10 April, 1918. J Standardized Paclcing and Gradiny of Fruit. ^^39 



Before giving reasons for this belief, it may be as well to point 

 out some of the changes in the present methods of marketing and distri- 

 buting our fruits which will be necessary to establish standardized pack- 

 ing and grading on proper lines, and to give the fullest effect to the 

 system. This will lead to a consideration of the defects which exist 

 under our present methods, and tlie reasons for the introduction of the 

 legislation which has been enacted for the purpose of remedying or at 

 least mitigating these defects. 



The system at present in vogue in Victoria under which our fruits 

 are prej^ared for market, and whereby they are distributed to the con- 

 suming public, is practically the same as that which existed thirty years 

 or more ago, when the average acreage did not amount to more than 

 25 per cent, of the production of to-day. At the beginning of that 

 period, none of the large fruit-producing centres in the irrigation areas 

 north of the Dividing Range had been established. The large fruit- 

 growing centres since opened up in the Diamond Creek, Bendigo, Bacchus 



Oranges exposed for sale at auction, New York. (Reprinted from 

 "Co-operation in Agriculture.") 



Marsh, Ovens Valley, Portland, Pakenham, Stawell, Somerville, and 

 Timboon districts did not exist. In addition, many large individual 

 orchards all over the State had not come into being. Even in the older 

 fruit-growing districts, the area which has been planted during the period 

 under notice has more than doubled. The growth of the local consuming 

 public in the same period has not increased in proportion to the rate 

 of production, as the population of the State from 1887 until 1917 has 

 increased only 55 per cent. In spite of this huge increase in production, 

 the facilities for distribution of fruit have not been increased; in fact, 

 it is most probable that they have relatively decreased. The disappear- 

 ance of the fruit-hawker from the streets of Melbourne and suburbs 

 will be noticed by those of us. old enough to carry our memories back 

 some two or three decades. 



It is thought by many that the passing of the fruit hawker is mainly 

 due to the harshness of our municipal laws in the metropolitan area 



