A HOPEFUL OUTLOOK FOR THE APPLE MARKET. 



413 



collected for the St. Louis exposition next 

 year. 



"Fruit Inspection and the Export Trade," 

 was the subject of a paper read by W. A. 

 MacKinnon, chief of the Fruit Division, 

 Ottawa. This led to considerable discus- 

 sion, to the appointment of a committee, 

 and finally to a resolution recommending 

 that the federal government be asked to 



pass legislation similar to the Canadian 

 Fruit Marks Act. This is a high, but well- 

 deserved tribute to the success of the meas- 

 ure as operated by our Department of Agri- 

 culture. 



Election of officers: President, J, H.^ 

 Hale, So. Glastonbury, Mass.; Secretary, 

 Prof. Craig, Cornell. 



A HOPEFUL OUTLOOK FOR THE APPLE MARKET. 



C~^ AN ADA has unquestionably a large 

 crop of apples', notwithstanding 

 -^ the fact that in some sections 

 there is a falling off in the supply ac com- 

 pared with that of last year. For instance, 

 in the St. Hilaire district it is estimated that 

 the yield is not over 15,000 barrels, against 

 40,000 barrels last year. On the Island of 

 Montreal, however, the crop of Fameuse is 

 very large, and remarkably fine in quality, 

 filler, in fact, than for the past ten years. 

 In Ontario there is a big crop of winter 

 fruit; but west of Toronto there will be 

 quite a lot of seconds. East of Toronto the 

 quality is generally fine, and the yield good. 

 Not only have English buyers been survey- 

 ing the situation, but? French buyers are also 

 here, for their share of the crop ; so that 

 the prospects at present are that Canadian 

 apples will not go begging a market this 

 year, providing, of course, that too high 

 prices are not demanded by growers. A 

 considerable portion of the fruit has been 

 contracted in the west at $1.00 to $1.25 on 

 the tree, and in some instances $1.50 has 

 been paid for fancy red fruit. Receipts are 

 light, except for those local grown, which 

 are plentiful. Owing to the glowing re- 

 ports recently received from British mar- 

 kets there are strong inducements for ship- 

 pers to push forward their fall goods, the 

 early shipments having netted* them from 

 $1.50 to $3.00 per barrel as to quality, ac- 



cording to the statement of the principal of 

 a well known English house. In this mar- 

 ket choice St. Lawrence, Alexander, and 

 fancy red fruit has sold at $2.25 to $2.50 

 per barrel, and ordinary fruit, such as 

 Duchess, and green summer varieties, $1.50 

 to $2.00, and culled stock $1.00 to $1.25. 

 Winter apples are going forward pretty 

 freely from New York State, especially 

 from the Hudson River districts, consisting 

 of Greenings, Baldwins, Kings, and other 

 winter varieties, which is considered pretty 

 early, and before the fruit has fully ma- 

 tured. Remembering the disastrous re- 

 sults of former seasons through exporters 

 paying high prices, on the strength of a 

 short crop in Europe, these operators re 

 exercising a good deal of caution in their 

 forward purchases of winter fruit, and sev- 

 eral of our largest buyers are refusing to 

 pay over $1.25 for the fruit. Barrels are 

 scarce this year owing to the big demand, 

 and prices have advanced to 35 cents, and 

 as high as 38 cents has been paid in some 

 instances. For week ending August 29, 

 the shipments of apples from Atlantic ports 

 were 29,907 barrels, against 20,686 barrels 

 for the same week last year. The total 

 shipments for the season to the above date 

 were 57,389 barrels, as compared with 

 36,952 barrels for the same period last year. 

 — Montreal Trade Bulletin. 



