The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 1008. THE PRICE OF FRUIT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2086, 11 January 1908, Page 2

The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 1008. THE PRICE OF FRUIT.

It is certainly an anomalous position that with a. district so eminently suitable for fruit-growing as Poverty Bay as a source of supply Gisborne residents should' be asked to pay the excessive prices that are ruling locally at the present time. As a correspondent pointed out in yesterday’s issue, the warm weather experienced of late makes a- diet in which fruit -and vegetables predominate particularly desirable, yet instead of being an ordinary article of food practically all classes of fruit are so dear as to be a luxury in the average home. Our reporter, who investigated the position, gathered some interesting facts, hut the opinions given vary so much with the point of view of the informants that it is 'difficult to attach much value to thorn in arriving at -a conclusion. Tho public has been paying from (id to Is per,lb for apricots and peaches, vet wo are assured on tho one hand that tho industry is not profitable to tho fruit-grower and on the other that a hundred per cent, profit is not unduly' great for the shopkeeper. So far as tho growers are concerned there should bo no difficulty whatever in making the industry -an exceedingly profitable one, and to suggest otherwise is simply to cast a slur upon our own country and upon the capacity of our people. It is the height of absurdity that a district like Poverty Bay should import fruit from other countries, or even t-liat any part of New Zealand should be permitted to send outside tho Dominion for its fruit. AVe are convinced that any unprofitable undertakings in fruitgrowing are due to causes that.coukl he easily prevented, and that with proper management entirely satisfactory results can bo obtained. This is particularly the case with our own district. - To achieve success orchards must ho laid down on some. definite system embracing tho needs of the market and the special capacities of soil and climate, and all the resources of science .must be utilised in order to keep down disease and produce good crops. In this respect there is no excuse for ignorance, for the Government Agricultural Department is an excellent institution that is always ready and willing to give advice and assistance on such matters as require the special knowledge that can only tie gained by experts. So long, hort'ever, as the haphazard methods of the past are allowed to continue, so long shall wo continue to import fruit supplies from Australia, California, and as far off as Italy.

An important aspect of- the position is that of distribution, and ,it is difficult to believe that the industry should be saddled with a charge of 100 per cent, for retail selling. One can scarcely blame the individual salesman who endeavors to make hay while the sun shines and takes advantage of a keen demand to extort high rates, bnt from the point of view of the industry, to say nothing of the consumer, the position is far from satisfactory. If fruit were sold at a price which brought it within reach of the ordinary working man's

family as an article of diet, tho consumption would go up enormously, and an ample local market would be found. The subject is one that demands careful consideration, and ivo should like to see the local fruitgrowers taking it up with -a view to seeing in what way the position can bo altered so as to benefit tho fruitgrowing industry.