EXPORT OF FRUIT TO LONDON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9084, 19 June 1888, Page 6

EXPORT OF FRUIT TO LONDON.

A good deal of interest has been excited of late respecting the probable chances of success attending the export of the hardier sorts of fruit from North New Zealand to London. Those familiar with the London markets have always asserted that at certain periods of the year fruit might be exported from here to the London market with every prospecb of obtaining satisfactory returns, provided that suitable varieties were selected, and care taken in landing the fruit in good condition. Experimental efforte have been in progress in Victoria for some time past in the same direction, and the following account of Mr. J. Lang's exportations, as recorded in the Australasian, cannot fail to be of interest to all engaged in fruit culture in North New Zealand. Our contemporary says :— Mr. J. Lang, the well-known Harcourt fruit-grower, has succeeded in placing Victorian fruit on the London market with very satisfactory results, and some description of hie orchard, the class of fruit which he exports, and his methods of picking and packing, will be interesting in view of the development of the trade in which he has been aa enterprising pioneer. His property lies in an amphitheatre of heavily timbered granite hills, and lies by the Sandhurst railway a short distance beyond the Harcourt station, at an altitude of I2ooffc above the level of the sea. Fully 40 acres have been transformed into an orchard, and the fruits principally grown by Mr. Lang are apples, pears, plums, and peaches, comparatively little attention having been paid to viticulture. The soil is of that greyish sandy character peculiar to the granite country, and at a depth of about 18in a clay subsoil is found. The hundreds of trees which constitute the orchard are planted 18ft apart, and, with the oxception of a very small number, they are strong and healthful. So prolific are some of the varieties of apples that as much as 18 bushels have been gathered from a single tree of ten years of age. Some idea of the magnitude of Mr, Lang's cultivation may be gathered when it is stated that laab year he despatched over 3000 cases of fruit, or between 75 and 80 tons in weight. For some years past Mr. Lang has been experimenting in exporting apples and pears to England. On several occasions two or three cases of these fruits were sont to London, where they arrived in excellent order. One case of apples which was forwarded fco the Royal Horticultural Society, South Kensington, was in such a state of preservation that a silver medel was awarded to Mr. Lang ; and in a letter acknowledging the receipt of the fruit, the secretary wrote : —" Your apples have arrived in splendid order. They are greatly admired, and kept in good condition for a considerable length of time after they wore unpackod." In viow of the successful introduction of Victorian fruit at tho Colonial and Indian Exhibition in London, Mr. Lang , determined to enter more largely upon the export trade. He corresponded with the Army and Navy Auxiliary Co-operative Supply (Limited), and the manager of that extensive catering establishment wrote to the effect that they would purchase 50 cases (i.e., 40 of apples and 10 of pears) every fortnight ; and Mr. B. G. Berry, the wellknown fruit merchant of London, has also entered into arrangements with Mr. Lang for periodical consignments. During the month of March Mr. Lang despatched 250 cases of fruit—viz., 40 of apples and 10 of pears—per the P. and O. s.s. Victoria on the sth, and of 170 applee and of 30 pears by the Orient liner Iberia on the 30th. Mr. Lang experioces some difficulty with theshippingagentsinforwardinghis consignments. Only the new boats of the P. and O. are fitted with the cooling chamber, while all the Orient boats have that essential accommodation. Shippers, however, will not receive fruit for transmission unlestfthere be a sufficient quantity to fill the chamber.

The process of picking and packing adopted by Mr. Lang differs materially from that observed by exporters in other countries. Instead of " placing the picked fruit on perforated shelves in a cool and comparatively dark place, and wiping every fruit with flannel or a clean linen cloth, as all fruits are liable to sweat," as recommended by Mr. Morris, M.A.L.F. S., in hie recent report, he gathers the fruits when just on tne turn of maturity, and having placed them on ordinary wooden shelves in a storeroom for from a week to a fortnight, the process of packing is commenced, the fruite bearing their full bloom as when picked from the trees. The size, material, and construction of the cases, together with the mode of packing, are ftluo materially different from the suggestions offered by Mr. Morris. That gentleman writes :—

" The packing cases ought to be manufactured of strong, not too porous, thin and light boards, which are simply nailed together. The size used for the first trial (14tn x 12in x sin) will suit the purpose, but 20in x 15in x 6in would be moro handy, and hold a larger quantity, say, 561b, or 10 to 15 dozen, according to the size of apples. At the bottom of tho case sheets of paper should be laid, lined with a thin layer of cotton wool or other soft material (hay and straw are likely to decay by the influence of moisture), and then again a sheet of paper. Every fruit is wrapped up in tissue paper. Then the apples are placed in the cases and pressed together as tightly as possible without injuring the fruit. The layers of apples should be separated by double sheets of paper, and must be constantly pressed down. Over tho last layer, which may be raised about one-quarter of an inch above the margin of the case, a thin layer of cotton wool should be placed, after which the lid may be nailed on." Mr. Lang, however, has had pine cases, of single compartment, made specially to order, the interior surface being sawn very smoothly, in order to prevent the fruit being bruised. The cases are 18in x 12in x 12in, the sides being Jin and end pieces lin thick. Both sides and ends aro singlo pieces of wood, the bottom and lid consisting of two pieces respectively. Great care is exercised both in picking and packing. In doinff the latter Mr. Lang puts a good layer of bookbinders' shavings on the bottom of the case, and the sides and ends aro lined with two thicknesses of ordinary printing paper. The fruit is then wrapped separately in strong tissue paper (which costs 6s 6d per ream), and the apples or pears thus enveloped are placed tior above tier in rows until the case is full. Another layer of bookbinders' shavings is then placed on the fruit, the lid put in position and firmly nailed down, after which the cases are ready for transport. Each case weighs on an average 51b, and will hold 361b of apples, averaging from 80 to 120, according to the size of fruit, and 401b of pears. At the present time the Victorian market price for the class of apples exported is about 6s per case ; but as they are varieties which will keep well, Mr. Lang, had he not been exporting, would not sell them for about three months, when from 8s to 9s per case could be obtained. The cost of transit from the orchard to the steamers is Hβ per ton, and the freight from Melbourne to the consigners £4 10s per ton,, or 28 cases, which occupy 40 cubic feet in the cooling chamber provided in the steamers. The total coet from orchard to the seller in London is, therefore, a fraction over 3e Id per case, or lfd per pound. This figure is applicable to the trade with the Army and Navy Auxiliary Co-operativo Supply there being no agent's or intermediate charges ; but the average cost is somewhat higher in relation to the consignments to Mr. B. G. Berry. As this is the first year that Mr. Langhas exported any considerable quantity of fruit, he is not in a position to state what profits will be realised f.'n connection with the retail trade. He ia perfectly satisfied, howover, with the inducements offered by tho London merchants. The prices obtained in the London market during the past two years for sound Australian grown fruit have been for apples from 2d to 6d each, and for pears from 2d to Is 6d each, or from £1 5s to £1 10s for the former, and an average of from £1 10s to £2 per case for the latter fruit, which loaves an excellent margin of profifc. The Varieties exported by Mr. Lang are :—Apples—Perfection, a mediumsized blight red dessert, a colonial seedling and bright proof ; Northern Spy, a highly coloured dessert; Cleopatra, a handsome clear yellow; London Pippin, a highly coloured and large fruit; Munro's Favourite, a large yellow flushed with red, a splendid cooking variety; Wellington Pippin, a large fruit of the cooking variety ; Stone Pippin, cooking; Rymer, a fruit suitable for either dessert or cooking; J Reinette du Canada, of regular shape and

very beautiful. Pears—Vicar of Winkfield, a luscious fruit of large size ; Triumph de Jodoigne, of great beauty; Josephin de Malines, .which are exceptionally large; and Eyewood, a good keeping fruit. As the English fruit season* does not commence until the end of June, there is a dearth of supply; except by importation, from the end of January till that date, or a period of four months.