WAR EXTENDS ON FRUIT AND VEGETABLE FRONT

Grey River Argus, 18 February 1949, Page 4

WAR EXTENDS ON FRUIT AND VEGETABLE FRONT

Retailers in Several Centres Adopt Ban Grocers Report Direct Sales Satisfactory P.A. WELLINGTON, February 17. Fresh vegetables, and smaller quantities of fruit than the marts offer, will be sold in Wellington to-morrow, on a competitive basis as between the growers and the retailers. East night the Wellington civic authorities allotted stands from which to sell produce to the public' from trucks of the growers of fruit and vegetables, whose supplies are boycotted by retailers as a protest against the charge of 6d for containers. The growers, whose produce has been banned by the retailers, because of the 6d container charge dispute, will sell from trucks in three city stands. STOCKS DWINDLE The retailers, with dwindling stocks, expect to be able to supply customers with fresh vegetables tomorrow.

If the ban continues, the retailers are likely to be without fresh vegetables on Monday. The growers now plan to extend their sales to the suburban areas. WOMEN TO HELP

Mr B. V. Cooksley, the president of the Commercial Growers of New Zealand, said that the president of a Women’s Organisation in Lower Hutt had offered to arrange for women to operate stands when they could be set up there. The growers, say that they will operate the stands as long as the ban continues. To-day the growers launched an advertising campaign. RETAILERS DETERMINED The retailers, on the other hand, are determined not to buy any produce with the container charges added. The secretary of the Retail Fruiterers' and Greengrocers’ Association, Mr S. Chesney, said that he would lodge a protest with the Health Department. on the ground that the sale of the produce from the open trucks would be a breach of the regulations. GROWERS’ POLICY Mr Cooksley said that the growers were united in their action. Steps would be taken to ensure that attempts shall not be made by retailers to buy direct from any grower without container charges. His organisation, he said, would also see that the produce was not diverted to the retailers, instead of to the marts and to the growers’ stands, while the retailers adopted their present'attitude. There are no signs of an early settlement. HAVE OHAKUNE GROWERS CAPITULATED? Confidence was expressed by the retailers’ secretary, Mr Chesney. He said that he had been in telephone communication with the national president of the Retailers’ Federation, Mr I. B. Junkers, of Auckland, who had told him that the growers there were showing a tendency to weaken. According to this advice, he said, growers in Oha.kune had instructed their Auckland brokers to sell without the container charges. It was possible, Mr Chesney said, that Wellington might be supplied through Auckland with containerfree produce some time next week. YESTERDAY’S SALES The general manager of the New Zealand Fruit Growers’ Federation, Mr A. Osborne, in a statement tonight, said that the results of the sales at the markets to-day were most satisfactory, and particularly from the point of view of the housewives’ support. Reports from Auckland and from Christchurch had indicated that similar support has been given. Passing It On ! WELLINGTON, February 17. “It is ridiculous for the retail trade to maintain that it could not recover the cost of the containers in its retail selling prices”, said the general manager of the New Zealand Fruitgrowers’ Federation. Mr A. Osborne, in a statement. He added that the cost had been allowed for in the past under the operation of selling prices, and, as ceiling prices did not now apply, it was evident that the retailers still had no bar to the recovery of these charges. Mr Osborne said the fruitgrowers Would oppose strenuously any attempt by the retail trade to prevent housewives from obtaining their full requirements of fresh fruit. Retailers Take Up Ban in More Places P.A. WELLINGTON, February 17. At. Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Napier, Christchurch and other centres fruit and vegetable retailers to-dqy put a ban on fruit offered in ■containers with the charge of 6d. PALMERSTON NORTH, Feb. 17. Retailers here to-day boycotted all frvit and vegetables in the local marts in respect of which container charges were made. While it is not expected that consumers will be more than lightly affected over the week-end in view of the heavy stocks held by retailers. an extension of the boycott into next week would be serious, according to the Retail Fruiterers’ Association.

Greymouth fruit retailors yesterday stated that no action along the lines of that taken in the main centres was contemplated regarding the dispute over payment for containers for fruit, and no boycott is likely in this district. w Fruit wholesalers in this district have been passing the container charge on to the retailers. Retailers, however, contend that the charge should be treated as part of the wholesaler’s overhead, just as the use of paper bags is considered a charge on the retailer’s overhead expenses.