FRUIT EMBARGO PROTEST

Taranaki Daily News, 12 July 1933, Page 9

FRUIT EMBARGO PROTEST

NEW PLYMOUTH RESOLUTION. A protest at the .continuation of the embargo on Australian fruits, particularly citrus, was made at a meeting of wholesale and retail fruiterers at NewPlymouth. It was decided to ask the support of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce and to request Mr. S. G. Smith, M.P., to endeavour to have the embargo removed. Mr. Smith will be supplied with the copy of a unanimous ■' resolution stating that the meeting view- • ed with grave concern the Government’s action in maintaining the embargo on Australian fruit, particularly oranges and lemons, which were essential to the pub- > lie health of the Dominion and which hitherto had been obtainable by the public at reasonable prices. " ' It was contended that the question pf reciprocity did not'enter into the agree- , ment as though this year Australia had refused to take New -Zealand potatoes, the same position had obtained for Several years, but then oranges had been allowed, to- 1 enter the Dominion. n: ’ / Mr. L. B. Webster referred to the action being taken in the larger centres" with the object of having the embargo removed. He said all .would agree that . • the embargo was crippling the wholesale ’ and retail fruit trade of the Dominion and causing undue and unfair prices. to be exacted from the public. The position' was acute. From information he had received it would almost appear that the excuse advanced for the embargo ■ was the risk of introducing the Mediterran- ■ ean fruit fly. He characterised this as a bogey. He and several others present had been ih the business for many years, but had never" known of Australian citrus fruits being condemned, or of them being affected with the Mediterranean fruit fly. • • ’ < l . • • .. : The opinion of the meeting was that because New Zealand was trying to Open up a new market with America mainly for apples, America was attempting todictate a policy for New Zealand as far as Australian citrus fruits were concerned. In return for America admitting a •' few thousand cases of New Zealand apthe people of the Dominion as a whole were to be penalised regarding supplies of citrus fruits from Australia which hitherto had been one of the main sources of supply. . " - Mr? B. Sturm agreed with Mr. Webster that- the "about the Mediterranean fly would not-stand investigation because there, was no mention of it in regard to Island fruit, and they all knew that hundreds ; cf. cases from this squrce had been affected, whereas to his knowledge it had never affected Australian fruit. Others-present suggested that unless something were done to relieve the posi- ; tion fruiterers would not be able to handle oranges. The best Island oranges now were costing '27s 6d a case to land at New Plymouth, as a. result of the em- „ bargo, a price unheard of in previous years. Australia was a Sister State and was entitled to more consideration than, . America. Mrs. Boon attended the meeting as the representative of the New Plymouth Plunket Society.