The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-11-07
The Beef Demand From Europe.
 Prnvidnnnn Iournnll

|
 our beef exports, and observe the rath-
 CT threatening aspect which that trade
 presents at the present time. The Idea
 has prevailed for some time that there
 was at least one staple product on which other nations could not undersell
 us. That article is beef. but 1t is fast becoming doubtful whether we can longer expect 1t to rule the market abroad. The ground for that opinion exists in the fact that for two years our exports of both refrigerated and live beef have been in descending ratio. falling, 1t is true, more slowly than they increased up to 1889 and 1850. but still plainly decreasing. How can that be. when the United States IS In full control of the market, at least Tor refrigerated beef, and when the ad- vantage of propinquity is attached to that or being the first conner? It is because Australia and that rival of ours in other products, Argentina, are sending beef to the same markets that we are, and are especially fighting to obtain a foothold for their product in the United Kingdom.
 Up to 1885 the average amount of fresh or refrigerated beef exported from this country seldom rose above a hundred million pounds. In 1889, how ever, the amount had reached 137. s59,- 3sl pounds. and there was a steady and mid ;, tbn from that year until 1892. when the amount reached 22O,554,s17 pounds. In 1893 there was a fall to 08,294, ,724 pounds. and last year the amount was but 193,S32,99 pounds Cattle for slaughter to the number of 1855, 800 were exported in 1885, and 14O,2OS in 1888. In the next two years there was jump of a remarkable charac- ter in the figures. so that in 1890 the total was 372.69O head. It reached maximum in 1892. when the figure was 3S9.4 .4S0. But the effect of the new supply of refrigerated meat show ed itself in 1893, when the number dropped to 2S9,24O head, and although 1t picked up in 1894 the figure was then but 363,535. It might be asked if 1t is safe to accept these changes in 1 such articles of export as permanent on the evidence afforded by a record of, only two years. For an answer the questioner should turn to the printed to our beef exporters issued by the agricultural department. He may note. too. that as the meat and live cattle trade grew rapidly in at- taining it's present proportions, any falling off in the value, of the exports must be significant. ,r And it is to be borne in mind that practically all this cattle and beef bus mess has bsen done with the United Itis, therefore easy; for rivals I to attack us, since we have taught Brit ish meat eaters to look abroad for DOT ton of their supply of beef, and our ri- vals in that market need only take their stand along side of us to compete for a smaller or larger share of this trade In other words, the United States has done the, experimenting. and now it; finds o$her beef gaisers .reaping the ad- vantage of ;@ enterprise, These new. coniers are in. every case Englishmen,i and good business men, and as English men at any rate they have great ad- vantage over, us, if they are only able to compete in, the open market. So far they have shown themselves competent to manage that part of the business only | too we'll Special refrigeratipg vessels have been built for the trade, and, with; in a year ana, s half cold storage ware houses have been erected at seVeral places in England, notably at Smith, field, where there is a capacity for 1OO,- 900 carcasses.. Not many months; ago these people shipped quantity of. | their product to Vienna for an experi-i ment, and they are also seeking con- sumers in Geramny, Spain and Italy. Their ability Ito meet us on an even footing almost anywhere is therefore demonstrated, for the United States is selling almost no beef abroad except in | Great Britain. Another competitor is also coming into the field soon, namely, and this again is particularly ominous.
 It is a sign of the changed condition of the foreign market that a number of exporters in this country have re- gently been planning to do more with the live cattle trade than they have yet done with it. The ,endeavor has been made to hold the new market with l living animals, if not with animal pro- ducts, and the fact that we could ship | animals to Europe a great deal more l easily than either Australia or Argen- tina can do it has assisted the trade. Canada has also gone into that method l of supply to a considerable degree. | But, as our experience with Germany shove, the live cattle, trade is doubt | full element in commerce. Canada has ! found it so also. !, At the present time l Canadian cattle must be slaughtered as | soon as they arrive in Great Britain; l In our case g. rival commercial nationi Germany, has been no more unreason- | able with Americanbeef exporters than the imperial government of the United | Kingdom has been with the exporters | hailing from one of its own coloniesi It would seem that the future of Can- | ada's meat trade must depend either | 5n keeping an impossibly perfect in- spection system in operation all the time or on the refrigerator method. In respect to the United States, the outlook is practically the same, and | our beef exports must see the situa- tion in that way or lose the control of | the British market within a. short time.
 
 May Lead to a Crisis. .n |