BETTER FRUIT 



AN ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE PUBLISHED MONTHLY IN THE INTEREST OF MODERN, PROGRESSIVE FRUIT GROWING AND MARKETING 



Status of the American Fruit Trade 



liy R. M. Rutledge 



UNFORTUNATELY there arc few Early Mediterranean Importations Competition of Domestic Fruit 



statistics of American horticul- One hundred years ago the fruit Up to 1867 the foreign fruitgrower 



ture, and what few are available merchant as such did not exist in this and shipper saw no cloud on the hori- 



are scattered and incomplete. Before country. Some of the larger importers zon of the American market. The 



the eleventh census (1890) only a few occasionally received a few half casks lemon of Sicily and the sweet Messina 



bulletins of sunnnaries were published. of dried prunes, currants, raisins or orange competed only with the apple 



Since then the twelfth and the thir- grapes from the Mediterranean, but for Yankee favor. Grapes, raisins, 



teenth (1900 and 1910) census figures beyond these even the luxurious did not cunants, prunes, every European 



give more complete and detailed figures aspire. It was some years before even fruit — green, dried or preserved — found 



as regards horticulture. Many of the so simple a custom as selling native in the United States a market that was 



horticultural societies and periodicals fi"wi> brought to town in season by the never glutted except by itself. Bananas 



make annual summaries of the output neighboring farmer became at all gen- and pineapples from the West Indies, 



bv means of' inquiries sent to their '''■■'>' ^^'ith the old New York grocers. Cuba and Central America cocoanuts 



members and subscribers. The apple Having reached this point ot develop- and tropical fruits of every descriptmn, 



. . ,, 1 f .u ment, the ruit trade stood still until came only in limited quantities. The 



exporters have the records of the ex- ^fj,,' j^SO, when the importation of foreign fruit controlled the market 



ports of this fruit. The Trea.su.->', Agri- j.^,.^;^^ ^^.^.^ ^,^^ considered seriously, until the refrigerator car created the 



culture and Commerce and Labor De- j,^ jjjgo ^1^^,.^ arrived at New York bv great interstate traffic and the im- 



partments of our national government sailing ship the first cargo of oranges portations of foreign fruits, excepting 



issue bulletins from time to time deal- f,.,„„ "sicily. Lemons followed almost bananas and lemons, were driven into 



ing with exports and imports. But immediately. The next thirty years the background. In 1807 the first green 



other than these there is little stalls- saw the Italian fruits, oranges and fruit reached New Yoik from Califor- 



tical measure of our horticultural lemons, holding full possession of the nia. But America has never produced 



progress. In collecting the following ,\merican market. At first the trade a lemon which could successfully com- 



information I have consulted all avail- was largely .speculative, but soon the pete with the lemon of Sicily and the 



able sources; in most cases I have system of auctioneering developed. banana already stands near the head of 



merely taken the essential facts, but these auction houses had the advan- the list of favorite fruits of the Ameri- 



where an authority has expressed his 'age of quick returns, and since their cans, so these two fruits will always 



idea clearly extracts have becii incor- origin they have continued as im- figure heavily in our imports, 



poratcd in "this article. The 1910 cen- Poitant factors in the fruit trade. In Banana Trade Started 



sus gives these figures to show the com- |86o, the wholesale commission house ^^^ ^^^.^^ ^^^^^^^^^^ ^^, . ^.^, i„,„,„.t^,, j„j,^ 



parative importance of the fruit crop saving come to ije a gene any reco„- the United States in 1804. Captain ,lohn 



, . , ^ nized feature of the fruit trade, manv ^i r-i, . e ii. i-i.i i 



and trade. r n t. i- , i „ L,^-„„ N. Chester, of the little schooner 



of the Italian growers began consign- „,, , „ ' ., , . r ,i • 



TABLE I •,,!,• c -i I- 11 r \ • Revnard, was the skipper ot this 



„ , , , ' r. , r. , , ing their fruit directlv to American . •. , Ut , t i- "i? ■. " > 



Total Value Pet. Pet. In- „ '^ „, . ' i i- ■ , original West Indian Fruiter, and 



of Crop Total crease firms. This arrangement, dispensing .... u i i . 



i„ V' (■ vnin\, n,,^r -.1 .1 T. 1- • Til e 1 thirtv bunches were about as manv as 



Ar.n ]ati'e Over with the Italian middleman, was found ■ .■: • . ,i » • i . ' i i 



1909 Crop.s 1S99 „ r-i i i (• u .i .1 „ . he thought the .\merican market would 



ATI ,...,„,= ;., I- c i- 1Q-1G1 loa innnn si tlic iiiorc profitable for botti file grower . , . • i u » . 



All ciops 111 L. S. ..>o,l8/,]6i,22.3 100.00 83 i ,u » • ■ ui i ? re stand at one Consignment, hor twentv- 



A cereals 2,60.5,5.39,714 48.fi 79.8 and the American jobber, and lor tit- . r. .i, » i i 



Hnv inri fnrnffp rVj n 1 1 S77 lift 7n 9 . n Ai J-. t 1 SIX vcars affcr that bauauas were only 



Hay .iiKi image. . . 824,0114,8/7 i.'j.o 70.2 fecn vcars the Mediterranean trade ■ . ,, , i » . .1 ■ . 



Vegetables 251,080,24 1 4.0 75.3 ,■ ' i n i- n t icon occasionally brought to this country 



PntntfK..; 1 (w, f)i (11 ft 1 ft Ao o coutinucd On these lines. About 1880 , ■ , ; n .•,• .-i ■, 



potatoes ioii,i2.i,9io ,1.0 ()9.2 .,.,., i i i i ■ n and in but small quantities, un il m 



All fruits and nuts 222,021,210 4.0 66.9 the third and last change in the ,„„„ y , „ ,, • , , ,. ,.,. . 



AH small fruits.. 29,974,181 0.5 19.8 mothods "overnin" the Itiliui fruit ^^^^ J°''" Pearsall imported the Inst 



All orchard fruits. 140,867.367 2.6 68.2 "Hinods „o^tlnlna tnc iiaiian iiui ^^ ^^ chartered the schooner 



P^^ches iieet.rines ?8-?^l'o?i H ■■ '''"''' f"''^"" With the establi.shmen ..H^;,.,.i,t s,„it, .. ^.,„^, (.,„„, h^, ,,,. 



Plunlrincr M-'r!"^^ ^HX o.i y.: here of representatives ot several of ,,,n,,ert ;„ New York 1,. 500 bunches of 



^rerHes l^^'f^ Ult ■■ ^e large Itaia.i houses The.se hou.se.s ,,,„,„,s-the first large shipment. 



AIl"g;rpes: ::::::: 22:oi7;96? S:i' SO.a ^;"\^' «'."»>•'" e<l he Mediterranean fruit p,.^^^^ ,;,,^^, „^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^.J^^ ^.„„. 



Tropical and tra( e Since that ime. Spain, once a .. , . , , n ,„ 



siili-tropieal ... 24.7n6.7.-.3 0.5 200.3 i.,|.,,e shiDDcr of oranges has been tinued in a modest way— a few caigoes 



Oranges' 17,500,11,1 0..35 ... i<"i t^<- siiippci oi 01 anges, iias ottn ,,nnuallv for a .score of years. It was 



All nuts 4,447.07 1 0.1 128.1 forced from the American market h\ ., ^^,^.. ,, , ,,„,„„,. ^f ini- 



Fkwers .-ind plants 31,872,32., n.o 85.9 fhe Italian crowers and excepting her ""' """' ,." ,, '"' 'tports ot im- 



Nursery products. 21,050.822 0.4 107.9 '"^ 'i>"i'"n .V o^\t I s, anci c xt t pmi,-^ it 1 p„|.tations listed bananas .separately. 



Total value of fruit imports ,1910). ,$23,220,792 .aiapes of Almeria and Malaga and lat- |^_^^, ^^^^^ j,^^^^ j,^^ ^,_^,^j^ ^j, j,^^ j,,^. 



Total value of fruit exports (1910). 18,504,591 lerly her lemons, she sends utile now „.,.^,i„n^ amounted to only !?401,7,3,x 



Per cent of fruit crop exported , 1910) ... .8.3% lo this country. .p,^^,^^ -^ ^^..^^ ^^.^j „^^. American grow- 



TABLE II— PERCENTAGE OF VALUE OF ALL CROPS BY SECTIONS ^.ps began to feci the pressure of com- 



Vegetahles , Fruits and Nuts , iii.tition willi Hie liinina a comneli- 



.ill anil Orchard Small TropiealX: pcillion Willi IIK D.liiaia a iuiii|.iii 



Section crops potatoes Tot<it fruits fruits subtrop. (inipcs \uts tiou which has increased phenomenally 



All United states KKi 7.6 4.0 2.6 0.5 0.5 0.1 0.1 and is not lessened bv the recent tariff 



S!l?tru;n,ic;::;;;;;;;;:;:; }SI! !VI U 1:1 1:1 ::: l.l ::: ^vl>i<•h has placed this tropical frun 



East-North Atlantic 100 6.9 3.0 2.2 0.5 ... 0.3 ... ("the poor man's fruil") on the free 



West-North Atlantic 100 3.8 1.4 1.0 0.3 ... 0.1 ... ,. , ,,.. , ,, hon-iivi fndo is im- 



South Atlantic 100 9 8 3.8 2.1 0.0 1.0 0.1 ... "^'- ' "^t tlic Danana iiatie IS nil 



East-South Central 100 7.5 2.4 2.0 0.3 ... 0.1 ... iioitanl may be realized bv the fact 



West-South Central 100 4.8 1.1 0.8 0.3 O.I 0.1 , ... ,,,-., ,. ..ontinenlal United 



Mountain 100 9.3 5.1 4.7 0.6 ... 0.1 ... '"''l I" '■"- '"<^ , .. -o.V-Vn 



Pacific 100 8.1 21.4 9.2 1.2 6.0 3.9 1.1 Stales alone consumed 4-l,oz0,.i,i9 



The North 100 7.5 3.3 2.4 0.6 ... 0.3 ... l,,,,i,.|,,,o rn- riMoi- tivlv hnmn-ii« for 



The South 100 7.5 2.0 1.7 0.4 0.4 0.1 0.1 bun( hes, oi ovei sixt\ Dananas loi 



The West 100 8.5 15.5 7.6 1.0 3.8 2.5 0.7 each man, woman and child in the 



Fast of the Mississippi 100 9.9 4.2 2.9 0.7 0.3 0.3 ... i'„:„„" 



West of the Mississippi 100 4.9 3.9 2.1 0.4 0.7 0.5 0.2 L nion. 



