AUSTRALIAN FRUITGROWERS,

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1262, 18 October 1911, Page 10

AUSTRALIAN FRUITGROWERS,

AND THE K.Z. REGULATIONS. The Under-Secret ary of fhe New South Wales Department of Agriculture wrote to the executive o£ the Fruitgrowers' Union of New South Wales recently with reference to the union's representations in tihe matter of the proposal ol tho New Zealand Government to insist upon an examination of 10 per cent, of the fruit before shipment, and stated that (he matter was brought before the New Zealand authorities, who were asked to omit that portion of the regulations relating to the subject in question. A reply ii-ail been received from New Zealand to the eirect that the request could not be granted at present, and the hope was expressed thai the proposed regulations should be Riven a fair trial. Jf, however, it were found that consignments forwarded showed a small percentage of infection, negotiations might be renewed with a view to having the regulations eliminated. The Under-Secreiary added that up to the present no official ln'imation" had been received that tho proposed new regulations had been put into operation, nor had any conies been received. So soon as the Department received conies a- resume of the regulation would be'published. Tho chairman (Mr. W. D. French) referred to tho fact that tho deputation which wailed upon the Minister for Agriculture Hμ nfpvious week found that it was the Now South AYales Department which had originated the regulation that had caused so much, annoyance to the local growers and shippers. In al.-o referring So the fact that tho regulation lii'd not yet been gazetted, according to what he 'had learnt from New Zealand, they were more in favour of retaining the quarter-mile radius restriction, and that the new regulation was not likely to bo gazetted. In his (the chairman's opinion it would Ik better by far to have a mile radius than to have to submit to liaving their fruit tipiwd out of the cav?s during transit. (He?r. hear. ) The fscretary (Mr. E. F. Fripp) reported that a demitatiiu waited imnn the managers of ('he Huddart. Parser and Co. and the Union S.oam Ship Company to ask for ft reduction of freights, and that grcnter care should bs exerc:="d in the. handling and stowing awav cf fruit. Although little b"po was held out by the man-igers o£ any reduction bring obtained, they promised to submit thi> views of the deputation to tho head offices.