SURPLUS FRUIT

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20083, 1 November 1939, Page 7

SURPLUS FRUIT

SALES PROBLEM DOMINION PRODUCE SHIPPING RESTRICTION POSSIBLE STATE ACTION SURVEY BY MINISTER (P<*r Proas Association.) WELLINGTON, this day. Under the war situation New Zealand was faced with the possibility of having no European market for the export of apples and pears and the United Kingdom Government had notified the Dominion that it did not desire to buy any fruit, said the Minister of Finance and Marketing, die Hon. W. Nash, when discussing negotiations for the sale of the fruit crop in a national radio broadcast ast evening.

The estimated production of apples and pears in the current season was 3,403,000 cases, the Minister said. Last year up to 1,500,000 cases had been sold overseas, including about 000,000 cases in the United Kingdom and some in Europe, 1 the Far East and South America.-

This market was now m a very dangerous and delicate position and the Dominion might not be able to .end any away. On the local market the quantity •old was about 1,250,000 cases. The fruitgrowers had built up an

ndustry which produced up to 3,500.000 cases and there was no certainty of a market for some 1,250,000 to 1,500,000 cases. Mr. Nash said that under the war

situation all shipping and storage space must be used to the full in taking food requirements to the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom Government had said it must give

preference to butter, cheese and meat and other primary products. It had not been possible to make any irrangements for space for fruit. Shipping' Inquiries

The Government had been in touch with shipping companies, the United Kingdom Government and other Governments, but the Dominion might not be able to send any fruit away, or only a much smaller quantity than it usually sent. Negotiations which have taken place between the Government and the fruit industry over the last year or two were outlined by the Minister. 1-Ie said that the Government desired to extend to those working in the primary industries the system of guaranteed prices under which, for goods produced for marketing, it would pay the producer a price that would give him a reasonable return f or his work and cover his costs.

“Last year I told the Fruit Export Control Board and the Fruitgrowers’ Federation that the methods used in the past to give assistance to the fruit industry on the local market could not be continued,” Mr. Nash said. “I said that the Government would be prepared to extend the guaranteed price system if requested to by the board and the federation. “They asked that the Government undertake the responsibility for marketing both export and local apples and pears?” , Industry Not Unanimous

The Minister said that a committee under the chairmanship of the Hon. W. Lee Martin, then the acting Minister of Marketing, and including representatives of the industry and others, had taken evidence from representatives of all those concerned in the industry.

One thing was clear, and that was that there was no unanimity on the marketing policy in the industry. In Nelson and Hawke’s Bay there was a large majority In favour of the Government taking over the marketing of fruit. In other parts of the Dominion that was not the case, despite recommendations by the Export Control Board and the Fruitgrowers’ Federation.

If the industry was not substantially in favour of the Government assisting in this way, the Government would have to consider whelhen it would accept the responsibility of marketing all the apples and pears, Mr. Nash continued.

That was the position before the war situation developed and that put a totally different, complexion on it now. There would be more fruit than could normally be marketed locally at anything like a price that would cover the costs. Government To Take Risk

He said he had had several discussions with the board and the federation, and he had suggested that the whole of the marketing procedure for apples and pears should be delegated by the Government to the board. The board would be responsible for marketing all fruit during the coming season, and the Government would enter into a contract to purchase 1,000,000 cases at 6s 9d a case, f.o.b. ship. The Government would take the risk ol getting them away from the Dominion and if they were not exported it would have to find something to do with them. If the Government could not find space in ships, the Minister said, it would do all it could to avoid the quantity it brought going back on the local market and so destroying the market for the balance.

The Government might makesome arrangement to distribute fruit among the schools of the Dominion and in other ways in which fruit could easily be used without affecting local marketing. Opposition To Waste

However, the Government would not agree to a waste of the fruit and he made it clear that it was unlikely that the Government at any time would agree to destroy the fruit. The Government, would undertake to try and get space for some of the fruit and to buy every case it could find space for to send overseas at 0s 9d f.o.b.

The board would thus have from £340,000 to £350,000 to start olf with. That day, Mr. Nash said, he had had a long discussion with representatives of the industry and they had said that the Government’s offer was not acceptable. They asked, the Government to lake over the whole of the fruit crop at a guaranteed price based on the costs of production, a price for an unrestricted quantity of fruit to be sold in a restricted market. The fruit industry, he said, should think what it would mean if there were no co-operation by the Government. The industry might reasonably ask the Government if it was willing

to co-operate and the Government was.

Mr. Nash outlined representations made from various fruitgrowing localities. Otago, he said, wanted the Government to guarantee to take all the fruit for export at 6s 9d a case at the assembly point and leave the Otago people to market the rest. Canterbury suggested that the Government should buy 1,500,000 cases at 7s Od a case. That was more than had been paid last season when there was a market overseas.

Mr. Nash said he had told the deputation that the Government could not do that.

Wellington wanted the local market for itself and the Government to buy 1,500,000 cases at 6s 6d a case at the assembly point. Auckland and North Auckland had made similar requests

“The representatives left after a happy and lengthy discussion to examine' the position and I hope it will be possible to come to some arrangement that will give a reasonable return to the grower and avoid waste,’’ Mr. Nash said. “The problem is that we will have from 3,250,000 to 3.500,000 cases with a market for 2,500.000 at the outside.

“The producer is entitled to payment for his work and fruit is splendid food, so the Government will endeavour to help the industry and 1 am hoping that representatives of the industry will be able to think the problem out and that we will be able to come to a reasonable arrangement and something that the fruitgrower will consider reasonable under the circumstances."