FRUIT JUICE INDUSTRY

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22517, 27 September 1938, Page 18

FRUIT JUICE INDUSTRY

"ONLY SALVAfION FOR SURPLIffi" MR B. T. TURN|R'S YIEWS I "Growers consider fthat the manufacture of liquid fnjt juice is their only salvation so fa* as surplus fruit is concerned." said fr B. T. Turner, president of the (Interbury Fruitgrowers' Association when he was asked to comment jresterday on the scheme as outlined fl& the Minister for Mines fthe Hon. PIC. Webb), in an interview at Takakaln Saturday eventog. 1 "Consideration of lie fruitgowing industry in New Zealand has resulted in my arriving at two|important reasons why a fruit juice Industry should be established," said Mr Turner. "The first is the necessity for providing an additional or alteraative outlet within New Zealand for& e fruit produced. This necessity is bjcoming increasingly apparent as the pfcfitable export market shrinks. Thegbther reason is removing from thi'. market the large quantity of relalvely inferior fruit which normally lends to reduce the aprieal of and thapemand for all fruit, and thus limits lie market even for fruit of better qftlity." The increased livenue which would be obtained thrcfgh the establishment of the industry jtas mentioned by Mr Turner. Takinafthe consumption for each person inlNew Zealand at one gallon a head, plr Turner said that this would absfb more than 500.000 bushels of appjls, or between 500,000 and 600.000 cafe. The revenue from this source atjtfor instance, 2s 6d a case would bejjbout £70,000. "I think it ijpuld be possible for a fruit juice faofcry to be opened at Papanui." he laid, "and the scheme could be finaped by a Government grant and by Ke growers, who would then have anjjpterest in the industry. *Tt is apparep that our export will be limited soraime in the future, and in a year likfthjs when the price for apples is lo\«the fruit could be sold to the factofr for manufacture into fruit juice." jf jpme experimental work would be nepssary so that uniformity in the projuct could be obtained throughout She Dominion. . A few glowers wife manufacturing fruit juice, and p each grower's product was differed!/ it would not be satisfactory to th# public if the juice was manufacturM on a large scale by this means. In pdition, expensive machinery was nfcded for the work. An advantage of the scheme was that nothMg was wasted, continued Mr Turnef The surplus pulp could be made ipo cakes for stock feed, and hie understood that this was practised on a larae scale on the Continent. The drinJfwas very popular in many Continental? countries, and the figures of consunjbtion in Germany during recent yeamkbad shown a phenomenal increase. IGermany had formerly been regarded!** a beer-drinking country, but nowiTthe members o# the Hitler Youth Movement were given fruit juice as * drink instead of intoxicating litaipr. f \ jf 2Xthi«ktb.e drink should take on all right inJNew Zealand," he said. "Practically any type of fruit can be used in m?kft it, although the apple is the chief auree for the product of the ContinjKt."