PACIFIC FISHERMAN 



81 



salmon in New York and other Eastern 

 markets, notwithstanding that there 

 were large quantities of Alaska and 

 Sacramento fall salmon, partly of du- 

 bious quality, in New York. 



I might mention here that the sal- 

 mon pack on the Oregon coast streams 

 during the year 1914 did not amount 

 to much. On the Sacramento, however. 

 a considerable quantity of salmon of 

 fair quality and good sizes were pack- 

 ed at very low cost. 



Quite a number of carloads of new 

 Puget Sound, Alaska, and also some 

 new Columbia river salmon were ship- 

 ped to Germany and to the Scandi- 

 navian ports before the war started, 

 but from that date on there was prac- 

 tically no business whatsoever in Ger- 

 many for months, and after that the 

 trade was very bad still, principally in 

 the higher grades. 



In Germany, which could do hardly 

 any export business, everybody tried to 

 save money, and while meat and all 

 general food stuff was very cheap, 

 there was only a very small demand 

 for smoked salmon, and the dealers 

 never ran short of salmon. 



With Germany practically unable 

 to import salmon from America, the 

 Scandinavian countries were over- 

 stocked. Norway would not allow any 

 salmon to be exported, and Sweden had 

 a hard time to get the salmon into the 

 country, at least through their own 

 ports, since the steamer companies in 

 New York were very particular in 

 taking cargo while the English navy 

 was controlling the whole trade, and 

 requested a permit from the Swedish 



Government countersigned by the 

 Uritish Consul in Gothenburg. The 

 same shipping conditions were pre- 

 vailing also to other countries. It was 

 unavoidable that the New York market 

 became overstocked again, and from 

 what I heard, from good sources, I can 

 see that the prices for mild-cured and 

 smoked salmon are very low, and will 

 be low for quite some time even if the 

 war should be over or the undisturbed 

 export to all countries concerned be 

 free, the enormous high course of tne 

 dollar, the incredibly high freight rates 

 and the small demand in Europe, which 

 results from the intention of the peo- 

 ple to save money, will be the draw- 

 back to a normal development of the 

 trade. 



Here is an example: Figuring that 

 a carload of good salmon would cost 

 in New York $4,000, and that this 

 amount of dollars could be bought, un- 

 der normal circumstances, in Ger- 

 many at 16,900 marks, and that the 

 freight in common space, at a rate 

 of 25 shillings per ton, would be about 

 460 marks, the insurance 40 mark:, 

 altogether M. 17,400. The figures would 

 be, under the now prevailing circum- 

 stances, for a carload costing $4,000, — 

 M. 18,400, the freight at 130 shillings 

 per ton, M. 2,390, and the war and 

 marine insurance 540 marks, for a 

 carload delivered in Europe, 21,430 

 marks. 



There is very little chance thai ihe 

 course of the dollar and the expenses 

 for freight, etc., even short after the 

 war. will be more favorable to the 

 trade. 



The Steelhead market last spring 

 was normal and when the first new fish 

 came to the German market, the old 

 stock was practically sold out, so that 

 the prospects were good until the war 

 started. The sleelhead trade was hurt 

 by the war more than the mild-cured 

 salmon trade, and during t lie months 

 of August and September, which are 

 supposed to be the best months for 

 the sale of these goods, practically no 

 business was done. It took my firm 

 more than two months to sell one car- 

 load of frozen steelhead, while we sold 

 during the same time last year, six 

 carloads. 



There was no possibility to ship 

 Steelheads to Switzerland, which with 

 her large number of big hotels and 

 restaurants always has been a good 

 customer. One can realize that the 

 export to the belligerent countries was 

 also impossible. The Scandinavian 

 countries use very little Steelhead and 

 as the outlook was so bad most of the 

 Steelhead on the Columbia river has 

 been put in cans. 



The general situation for the coming 

 season for the cold storage industry, 

 as I look at it, will not justify the pack 

 of large quantities of any kind of sal- 

 mon, and especially the Alaska mild- 

 curer should bear in mind thai enor- 

 mous sums in money were lost during 

 ihe last few years and that besides the 

 far too large stock of 1913, the quality 

 and principally Ihe size of the fish, 

 under no circumstances will justify the 

 prices paid for these fish, and that in- 

 dividual fishermen or small packers 

 should not forget that the mild-cured 



F. Klevenhusen & Co. 



Bremen, Germany 



Packers, Smokers and Commission 

 merchants 



* » 



Oldest 

 Rouse 

 in tbe 

 Salmon 

 trade 

 in 

 Germany 



« « 



mm of Mild Cured and Frozen Salmon 



Agents for COLUMBIA & NORTHERN FISHING AND PACKING COMPANY 



