lo Mar., 1911-] Manchester : A Market for Australian Produce. 161 



MANCHESTER: A MARKET FOR AI\STRALIAN 



PRODUCE. 



R. V. Billis, State 1 nnui gratia 11 Officer, London. 



The necessity of securing promptly every new market, whicli may 

 present itself, for the sale of Australian produce is as apparent as that 

 of attracting more settlers for our lands. The work of the Victorian 

 Government's Land Settlement Delegation has already resulted in a mo:5t 

 valuable increase in the State's rural population and a steady and expanding, 

 .-tream of settlers from Great Britain to Victoria is now assurfd. An 

 enormous increa.se in production may therefore be expected, and no <]uesticn 

 is more vital to the interests of tiie producing community than that the best 

 and most convenient markets be .secured for our goods. 



A clo.se study of the existing market conditions in Great Britain for 

 Australian produce reveals many important facts. The following are 

 perhaps the most striking : — 



1. The keen endeavours of other countries to cater for the exact 



re(]uirements of British buyers. 



2. That, under present conditions, the Victorian producer does not 



receive such satisfactory returns as he might. 



3. That one of the most attractive markets in Great Britain is. so 



far, comparativelv unexploited by Victoria, or any other 

 Australian State. 



It is, however, concerning the third observation that this report deals. 

 The undeveloped market includes the densely populated counties of 

 Lancashire and Yorkshire, and indeed the whole of the West of England, 

 and the Midlands, also portions of Scotland, while the chief receiving and 

 distributing centre for these parts should be Manchester. Undoubtedly 

 a large portion of frozen meat, fresh fruit, and rabbits from Australia 

 reaches Manchester and from there is distributed among the consumers of 

 the West and Nortli. but such produce comes either via London or Liver- 

 pool and is subject to manv handlings and to much unnecessary expense. 



The consuming [Kjpulation in th^' immediate vicniity of the Manchester 

 Shi]) Canal is over 2,000,000. A\'ithin a radius of 75 miles, containing 

 177 important towns, there is .1 population of 12^ millions, and the ^Lm- 

 chester docks are nearer than any other port to every one of these towns. 

 Furthermore, it is the ])ractice of i)uyers from more distant towns to visit 

 the Manchester markets regularly, so that this city is in reality the mart or 

 trading centre lor an enormous jxipulation. Here is a community numbering 

 (juite twice the populali(.n ol' Australia and New Zealand, and it is a 

 communitv possessing unusual purchasing cajiacily, still it e.innot boa-^t - 

 or Austral), I eaiuH 1 boast — a direct steamship serxice to it. 



Till': Ship Canal. 



The Manchester Ship ("anal is t<M) well kii:)wn to necessitate a de.scrip- 

 tion here, and moreover, a description ol this snperli work by any one but 

 a harbour engineer could not be adeijuate ; but the following facts might 

 be briefly stated, as they may !"■ of general interest : — 



Till- canal and docks cost ^" r6, 796.925. 



'J'he Ship ("anal is 35^ miles in length. I'roin the barton .\i|ueduct to 

 the MaiKJiester Docks the bottom width is 170 feet and the depth of the 

 raual lluoughoul, and at the Decks, is 28 feet. 



