FRUIT CANNING.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 5668, 16 August 1905, Page 3

FRUIT CANNING.

NEW ZEALAND AND CALIFORNIAN. TESTED BY EXPERTS. There was a gathering at the Agricultural Alusoum yesterday of about forty persons connected with the fruit industrv in Now Zealand, the occasion being the testing of samples of fruit canned in New Zealand as against fruit canned i*n California. __ UI Besides a number of gentlemen connected with the wholesale houses and packing compa-mes in the city, there were present Mr E. Basil .) ones, manager of the Eriruley Canning Factory, Hastings; Air Johns, president of the Auckland Fruitgrowers' Association, and Mr S. Xirkpatrick, of the well-known fruit-preserv-ing firm at Nelson. Air T. W. Kirk, Government Biologist, explained that as there was a good deal of second-grade Californian fruit on the Now Zealand market, people were apt to run away with the idea that that was the best California could produce. There wore samples on view, however, obtained in Londcrn, whore tho best of the Californian product was sent. Air W. Jaqucs, tho canning expert, had fifty-six samples of canned fruits from different New Zealand and Californian factories displayed on a table, and invited tho gathering to examine and sample them, and write their judgments on voting papers, which would be kept by the department for his guidance. It would ho unfair, lie said, in tlie present infant stale of tho industry, to declare anything in favour of any particular packers in New Zealand. All lie had called them together for was lo let them soo what was done in California, and what was alioady being done in New Zealand, and allow them to deduct from tlie comparison their own conclusions as to the possibilities of the industry in this colony. There were about a dozen New Zealand packers represented in tho exhibits.

About an hour was spent in examining and testing the samples, at the conclusion of which tho departmental oflicials thanked the experts for their attendance, and expressed the hope that the gathering would be for the good of the industry. Several of the visitors expressed their pleasure at the display, and tho prospects of fruit canning in New' Zealand.