PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 14155, 18 April 1916, Page 2

PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE.

DEALING WITH BY-PRODUCTS

A meeting of • fruitgrowers called for last evening- at Stoke to hear Mr. H. G. Hill aiuiMr. A. H. Mazure on matters connected with the apple growing industry, was well attended, and was stated to be the best meeting vet held in connection with the industry. Mr. A. P. Allport was voted to the chair and briefly introduced the _ speakers, also making a few observations us to the necessity of finding a profits ,■ means of utilising the second gn»ae fruit which w6ukl otherwise .orm^ down the price of first chss fnufc. PAST, PRESENT AND FC'IT-^-Mr H. 6. Hill said that he had chosen as his subject the "Past, Present and Future of the Industry, which ho considered an eminently suitable title. In the course of his canvass he had travelled 2,600 miles in placing the objects of -the proposed NelsonStoke Fruitgrowers Ltd., before the erchardists. One of .the difficulties to be faced was the want of knowledge by those engaged in the industry even in regard to the extent of the industry in this district itself. As an instance he had on his list, the most comprehensive that could be got, only six orchardists put down for Wakenekl. As-a matter of fact he had secured 18 orchardists in that district as- shareholders. The past of the fruit industry was one of ignorance and wrong methods which resulted in the grower not getting a proper return for his product sometimes a debit. This was a characteristic of the past, and was (Tointr on still, hut the firms that were handling the fruit. 20 years ago were stilt going strong. There was still a state of chaos with regard to market- ( ing. A gentleman said to him only tne day previous "what is the good of tellin" people to eat nuples when you have to"pay 6d per Ib.'for them?" That was the crux of the whole thing. The ."rowers had fruit rotting because it could not be conserved and put on the market when it wj;uld bring a fair return, and yet the consumer had to pay a high price for his fruit. And on top of this New Zealand in 1915 imported iron; America and Canada fruit ns follows :— Fresh fruit: From Canada, 1,031,979 Ib, equal to 25.779£ bushel cases, valued afc £8,946. From United States: 1 163 4561b., equal to 29,086* bushel | eases valued at £10,339. Grand total: 54,886 cases, valued at £19,285. Dried fruits (apples and apricots): From Canada, 12501b. valued at £2-5. From United States: 370,0351b. valued) at £10,372. Total: 751,2851b, valued' at £10,397. Grand total fresh and driVl fmits: 2,195,4401!). fresh; 751,2851b. dried; total, 2,946,7251b; total value, £29,682. Co-operation, cold storage, the establishment of canning and allied works to deal with the fruit was what was required. Why should nil this money go out of the country while fruit was allowed to rot here? A irore disorganised and chaotic state of a {Pairs could not exist than v>as now the state of the industry in New Zealand. In going round the. Nelson district he found -that nine out of ten orchardists were desirous of selling out. He was told1 that the reason wns that the orchards did not pay. Ho, replied asking if that was sp how could it be expected that other men should buy. He admitted that there was no answer if the people of New Zealand were eating all the fruit that they reasonably could do with, but they were not: the price was prohibitive. Organisation, wns the essential thing; to vtilise what r.-a>- uoy waste. As the chairman hnd ■pointed out the more the export tvncie dovplmv ed the greater would he th° qw>r>titv of rejects to be dealt with. Then there wns the shipr>iug difficulty to ho considered. In Ins.. opinion it would take from 5 to 6 years after the -war eoneluded before we got back to novM.il in respect to shipping. In consiriori-ng what n;ethods were to he adoptod to deal with the waste fruit it had to be borne in mind that in the next five years there would be from five to ten. times the quantity of to-day to deal with. If new markets were not found and new methods of marketing adopted someone would have to go to the wall. By increasing the production of the orchard and making use of the second grade fruit the selling price of the fi"«t class article could he reduced, which would induce increased lo^al confm^-.n-tion and farther competition by other countries in the outside- markets could fchu.? bo met and vet the grov-er bo better off. Organisation should he on co-operative lines.

Mr. Hill then addressed himself to a staten-ent of the nrogress mtul° in establishing the Nelson-Stoke Fruitorowers Ltd. He hnd gone as far as Korere and Motimiko and had five shnreholders beyond Spooner's Rnnge who had taken 252 shares. He had met a splendid reception and tho feeling right through was to co-operate for the good of the whole district. He h^d also received very great assistance-, from several gentlemen and so far some; SO shareholders had taken up ~-nil2o shares, wiuc-J!. roughly, l pft 2000 s'lavos to be taken up before the comuany could go to flotation. If the averr.ge subscription of the reir-aiiider of the growers he hnd vet to see equnlled the average so far obtained, tho coin-

pany would ho. floated -with over1 2000 shares to the good. The chairman invited questions, and in'reply to a question Mr. Hill said that the original idea was to bare a capital of £10,000, and it was his'suggestion that the capital should be doubled and a smaller amount per share be called' up, which would allow 4J years for payment. There was no difficulty about the financial arrangements though he could not disclose the particulars.

The chairman also stated that the Government would assist, there being statutory provisipn for this. ..

A number, of questions were put on technical points with regard to flotation, which Mr.; Hill answered apparently to the satisfaction of the questioners' and further he emphasised the point that the proposed company must reduce the cost of the work of transferring the fruit from the grower to the consumer to the benefit of both.

The chairman remarked that the Avar had brought forward a crisis which was bound to have occurred later and it was absolutely necessary ..to organise in order to secure a better and more profitable method, to the grower of marketing. Co-operation was the solution. Tie said that a company similar to the one under consideration was being 'HT.-ed on tho other side of the Moutere hills, and the idea was that the Vee companies (including tho Mou'r«re Company already in existence) should-combine, with a central executive to control local marketing. . The results obtained by the existing, company showed that the company could obtain as good results as any firm in securing results. Reports receivec7 by the Moutere Company on its exports proved that.