ORANGES A LUXURY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22538, 1 October 1936, Page 12

ORANGES A LUXURY

THE CONTROL POLICY NEW SYSTEM DEMANDED RELATIONS WITH AUSTRALIA It is so long since oranges could be bought in New Zealand at a reasonable price that many people now consider four to six a shilling as a normal standard. Such "value" is absurd. It is the result of a policy which creates scarcity. The history of the matter is one of pitiable political ineptitude on both sides of the Tasman. First Australia placed an embargo on New Zealand potatoes to protect its own growers, New Zealand eventually placed an embargo on Australian potatoes and citrus fruit as a reprisal. In regard to potatoes, there was an official fictional excuse of disease. . Unable to secure elsewhere the oranges the Dominion required, the New Zealand Government sanctioned a controlled import from South Australia. The price of the fruit has always made it a luxury beyond the reach of people of average income for regular consumption, which is strongly advised for children. Hew South Wales Supply South Australia was favoured because that State is free from' Mediterranean fly New Zealand placed great importance upon keeping clear of this pest because a fruit trade with the United States could not be built up if it existed in the Dominion. Tariffs, however, have precluded all possibility of New Zealand exporting fruit to the United States.

The future prospect of such a trade being negligible, it has been suggested that New Zealand should take full liberty to import oranges from other Australian States. There is no reason to doubt the statement that if New Zealand had access to the supplies of New South Wales, where the greater part of the Commonwealth's citrus industry is located, oranges could be retailed here at from one shilling to eighteeupence a dozen, and mandarins, now a rarity, at from sixpence to one shilling a dozen. There is little likelihood, however, that to secure a much-enlarged market for oranges in New Zealand the Commonwealth Government would wipe out the potato embargo. Potatoes and Politics

Such a course would give embarrassment in their constituencies to a number of members of the Government, including the Prime Minister himself. It is possible that the Australian potato market may not offer frequent advantages to New Zealand, for tariff and freight raise formidable obstacles for the greater part of the year. Nevertheless the Government with fairly good reason may consider that Australia must respond to any broadening of our orange market.

The idea is growing on this side of the Tasman that the New Zealand Government, should abandon the thought of opening an apple and pear trade in the United States and permit an unrestricted import of oranges from Australia. In such an event oranges would soon drop to one-half their present price. At the same time it is suggested that if the Commonwealth still holds to the potato embargo. New Zea.land should boldly transfer its reprisal to certain manufactured goods. Transferring Bargaining Power

Action of this kind may strike the average citizen in both Australia and New Zealand as absurdly primitive, but in view of the limitations of Parliamentary capacity and tonnage, perhaps it may have to be endured as a stop toward common sense in trade. The urgent question of the moment is that New Zealand should have oranges at a price within the reach of wage-earners. Every child should be able to have an orange frequently. The Government would be applauded if it ended import control and permitted supplies from New South Wales. If the potato troubles continued, it could impose its bargaining power elsewhere. The protection of Cook Island growers has been mentioned. Obviously there can be no protection on a level indicated by the four-to-six-a-shilling rato. -