THE NEW FRUIT REGULATIONS

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 149, 24 June 1908, Page 9

THE NEW FRUIT REGULATIONS

not satisfactory. ■-'certikied fruit condemned. - This morning a "Star" representative made inquiries of the Government port inspector, Mr. George Harneti, relative £o tie -working of the new regulations dealing with the importation of fruit. TJnder° these regulations, it is provided $at bo fruit shall be shipped to any .port in the Dominion from Australia Without an accompanying certificate stat"iiitrthe fruit has not been grown within a !! jnile of any pest infected orchard or district. ' i 1 Asked had there been any great falling off in the shipments of Australian fruit, j{r. Harnett replied that there had been a big decrease, and the Sydney shipments had fallen very considerably. The •(ride-spread growth of the fruit fly pest fo New South Wales made it difficult for any orchard to come within the exemption clause, and the consequence was ■that certificates of immunity from pest, and compliance with tbe New Zealand regulations, were hard to obtain. Further questioned as to whether the i jj eW regulations bad had the desired effect of stopping the export of infected fruit. Mr. Harnett replied that the manner in which the regulations were complied with could not be regarded as altogether satisfactory. Tasmanian shipments gave very little trouble, but of yesterdays shipment from Sydney several cases of mandarins, 25 case 3 of lemons, and 9S cases of pineapples had to be condemned and sent to the destructor. These consignments were all accompanied by the required certificate of exemption and soundness, but nevertheless had to be condemned because of fruit fly and scale. The fact that the recently imposed regulations are not having the desired effect, inasmuch as infected fruit continues to arrive in Auckland, is not to he regarded as entirely satisfactory, and proves that although covered by a certificate ti-om the place of export, it is nevertheless essential that the local Government inspector should be most careful, lest infected fruit should find its way on to the market. The new regulations have not yet been applied to island shipments.