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 OBSERVA Tier's 0" THE BC'STOM TARKFT 



An important feature of the course in fruit cr.rketinc given by the Pomology 

 Department is a trip to the Boston iicrkct. One day of this trip is devoted to 

 giving the boys an opportunity to visit packing houses and storages enroute to 

 Boston and the follovfing day is spent in and around the Boston Market, 



Here are soino of the things the boys saw and heard at the Boston Ilarket on 

 such a trip taken recently. 



They visited the Terminal liarket and the Auction Iiarket, At each of these 

 they sau fruit and produce uniformly graded and attractively packed in neat neu 

 packages. Then they vifent to the Faneuil Hall liarket. Here they had an opportunity 

 to observe the contrast vdth vrhat they had seen previouslyo Tf/hat did they see at 

 Faneuil Hall Liarket? 



1, Stacks of dii'ty v/eather beaten crates junble packed v/ith mixed grades and 

 various sizes in the same package. 



2, Numerous closed packages which failed to carry the markings required by 

 the i'lassachusetts Apple Grading Law, 



3, One lot of apples labelled "Fancy" which obviously v/as a poor grade of 

 drops with large soft bruises,- 



k» One box in i/^ich the following blemishes vrere observed in excessive amounts: 

 San Jose scale, Curculio^ leaf roller, bud moth and maggot e 



5. Golden Delicious apples jumble packed in cartons which bulged in all 

 dimensions , 



These conditions mentioned above were observed in lots of apples shipped in 

 from neighboring states as well as those from liassachusetts growers, 



6, Several lots carefully graded and uniformly sized, packed in neat cell 

 cartons „ These lots had eye appeal and were moving readily at good prices, 



Tv;o commission men explained to the boys some of the problems involved in the 

 sale of apples. Both stressed the point that vrell graded, neatly packed apples 

 will always move at the top of the market, but that there is a limit to the price 

 that housevfives will pay for apples. 



One man in particular who handles a large volume of fruit emphatically 

 denied that the Boston Market is a "sick" market for he could get as much for 

 good quality apples as could be obtained elsevfhere. His complaint was that the 

 best fruit is being sent to other markets and the less desirable grades are being 

 shipped to Boston, Both predicted that unless grovrers start moving Mcintosh in 

 greater volume a short crop will become a large crop at the end of the season, 



- — 0, C, Roberts 

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