere to the table of the British consumer. Starting from
the pastures, the stock is drafted either to sales-yards, or direct
from the farms to the freezing-works. Stock bought at sales-
yards are usually drafted at once to the works, but stock bought
on farms await instructions as to the time of forwarding. On
arriving at the works, the stock is usually rested in adjacent
paddocks before being killed. The dressed and weighed carcases
pass to a cooling chamber, where they hang for a day in order
that all body heat escapes before they pass into the refrigerating
chamber. Government Veterinary Inspectors examine all stock
before killing and after dressing; every carcase passed fit for
human consumption carries a certificate in the form of a tag
which is fastened to it and remains attached until the carcase
reaches the market in this country. After being frozen, the
carcases are bagged” in cotton webbing—beef being also
wrapped in hessian— and piled in a cold store attached to the
freezing works where they remain until they are placed in the
refrigerated holds of steamers bound for British ports. Chilled
beef is not piled but hung both in store and ship. The control
of these operations is the function of the companies which own
the freezing works. Sometimes these companies have their own
organisation for handling the meat on arrival here; sometimes
they work through agents. Then again there are large importing
firms which do not own freezing works but operate on the
British market on their own account and obtain their suplies
direct from overseas.
The Dominion (i.e., the Australian and New Zealand) trade,
and the South American trade are, however, distinct in their
trading conditions and methods. Each has its own characteristic
rrganisation and, for clearness, each is separately described.
(i) Dominion Trade.— There are several classes of firms
engaged in the Australian and New Zealand meat trade. Roughly
they may be classified as follows :—
(1) British firms owning works in the Dominions and
possessing their own selling organisation or wholesale
depots in this country.
(2) Dominion firms owning works, with agencies in this
country.
(3) Farmers’ co-operative works in the Dominions having
agents in this country.
(4) Operators in both countries who do not own works.
Before the meat-works in the Dominion open, they must
have a certain head of stock at their command. In some cases,
the works have their own farms. All the works have expert
