52 



THE AUKIUULTUKAL NEWS. 



February ]8, 1911. 



FRUITS AND FRUIT TREES. 



THE GRAPE-FRUIT IN CANADA. 



A circular lias been issued recently liy Messrs G Vipond 

 & Co., of ilontreal, Canada, dealing with tlie status of the 

 grape-fruit in that country and making suggestions for its 

 larger export from the West Indies. Attention is first drawn 

 to the recent lowering of prices of this fruit and the conse- 

 quent larger demand; so that from being an article of luxury, 

 it is becoming one for every-day consumption by all classes. 

 This demand is increasing to such an extent that the firm 

 feels fully justified in stating that any dealer iu grape-fruit in 

 Canada will require to have access to a full stock during the 

 ■whole of the year. In taking measures to increase such 

 demand, attention must be given to careful grading and 

 packing, and the use of attractive packages. 



Messrs. Vipond have placed their .lamaica business on 

 an organized and established basis, and the first importation 

 of grape-fruit and oranges under the new arrangement ar- 

 rived in Canada in October. Distribution of this shipment 

 was nrade in car lots in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg and 

 Eegina as well as in several .smaller cities. This initial .ship- 

 ment has been followed by larger weekly ones, and it was 

 expected that during November and December, about 1-5,000 

 boxes of fruit from .lamaica, largely grape-fruit, would be 

 distributed in the Northern United .States and Canada. 



Special attention is draw-n to the necessity of care on the 

 part of exporters in forwarding the fruit, especially as the 

 prices obtained depend mostly on this, and as freight has to 

 be paid for the bad fruits which depreciate the value of the 

 shipments, as well as for the good ones. 



The firm invites increased exports of grape-fruit from 

 the West Indies, and suggests that those who wish to forward 

 consignments of the fruit, and who are not resident in Jamai- 

 ca, Cuba or the Tjahama Islands, .should cable or write direct 

 to its office in Montreal, giving full particulars as to quantity, 

 quality, etc., of the output. 



In connexion with the issue of this circular, it is of inter- 

 est that the Jamaica Telegraph and G iiardtaniov December 3, 

 1910, contains particulars of an interview with Mr. George 

 Vipond, who was recently visiting .Jamaica. It was stated by 

 Mr. Vipond that the demand for grape-fruit in Montreal, sup- 

 plied by his firm, had increased to about 1,000 bo.xesaweek. 

 In regard to .Jamaica oranges, the complaint was made that 

 the adoption of improved methods of packing was required, 

 as many of those obtained from .lamaica did not arrive in 

 a sound state and with a good appearance. It was his opin- 



ion that, with improved steamship service from Jamaica, the 

 fruit trade should be easily increased to a large extent. 



In conclusion, Mr. Vipond gave it as his opinion that 

 Canada requires all the fruit that is grown in the greater part 

 of the British West Indie.s and pointed to the large demand 

 for Canadian products on thepart of the West Indies, referring 

 to the importance of this in connexion with the proposals for 

 trade reciprocity between these two parts of the Empire. 



THE DEMAND FOR BANANAS IN EUROPE. 



An article in the Daily Keirg for .January 3, 1911, 

 draws attention to the threatened shortage in Jamaica 

 bananas, caused by the bad weather that has been experienced 

 during the past season. It is stated, however, that compen- 

 sation for part of this lessened production will be probably 

 obtained from an increased supply from the Canary Islands 

 and Central America. 



The article goes on to state that the demand for bananas, 

 both in England and on the Continent, has increased enor 

 mously of late, and the Managing Director of Messrs. Elder 

 cfc Fyffe is responsible for the statement that the larger supply 

 of fruit from the Canary Islands and Central America will 

 only be sufficient to .satisfy the home demand. It will be the 

 Continent which will -suffer from the shortage, as the fruit is 

 only allotted to buyers there, after orders have been filled for 

 the United Kingdom. This condition of affairs is illustrated 

 by the fact that, on one recent occasion, nearly 9,000 bunches 

 were required by Continental Imyers, who could only be satis- 

 fied to the extent of about .5,000 liunches, or little more than 

 one-half of the demand. 



The increased demand for bananas in Europe is ari.sing 

 chiefly from the realization of the value of the fruit, during 

 the last year or two, by the people of Holland, Germany, 

 Norway and Sweden. 



There is not only an increasing w-ant for the fruit in 

 these countries, however, that in the United Kingdom is 

 rapidly becoming larger. In support of this fact, there is 

 the circumstance that Messrs. Elder A Fytt'e imported, last 

 month, 100,000 bunches more than in the corresponding 

 month of 1910. The increased supply comes chiefly from 

 Central America, and although that from the West Indies 

 has decreased temporarily, the additional fruit arriving from 

 the first mcntiimed source is likely to keep the rates steady, 

 so that the price of Central American bananas in the United 

 Kingdom will probably remain at the same level. 



