Local Industries.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3542, 3 May 1880, Page 2

Local Industries.

FKUIT-PRESERVING AND JAMMAKING.

Several years ago Mr H. A. Severn contributed a series of articles to this journal on the advantages of frui£preserving being taken up as a local industry, and that gentleman practically illustrated the eaio with which our surplus fruit could be turned into a remunerative marketable commodity. Mr Severn's efforts in this direction have not proved unavailing, and we have at present in our midst the germs of a healthy export trade of preserved fruit, no less than three persons having been engaged during the past season in preserving peaches for the interprovincial and foreign markets. The first of these we will allude to is Messrs Cooper and Son,' of St. Clements' Lodge, Hape Creek. These gentlemen have about 100 peach trees, comprising the Italian yellow, double white China, and lemon varieties, and during last season they preserved fully three-quarters of a ton of fruit, most of which found a ready market in Auckland, Christchurcb, and elsewhere, and large orders in anticipation of next season's crop have been received. The modus operandi is very, simple. The peaches are plucked before j they are dead ripe, wiped, and boiled . about five minutes. They are then transferred to 21b cans, filled wit'a water and the cover soldered down, a small aperture being left in the cover. The cans are then immersed in boiling water till a little

column of steam issued through the hole in the cover, which is then stopped with solder, and the fruit is hermetically sealed, and will last for years in this condition., Messrs Cooper and Son have also preserved a quantity of peach jam, which found a ready sale. The result of this year's operations had convinced Messrs Cooper that they have established a good paying industry, and next year they intend to embark in peach preserving on a much larger scale. The peaches, preserved by Mr Richard Hudson, of Parawaij are preserved by the same method as that used by Messrs Cooper. ' Mr Hudson hud put up two or three ? tons, and Ins experience has been the same as that of the other firm regarding the selling qualities of the new manufacture if such it can be called. Last week Mr Hudson sent several cases over to Melbourne, and should this parcel prove successful no doubt a good trade with Australian Colonies will be established. The Thames fruit is in everyway superior to that preserved in California, and being sold much cheaper should specdilj run the other article out of the colonial market. Ludlovr and Co., of Karaka Creek, preserved seven gross of 21b cans of fruit this year, and state that all they manufacture went off rapidly. This firm adopts a different method to either of the others. The peaches are skinned and boiled for about 10 minutes in loaf sugar ana canned hot. This fruit is delicious and more suited for the dessert tabl|^ than those preserved by the other pro*' cess. " -