ROUGH HANDLING OF FRUIT

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LII, Issue 171, 17 July 1918, Page 4

ROUGH HANDLING OF FRUIT

(GROWERS' LOSSES,

A CONFERENCE TO. BE HELD"

Following on a resolution passed at the last meeting of the Stoke Fruitgrowers' Association, Mr' Shelton, secretary of the New Zealand Fruitgrowers' Federation, has arranged a conference to consider the, question of VW rough, handling of fruit. The conference will be held in Wellington on August 7th, when the Federation directors will be in meeting, and amongst those who will attend are represent*tivea of fruitgrowers, camera,, raiiwaymofl, watersider workers, and f'*!*'• erers. For many years copplau** nave been made of the rough handling of fruit en route to market, and from time to time these have, been, ventilated at fruitgrowers' meetings flowed by representations to those - controlling transit. Little improvement, hpweveT, has 'been aecmred,\ared to-day shs losses caused growers through damage* to fruit during transit to -market- ai« greater than ever. Every shipper of fruit is familiar with the adviuo from agent or purchaser of so 'many;., cases' in a consignment being ullaged or the contents seriously deteriorated- through rough usage. The matter has agauft become so acute that the Stoke. Ajfe»ciation decided to make a strong" 'eftdeavour to secure an improvement ii* the coinditnons of <handldhg and theFederation has promptly' taken up the matter with the result, that all parti?.*' concerned in the handling -of the fruit from the time it leave© the grower, tin it reaches the fruiterer are to ment in conference. The inclusion of *epr«sentatives of the transporters is a,he** departure, but a wise one, as it "*?£'' bring them in close touch with tho?» whose interests under present cond;; tions are adversely affected. In th •

district the greatest care as- «xercis»< in the orchard and packing shed > handling the fruit, but of what avail • it when tihe cases are: rough handlec during transit to market? •have been common "where fruit has I - '"'! the most scandalous.".treatment. Il i* not that those handling it "delight i>> damaging this paretic jilar kind of '-•l.'go; rather it ds carieiessiiess or thbuc: • leesness. it is stated. that in stackh. cases in a hold, the custom ?-> build up Iby standing oh the. low tiers. Fancy . a hefty { , watersidei- of •- Is stone,. -with the additional -weight of a bushel case pi apples; using these lov'«r tiers as a stepping; stone! Smrll wonder that agents 'that "fruit cxxhsiderab, bruised." •'..."£• { v

Tasmania, hag this year taken up tip' question of rough J : . handling of f<ui with great determination. A conft-"-*nce, similar to that now arranged -itv Wellington, w".-= held,;, at which <>« secretary of the: Hobkrt Wiater"V-." Workers' Union said;the-members .** "'\ only top anxious to meet "the wishe- . the fruitgrowers. - He also expresrT" thd opinion that a mistake was> ms»dt' in stacking fruit eight and ten cases high. A certain amount •of roiK'h handling was inevitable when cases rh n .d\ tc !b'e stacked 6© nigh. The secretr-v.l added that the members were out lu ne't> the industry along. ■Commenting on the subject the T>""mnnian Fruitgrower states :—"ln t'y

opinion of some—paradoxical as ?" sounds—Tasmanian apples would ren r i. thoiv destination in a great deal bet 4 <>r condition were theyi packed- into fr.vler boxes. These jstudehts of stevedo.? psi'choloffy assert that the ' case* nvid never the contents of them are the >r ;'»-

'ject of a stevedore's solicitude; 'lie claims the right of handling »m>' package according' to its outwaM appearance ;' that' the pathos-- of such • •■: ; - peala aa "Eggs" or "Glass with care" is' entirely lost , upon him—in * fine) tl 1 at . it is in his chivalrous nature to bo rough with the strong and' gent> fi'h the weak. This is no niere theory a .principle .that has ;dpng' been 7succf- r : fully acted Jupon by American frv'< snippers, who, employ quite light, dc;'' cafe pine box«sj send their, 'apples all over the world in them and ~ receive from every quarter fine compliments UPon the good condition, in which fis fruty reaches- tih* markets. Before V-e delicate box could be introduced i'-i the inter-State fruit trade of Austrdn. not only would the transport work' * • have to greatly reform their manner ■<. f working but a radical change would :'■"• required in the way-of filling up t Vjl '

holds. Frail packages with the renounced {bulge, so dear- to -the. would farp very ill in *'•" close-packed masses -they, go in oii the Sydney boats."