Strike effect on fruit lessens

Press, 21 February 1978, Page 6

Strike effect on fruit lessens

In spite of indications last week that the railway strike was creating a backlog of fruit in the Christchurch markets, and causing a fall in prices, it is now having very little effect and prices have once again firmed. The effect of the strike last week was felt largely by stone-fruit growers in Central Otago and tomato growers in Nelson. However, Central Otago’s stone-fruit season has now passed its flush and less fruit is being sent to the markets. What is being sent can now be absorbed by South Island markets only. But Nelson tomato growers are still feeling the pinch as prices remain low because of an over-supply in the markets. In the Christchurch markets yesterday, the orices for stone fruit had once again firmed and demand remains strong.

“The stone fruit season in Central Otago was far more advanced than most people realised. If this situation had occurred two weeks ago, the

growers would have been badly affected,” said the manager of Macfarlane and Growers, Ltd (Mr A. Cahill). However, the strike has affected the availability of melons and kumaras at the Christchurch markets. The South Island depends largely on North Island growers for supplies of these vegetables, but there were, none for sale yesterday. Surface mail to the North Island, which has been disrupted by the strike, is creating a backlog in Christchurch.

Only air mail is being sent to the North Island, this having resulted in a pile-up of surface mail in Christchurch. Early yesterday morning, the Post Office reported a backlog of 440 bags of first-class mail and 1450 bags of secondclass mail and parcels. Some of this mail has been loaded into railway waggons lying idle at the railway station. The rest has been put into crates and stored at the Post Office’s parcel depot in Moorhouse Avenue.