TROPICAL FRUIT SHIPMENTS

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26514, 31 August 1951, Page 6

TROPICAL FRUIT SHIPMENTS

SUPPLIES FOR SOUTH ISLAND

“Fiji bananas which arrived in Lyttelton late last week on the Port Auckland, together with bananas from Fiji. Tonga, and Samoa, due this week in the Korowai, are being distributed to all South Island marketing centres,” said the manager of Fruit Distributors, Ltd. (Mr C. R. Walker), in a statement to “The Press” yesterday. "A portion of a shipment of pineapples from the Monowai arrived in Lyttelton on Wednesday, and the balance is due to-day.” he said. “These are being marketed In all main centres from Christchurch to Invercargill. “A further shipment of pineapples will be discharged at Picton during early September, and It is hoped that the same ship will carry the first of the Australian Valencia orange crop for South Island markets. “As far as is known this is the first time that Picton has been used for the discharge of an overseas shipment of fruit, and it marks a new venture on the part of the importers to avoid the costly delays which so frequently occur with coastal transhipment The innovation was made possible through the co-operation of the Department of Agriculture and the Railways Department. “The regular programme of pineapple arrivals has had the effect of steadying prices, so that current and future shipments may be expected to sell at moderate rates,” Mr Walker concluded.