Tlie (anadian fjorticoltorist 



Volume XXVIII 



NOVEMBER, 1905 



Number 11 



METHODS OF SELLING FRUIT 



A. E. SHERRIXGTOX, WALKERTON, ONT. 



AFTER visiting all of the principal 

 fruit markets in England and Scot- 

 land, I am more convinced than ever that 

 cooperation among the growers and ship- 

 pers of Canada and other countries is an 

 absolute necessity if the growers are to re- 

 tain that market and receive a share of the 

 profits on the products of the orchard. I 

 saw some dickering in Great Britain last 

 summer that could scarcely be called square 

 dealing, in fact, it was anything but square. 

 Who was the loser in this particular trans- 

 action? No one but the shipper. The 

 commission merchant had his commission 

 and was at no loss. The time is coming 

 when our fruit and other produce will be 

 sold F.O.B. here, instead of by consignment. 



Retail merchants I saw expressed them- 

 selves as very much pleased with our 

 method of cooperation in packing apples, 

 and agreed that all products should be sold 

 direct, and not handled on commission. 



I interviewed several retail fruiters in re- 

 gard to shipping apples in boxes. A num- 

 ber of them had had no experience with 

 boxes, but said they were willing to give 

 them a trial, believing that they would be 

 very convenient for their trade. Others 

 who had handled apples in boxes were per- 

 fectly satisfied that it is the right package 

 for the finer sorts. 



During the short time that I was in Eu- 

 rope I had no difficulty in arranging with 



reliable parties to take all their requirements 

 from our cooperative association F. O. B. 

 here. If the right kind of man was over 

 there one season he would be able to place 

 nearly all the apples grown in Ontario by 

 straight sales to reliable parties. It does 

 not pay to send anything to Europe but 

 first-class goods. When good fruit was 

 offered the buyers vied with each other in 

 bidding, but when the goods were inferior 

 bidding was slow. 



It is a great mistake to mark the barrels 

 wrongly. I saw some apples on Covent 

 Garden market, London, put up at Col- 

 born, Ont., marked XXX Duchess. I 

 opened some of the barrels and found one 

 marked XXX Duchess which had not a 

 Duchess in the barrel. They were green 

 apples without a particle of color. An- 

 other barrel contained Duchess, but only 

 number two, and marked XXX. This kind 

 of packing will not do. It can be prevented 

 cooperation in packing. 



The need for greater cooperation on the 

 part of Canadian growers becomes more 

 apparent every year. Cooperation will 

 mean better packing and higher prices and 

 will strengthen the fruit industry in all its 

 branches. ^^'herever it has been given an 

 honest trial in Ontario it has been a great 

 success. The more of these associations 

 we can have the better for the growers of 

 the province. 



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