BANANA PRICES

Greymouth Evening Star, 28 April 1938, Page 9

BANANA PRICES

MARKETING DEPT. POLICY. [PEB TBESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON, April 27. The control of banana imports now being instituted by the Internal Marketing Department was the subject of comment by the Director of Internal Marketing, Mr. F. R. Picot. The object of the scheme, Mr. Picot said, was to keep the retail price of bananas at a reasonable level by regulating the supply according to the demand. The marketing department purchased bananas from exporting countries and was responsible for distribution throughout New Zealand to brokers, who disposed of them on commission. “It should be made quite clear to tho public, as it has been to the trade., that although the Government' indicates to brokers the price which they, consider should be obtained, the price of bananas is not fixed,” said Mr. Picot. “Some confusion has arisen in Auckland in the case of the recent Matua shipment. The New Zealand European Retail Fruiterers’ Association, in drawing public attention to the disparity between the prices indicated by tho department’s supervisor at the wharf, and those later obtained at auction, have chosen to ignore the circumstances of this parti<. uiar case. For the Matua shipment, the maximum price indicated was 17/ . 16and 14/-, according to brand and grade, and the fruit was disposed of at approximately these prices. The bananas which brought 30/- the following da/ had been rushed through the ripening process after landing in order to supply a starved market. Moreover, the total quantity involved at these prices was less than 100 cases, obviously a very small proportion of the total for the Auckland requirements of 11,000 cases.”

There had not been a similar dis parity in prices in Wellington, said Mr. Picot. For the Maui Pomare shipment a maximum of 19/- for green Samoans and 16/- for green Niues had been indicated. From the experience gained in handling the initial shipments, ho fully expected that the de partment should be able to keep prices on a fully supplied market at a reasonable and fairly constant level, not by fixing the prices, but by regulating the supply.