FRUIT MARKETING

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 49, 26 August 1930, Page 11

FRUIT MARKETING

MORE COMPLAINTS

FALSE PACKING ALLEGED

Tho inquiry into the marketing of fruit and vegetables by the Industries and Commerce Committee of. the House of Bcpresentatives_was continued today. Mr. G. C. .Slunns. (United, Boskill) presided,

William Kw'ok, a partner in the firm of Kwok Bros., Wellington, and presi-! dent of the Chinese Association, said 1 every season they hacl cause for com- j plaint against the Nolson tomato growers for short weight in boxes. The practice of false packing was to be found in cabbage, cauliflower, tomatoes, apples,; pears, peaches, and strawberries. He could say that false packing was never found in American fruits, and the same could bo. said of Australian ingThomas Arthur Osborne, a retail fruiterer in busines at 5467,; Adelaide road showed examples of fruit and vegetables he'had bought at the markets. He said that it was practically impossible for any person not in tho business to realise the amount of wastage there was ■ during the stone fruit eason,' and, if the good fruit which was saved was not disposed of quickly, it would also go bad.- He maintained that the fruit had been too ripe when packed, and considered that tho growers should be guided by officers of the Agricultural Department as to ■ the best and correct condition the fruit should b~ in before packing, according to the destination of the fruit. "It seems to me that there is a great deal of dishonest packing going on," said Mr. A. 23. Anseir (Boform, Chalmers), who asked the witness whether he had taken steps to get a redress. Mr. Osborne replied that they could not get any redress once tho fruifc had left the floor of the market. He had had the inspector in his premises time after time, and the inspector had admitted that there had been criminal packing, but was powerless-to -take action. ' ■■■•■■■• Tho Director of Horticulture, Mr. J. A. Campbell, said that the position as stated by the last witness" was not quite correct. A retailer could call an inspector to his shop, and if the inspector found that an unopened 'case had been dishonestly packed, he -would prosecute. So long as the case was unopened, it wasnot necessary that tho. examination should »ak© place on the auction-room floor. • TOO MANY BETAILEKS. Mr. S. W. House, a fruit grower of Mangere, Auckland, said, that he had been growing fruit for practically all Ins.life, and had also had a great deal of exeprienco with various systems of marketing. ' He :said that the Auckland growers believed in standardisation. In his opinion there "were too many retailers in the business, tho majority of them being like many fruit growers, possessing little or no knowledge of fruit itself. Consequently they had severe losses which could be avoided if they understood the commodity they were handling. Then again most of them.had very small shops at rents out of all-proportion to the amount of business thai- could bo expected,- with a poor display of fruit.: What was needed was plenty of- stock. By increasing their turnover retailers-, could i-cduce their selling prices, as their overhead, most of which was labour, would not be materially increased. . In answer to a question by Mr. Ansel], Mr. House .said- that he had no cause..- for '..'complaint . in; Jjis dealings .i-with auctioneers-.-;■ He-;himself had-not -come in. contact."with iany .-malpractices. -■.;.:■ Mr. -Q. A. Green, secretary of the Auckland Fruit Growers' Council, Ltd., said that'the growers had no objection to Earotonga arid other island tomatoes coming in during the oft' season, Juno to October. The islands could easily'-produce, more tropical fruits for the Now Zealand market. He considered that one of the causes of gluts and -.faniinci'vin-;; differenti districts was: that growers acted independently and shipped fruit on their own, without regard to the possibility of any particu-lar-market or others.who.might bo shipping there at that time. The organisation of growers for purely distributive purposes to market centres was badiy needed. If grading.was honest it would result in a.largely increased sale of fruit at reduced price to the consumer. In the opinion of many, cityregulations that demanded that fruit shops should have: glass fronts were a great hindrance, and should bo reremoved. He knew of ono shop with open front which used to sell well up to 500 eases a week, ordered from the open, window display. When the same shop was glassed in the sales dropped off at once. His council advocated a protection' on canned peas until the industry was established in the Dominion. They gave an undertaking that there would be no rise in price./-