FRUIT CULTURE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1528, 26 August 1912, Page 8

FRUIT CULTURE.

ADVANCES FOR COOL STORES, ' A deputation from the conforcnco of the New /calami Fruit Association wailed on ThursiUy (he l'lime Minister to bring under Ibis notionmatters connected wiMi Urn vidian; of the industry. The, deputation was introduced liy Sir. ii. Newman, M. I'., in Iho unavoidable absence of Mr. N. M. Campbell, M.P. A number of remits adopted at the conference were presented. One urged the Government to make .advances 'o l'ruit-i;i<oni.-rs i'or (lie crection- oif cool .stores, provided that tho borrowers found security for principal and interest. A protest was made against any attempt being made to imjiose a duty on import-, ed trees. Tho Government was asked to institute a {system of grading and branding fruit shipments for export. It was suggested that certain areas infested with pests should be proclaimed, and mado subject to.especially stringent regulation*. Other requests wore for the removal of duty on wrapping-paper, the renewal of the guarantees of Id. per lb. on apples shipped to the United Kingdom, and the j ulVerof a subsidy or bounty for tho discov-' pry of an effectual remedy for the woolly aphid. Tho deputation mentioned a report that tho Government intended to plant fruit farms in the Auckland gumlands by means of prison labour. The Prime Minister said that tho Government were certainly rot going to employ prison labour in the manner suggested. They intended to encourage the establishment of fruit farms by privato enterprise, which was a very different thing. Ho would recommend Cabinet to renew tho guarantee of Id. per lb. on exported apples. The proposal to grado and brand fruit for export was not new, but this was the first time that it had been brought officially !>eforo him. Grading had been particularly successful in connection with tho dairying industry, and if it could be applied in the same way t.o fruit exporting this ought to be done. As to making advances for theerection of cool stores, lie had no objection, as Minister for Agriculture, to recommending the Government to make the experiment in one or two cases. If these provc-d successful, tho operations of the 'scheme could 1)0 extended. Mr. Massey assured the deputation'that tho whole of the recommendations would be carefully considered by the Government.