BANANA PRICES

Grey River Argus, 30 April 1938, Page 4

BANANA PRICES

MARKETING DEPT. POLICY. WELLINGTON, April 27. The control of banana imports now being instituted by the Internal Mar- ■ keting Department was the subject of comment, by the Director of Interna) 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 the public, as it has been to the trade, that although the Government indicates to brokers the price which they consider should bo 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 Nev/ Zealand European Retail Fruiterers’ Association, in drawing public attention to the disparity between the prices indicated by the department’s supervisor ■at the wharf, and those later obtained at auction, have chosen to ignore the circumstances of this particular case. For the Matua shipment, the maximum price indicated was 17s, 16s, and 14s, acording to brand and grade, and the fruit was disposed of at approximately these prices. The bananas which brought 30s the following day had been rushed through the ripening process in landing in ordei - to supply a starved market. ‘Moreover, the total qualitiy 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, disparity in prices in Wellington, said Mr Picot. For the Maui Pomare shipment a maximum of 19s for green Samoans and 16s for green Niues had been indicated. From the experience gained in handling the initial shipments, he fully expected that the department 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.