•8 Oct., 1907.] Fruut Transportation and Marketing. 615 



Canada, and Europe. Peaches and other soft fruits are now successfully 

 exported from Georgia, West Virginia and Connecticut to Europe. 



Export Trade. 



New markets have been formed in Europe by the agents of the above- 

 mentioned companies and associations, and in all instances a large and 

 profitable trade has been established. These agents have made it their 

 business to discover what kinds and varieties ""of fruits are favoured in 

 •different countries. Bv this means a promiscuous dumping of fruits on 

 unsuitable markets has to a large extent been avoided, and a wider distri- 

 bution has been secured. For instance, it was founc chat m Paris 

 highly coloured varieties of apples did not meet with a ready sale, but 

 .that a good market was available for yellow and russet varieties. Another 

 advantage gained by this distribution of markets is that each locality oi 

 the exporting country can make a speciality of growing the varieties 

 suitable for each market. If Cleopatras for example sell well in a 

 ■certain market the locality where that variety can be most successfully 

 grown should cater for that market. In a country like ours where so 

 many varieties of apples can be raised this should easily be accomplished, 

 and we would not then witness a repetition of the deplorable slump which 

 occurred through 170,000 cases of our fruit being dumped on one market 

 as happened during one memorable fortnight of our export season just 

 concluded. 



The requirements of a successful export trade in fruit seem therefore 

 to be : — 



1. Careful harvesting and packing; the speedy cold storage of fruits 

 in low temperatures after picking, and the maintenance of these low 

 temperatures during transportation, as well as during the time the fruits 

 are in storage. 



2. A study of the phvsiological and chemical changes which take place 

 in fruits in all stages of their existence, in order to explain why differences 

 exist in the keeping qualities of individual fruits even when subjected 

 to similar treatment with regard to cultivation, harvesting, packing, 

 storage and transportation. 



3. The regulation of tlie disposal of our fruits in markets where they 

 find a readv sale. 



4. The reduction of transport freights by land and sea. 



5. Prices in local markets to be regulated, and gluts avoided by storage 

 of excess fruits, thus obviating necessitv of placing these hurriedly on the 

 markets. 



6. The formation of companies or co-operative associations with 

 sufficient capital to deal with these problems, and to place the trade beyond 

 the reach of untoward circumstances. 



When the difficulties under which our trade at present labours through 

 Avant of attention to these details have been successfullv grappled the 

 fruit-growing industry should become one of the State's main assets and 

 the exporter should then be enabled to obtain a good profit if receiving 

 anvthing above 6s. per bushel for his apples or pears in the markets of 

 the United Kingdom and Europe. 



