ORANGE IMPORTS

Evening Post, Issue 66, 15 September 1936, Page 4

ORANGE IMPORTS

SOUTI+ AUSTRALIAN: SUPPLY

Mr. C. N. S.. Mueller, New Zealand representative of the Murray Citrus Growers* Co-operative Association, Adelaide, refers to the publication of an interview in "The Post" with General Heane, on the Australian citrus fruit trade with New Zealand. "His, remarks (said Mr. Mueller) came as a shock to me as one fully conve/sant; with the figures, costs, etc., of nvarketing citrus fruits in New Zealand, and, I should be glad if The Ft>st' will afford me the opportunity of correct-, iug some of his statements. I challenge; his statement of the 1932 total imports; from Australia of 223,631 bushels at! an estimated cost of £134,178 on the: basis of 12s. Both figures are incorrect.; i Thes« figures could be obtained; through the Customs Department, and would bft found to be quite different: froih General Hearie's figures. The facts are that in 1935 South Australia exported to New Zealand 181,760' bushels, costing £109,056, which was 41,871 bushels short of General; Heane's estimate compared with con-j trol in 1932, and for which New Zea-) land paid £25,122 less than in 1932, not; £12,653 more, as General Heane would; have it. General Heane persists, as he has done in Australia, in misstating an export case as 1 bushel instead of 1.42 bushelifc-j. ■ . ; :.. "It will be,- perhaps, of interest to; the public to know that one packing house in New South Wales, and for which General Heane will be speaking, exported to Wellington in 1932 approximately 10,000 bushels, and their gross average over the season was over 13s, to the retailer—this per bushel and not per export case.- My growers, immediately the embargo was instituted, changed over to the export case, which is a large one measuring, an average of 1.42 bushels, and based our charge accordingly. , , "We are prepared, however, to return to the standard bushel on the: same basis as New South Wales and market all the fruit New Zealand can take at 12s 6d landed at any direct port in New Zealand, this being the approximate basis of the prices we have received in New Zealand for the past four years- „• "Mr MacDermotVs statement calls for little comment (as it is mostly statistical).beyond the fact that desprte: I his estimate of our production we pro- ' duce half a million cases, and all New Zealand is ever likely to require. We are producing a type of Valencia orange today which is very upsetting to the old type, hence the anxiety in case we produce too many. "On the matter of our navel quality, that is now too well known to New Zealand to need elaboration, but it will perhaps be of - interest that we send weekly supplies to Sydney for ships' stores and Other discriminating buyers,, and this the centre of the vast supply* mentioned by General Heane."