The Hawaiian gazette., 1916-07-18
MEAT PRODUCTION
IS SAILING down
United States Imports Almost As
Much As It Exports IN
Normal Times
Meat Supply Bears important
Relation To Cost OF
Living

1hat meat production has not kept
pace with the increase Tin population
and that it's failure to do SO, combined
with increased cost Cf production and
diminished purchasing power Of the
money unit, has contributed to higher
prices not only in the United States
hut all over the world is stated in Part
j Of the exhaustive report on the meat
situation in the preparation of which
specialists Of the L. s. department Of
agriculture have been engaged for some
time. g"
This country il is said is participant.
ing in n w0rld-wide movement and il
is not expected that the situation will
undergo any radical change in the i'm
medinte future. On the other hand, IL
is believed that there will be n gradual
growth and expansion in the worlds
production of beef, mutton, and pork
which may or may not equal the rate
OF increase of the meat-eating popula-
ton.
In America this gradual expansion
appears to have begun already. Be
tween 1907 and 1913 there was a mark.
ed decline in the number Of cattle in
the country but in the last two years
this has not only stopped but has given
way to perceptible increase. The esti.
mated number on farms and ranges ON
January 1, 1916, 81, 4iI,000, is, how
ever, still much, below the correspond
ing figure for 1907, 1854 900.
Hogs Arc Increasing
With the exception Of temporary
checks due TO losses from hog cholera,
there has been in recent years persis-
tent increase in the production Of
swine. On January !, 1916, the number
tn the country was estimated at 6S,000,-
900 as compared with 5S,200,000 in
April, 1910. On tho other hand, the
number of sheep declined during this
period from 525O0,000 in 1910 to 49,
200, 900 in 1915. w. AS the decrease, how
ever, is not sufficient to Offset the in.
crease in cattle and sk zine, il may be
said that the total production of meat
in the United States is increasing but
that this increase is not yet proportion
tic TO the grow tn in population. gs, ..s-
The available supply of meat would
he much greater if il were not for the
enormous losses caused by disease and
exposure. Since lB0O, IL is estimated
that from 100000 to l,475, 600 cattle
have died each, year from disease and
from 100000 to 100000 from exposure,
With sheep, the losses from disease
have been about the same, but from ex-
posture much larger. II a' ..A.t...r
With, swine the relative prevalence
IF hog cholera il, perhaps the determin.
ing factor in the annual loss. In 1894
this was as low as 100000, bnt in
1914 it amounted to 100000. If these
100000 hogs had been saved, il is said.
they would have produced enough meat
to furnish every family in the United
states with, 40 pounds of pork. tt.Ta
We Eat Most Meat i + e
Despite these facts the United States
cmai"s the @greatcst meat eating as
ell us the greatest meat producing ma.
ion in the world. Approximately
twice as much meat is consumed in this
Ountry as in Germany before the war
nd the total normal consumption In
Russia, Great Britain and France is less
han in Germany. The per capita con.
sumption is also far greater in this
Ountry than anywhere else with the ex-
cePtion of Australia and New Zealand.
Exports now consist largely of pork
md pork products and these are de.
lived TO great extent from corn. In
he hscai years l0l4S and 1918 We i'm.
'ortcd more fresh, chilled, and frozen
reef and mutton than we exported, and
more beef of all descriptions was inn
,orted in 1914, than was exported III
his limited respect we have Joined. the
;reht majority. Practically the whole
If the world 3 export trade in meat is
naihtained by nine cOuntries-.Argen-
Tina, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Mex
l"o, under normal conditions, New Zea-
land, the United States and Uruguay.