Day 077 - 25 Jan 95 - Page 71
1 I take it?
2 A. Yes.
3
4 Q. "If we deliver directly to the factory these levels will be
5 reduced by 3 pence per pound"?
6 A. Yes.
7
8 Q. Why were you asking at this date about Australian beef, do
9 you remember?
10 A. Well, because I had begun to get signals that
11 McDonald's did not want me to bring this balance sheet in
12 from Brazil.
13
14 Q. Signals from McDonald's?
15 A. Yes.
16
17 Q. With whom in McDonald's were you in contact on this
18 question?
19 A. A gentleman by the name of Mr. Bob Rhea.
20
21 Q. Then there is another paragraph, I will read it out: "The
22 Australian price is based on the North American/Japanese
23 market and under normal circumstances we would not consider
24 bringing it to the UK. Were you to insist we would not be
25 able to ship until June which would mean sailing too close
26 to the wind in view of the licence expiration date, 30th
27 July."
28
29 Did McDonald's at this date, 3rd May 1983, tell you what
30 their concerns were about taking the meat from Brazil?
31 A. Yes, I was told about correspondence and a meeting
32 between the principal of the Canadian company and a senior
33 gentleman.
34
35 Q. I will finish with this letter and then we will turn to
36 that. The penultimate paragraph -- I think it is Mr. Ian
37 Kelly Weddel, is it?
38 A. Yes.
39
40 Q. He writes: "The Brazilian beef is slaughtered and deboned
41 in our own works under permanent veterinary supervision.
42 Obviously the plant has full EEC status." Did you or did
43 you not already know that when you wrote that letter?
44 A. I knew it when Ian wrote that letter to me.
45
46 Q. He says or somebody says on page 9, which is a minute of a
47 meeting on 9th May, I am only concerned with the first
48 numbered paragraph, "The product will be in England
49 approximately 9th June 1983." Do you see that?
50 A. Yes.
51
52 Q. Then on page 10, this is a letter from you, it is a copy,
53 it is not a copy of the original, it is copy you must have
54 kept, of 13th May to Mr. Bob Rhea. Do you see that?
55 A. Yes.
56
57 Q. You say: "We have been allocated our first 24 tonnes as an
58 experiment of balance sheet beef", and so on and so forth.
59 You say it is an accumulation of four years' effort?
60 A. Yes.
