INDUSTRIES COMMITTEE.

Colonist, Volume LXI, Issue 15059, 30 April 1919, Page 3

INDUSTRIES COMMITTEE.

FRUITGROWING MATTERS

[United Press Association ]

Hastings, April 28. The Industries Committee sat here this afternoon. . . ~

H. G. Apsey, urged improved railway facilities' both in the way of speedier t transit'and properly ventilated trucks. He also advocated an increase of Government loans to cool storage companies from £9000 to £15,000, owing to the enormous increase in orchard acreage and the. consequent increased fruit production needing cool storage. Thomas. Horton, representing the nursery industry, said that nurserymen in Hawke's Bay paid wages totalling £32,000 per year. Nurserymen were handicapped by the Government offering shelter and fruit trees at a price which would not pay for their production. The State's own trees should not; be supplied to wealthy settlers for beautifying their ,homestead. Referring to imported trees he said the Fruitgrowers' Federation asked nurserymen not to increase the prices of trees if the prohibition of the importation of Australian trees were carried into effect, ■ and the nurserymen agreed not to increase the price for five years. The difficulty was that the cost of production had gone \ip, and they could not raise the price. The chairman said that the committea could not help nurserymen in the matter of their agreement with another body, even if they had made a bad bargam. " A. M. Robertson, president of the Hawke's Bay Fruitgrowers' Association, said the public were not getting th 3 benefit of the industry. If fruit was sent into every home, New Zealanders would become a fruit-eating community. Fruit snould be made cheap to the people. They had now storage for 70,000 cases, but overhead charges and handling after leaving the orchards increased the cost 100 per cent.. He advocated the New Zealand paper mills be^ ing encouraged- to make corrugated pasteboard boxes. The demand for boxes was great. No fewer than 300,----000 cases were sent out of Hawke's Bay last season. The Fruitgrowers' Federation was concerned in cheapening rruit. They were organising and linking up companies throughout New Zealand with that object. The public in the cities were not getting fruit at proper prices. The federation desired to ftave their own delivery soon, bringing fruit to their depots, thus saving auctioneers' charges, to the benefit of growers and consumers. Palmerston North, April 29. tierore the Industries Committee today, J. A. Nash gave evidence as to the value of by-products obtained from wood. He stated that from one cord of rnta' wow! £56 worth of acid. 16s worth of oil, 15s worth of tar, and £10 worth or charcoal could be obtained. He pointed out that any wood could be used, even sawdust. A company was being formed to carry on the work here. He produced samples of petrol, oil, and potash produced from wood, and asked that the plant should be admitted duty tree. * Captain Preece stated that dyes could be obtained from native woods, and had been used by the Maoris for dyeing flax mats. He suggested j3cientific investigation by the Government. .J. M. Johnston suggested that the er^ ment should make experiments with English hemp in. suitable districts. Me advocated a geological survey of the Nonunion, to locate coal. and minerala WM-i&® y -weTi? in Payable quantities. . Mr White urged the planting & Amenc£n P°P^, rs for box manufacture. M. A. Elliott; urged the Government to assist m producing by-products from wool-scouring. ■- . A. Seifert advocated the necessity tor flax-planting with Government assistance m order-to expand the industry. He suggested that "there should b« experiments on State farms v fnr +i, ' J * N<*th? n wged the necessity ££3fl fOTndation of a dairy school for scientific research into dairy problems