Dunedin (ship) - Meat Industry

Meat Industry

New Zealand in the 1870s produced a vast amount of wool, but the wool market was low. In the United Kingdom, the rapidly expanding population had outrun the supply of local meat, leading to rapid increases in price. Live shipment was prohibitively expensive. New Zealand did export some canned meat, but this industry was in its infancy, and the product was popular in the Pacific islands, but less so in the mother country.

The first attempt to ship refrigerated meat was made when the Northam sailed from Australia to the UK in 1876, however the refrigeration machinery broke down en route and so the cargo was lost. Later that year chilled beef was sent from the United States to Britain (a shorter journey, at cooler, higher latitude), and although spoilage was high, this voyage provided some encouragement to the antipodean promoters of refrigeration. In 1877 the Steamers Le Frigorifique and Paraguay carried frozen mutton from Argentina to France, proving the concept, if not the economics. In 1879 the Strathleven, equipped with compression refrigeration, sailed from Sydney with 40 long tons (41 t) of frozen beef and mutton as a small part of her cargo, and this meat was found to be in good condition.