134 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



May. 1915. 



Concerning Future Production of Apples 



A MEMORANDUM has beem prepared 

 for the British ColumT)la Fruit 

 Growers' Association touching on 

 some of the ess«ntlal conditions affecting 

 the success of Canada's apple industry. The 

 points covered Include: Firstj the produc- 

 tion of apples In the United States; second, 

 the possibilities of Western Canada as a 

 market for apples; third, the influence of 

 United States apples In Canadian markets; 

 fourth, Canada's orchard Industry; and, 

 fifth, Brltisih Columbia's apple industry. Thp 

 bulletin was prepared with the object of 

 showing the need for greater protection for 

 Canadian apples. As the points touched 

 upon are of almost as great interest to ap- 

 ple growers in the other fruit-growing 

 provinces of Canada as they are to those ol 

 British Columibia, the following extracts 

 from the memorandum are here given: 

 Production in the United States. 

 In the period 1900 to 1910 the average 

 coamnercial production of apples in iih?* 

 United States was about 35,000,000 barrels, 

 which, in relation to the demand, usually 

 ensured fair prices to producers. The In- 

 dustry naturally began to expand, and by 

 1912 it was evident that production had 

 overtaken demand. In 1914, the total pro- 

 duction, according to the United States De- 

 partment of Agriculture, equalled 86,300,- 

 000 barrels, of which albout 45,000,000 went 

 into commercial channels and much of the 

 balance went to waste. Prices declined to 

 a low level in 1912, and to a point disastrous 

 to the grower In 1914. 



In conjunction with the general increase 

 in the United States production and decline 

 in prices there must be noted tihe phenom- 

 enal development of apple-orcharding in the 

 four north-Tvestern states — Washington, 

 Oregon, Montana, and Idaho — -which sec- 

 tions are special competitors of British 

 Columbia. The north-Tvestem states were 

 almost negJigible in apple production even 

 as late as ten years agOj Tremendous areas 

 had 'been and were being planted, however, 

 estimated by the state departments at about 

 550,000 acres of apples; and though only i. 

 small portion of this is yet in bearing, the 

 - commercial production of 1914 was about 

 14,000 carloads. T(he most conservative es- 

 timates of those intimate with the facts 

 placed the estimated production at the 

 present rate of increase in these States in 

 1920 at 40,000 to 50,000 car-loads. 



The United States, generally, is evidently 

 reaching a period of very heavy pfoduction 

 of apples, and In the north-fwestern states 

 there will be a heavy overproduction In re- 

 lation to normal markets for these apples in 

 the United States. 



While prices were low in 1912, they were 

 disastrously so in 1914. In the past season 

 the north-western states consigned to west- 

 em Canada hundreds of car-loads, either 

 without any guarantee as to minimum price, 

 or with a guarantee of 30 cents a box on 

 the cars at .shipping point. Quite aside from 

 all the costs of growing the apples, the 30 

 cents does not equal the paoKlng and ship- 

 ping costs. 

 Western Canada as a Market for Apples. 

 It is in the four western provinces that 

 the British Goliumlbia apple crop must be 

 largely marketed. In 1913 the American 

 .shipments into this district aggregated 

 nearly 2,000 car-loads, and in 1914, despite 

 tremendous crops In Ontario and British 

 Columibia, they still equalled 556 car-loads; 

 the total consumption of the four western 

 provinces was about 3,475 car-loads in 1914. 

 The proportion of fruit from the different 

 sources of supply does not even suggest 

 the effect which the American supply has 

 had. and will continue erver-increasingly to 



have, unless the evil ibe remedied on the 

 price. 



It is true that, as to quantity, we have 

 more than heild our own. At a disastrous 

 sacrifice of value our apples have been sold 

 and put into consumption. The American 

 fruit, however, sets the price, and that with 

 the "C" grade article, which must be kept 

 off the United States markets for higher 

 grades, and which is siurplus stock. The 

 American fruit-grower is prepared to let 

 that surplus stock go outside his own besf 

 markets at any price calculated to equal his 

 out-of-pocket dliarges. These apples are 

 consigned or dumped to get something 

 back; preferably they are dumped on Cana- 

 dian markets. There is a sufficient surplus 

 to fill the whole of our market. 



Under present conditions the figure at 

 which the American will let this stuff go 

 sets the price. This figure is never fixed, 

 dropping lower and lower as the American 

 stock in hand gets more congested and as 

 the American loses confidence in his ability 

 to move it. In these conditions and against 

 these figures we have to market our entire 

 crop. Our growers have done so, com- 

 pelled to meet the slaughter-price quota- 

 tions, and unable in time to make fixed con- 

 tracts as to prices, an intolerable market 

 condition. Having disastrous American 

 prices for dumped fruit quoted against us 

 daily. It has taken all our energies to dis- 

 tribute our stuff and get it into the market 

 in preference to American. Had we at- 

 tempted to secure reasonable prices, there 

 Is an ever-ready supply of American apples 

 loaded on the cars to go on our markets. 

 Canada's Orchard Industry. 

 Notwithstanding the considerable im- 

 ports of American apples, Canada has 

 within her own, borders an ample produc- 

 tion of apples to meet all demands. Accord- 

 ing to the census of 1911, there were in 

 Canada 14,830,492 apple trees, of which 

 about 60 per cent, only were in bearing. 

 The average prodiuction is about 5,000,000 

 barrels per year, equal to 15,000,000 boxes. 

 ' Canada exports about 1,250,000 barrels per 

 year. The capital invested in the orchard 

 industry of the Dominion in 1910 was es- 

 timated by W. W. Moore, Chief of the Mar- 

 kets Division, Department of Agriculture, 

 Ottawa, at $127,000,000. 



British Columbia's Orchard Industry. 

 Encouraged by both the Governments and 

 by the favoraible market conditions prevail- 

 ing up to 1910, there was a general develop- 

 ment of the orchard industry in British 

 Columbia, increasing, according to the cen- 

 sus, from 8,100 acre-s in 1900 to 33,606 acres 

 in 1910; and In 1913, according to the Pro- 

 vincial orchard survey, to 38,200 acres, an 

 increase In thirteen years of 372 per cent.; 

 73.6 per cent, of the trees are apples, and in 

 1910 the percentage of those of bearing age 

 was only 28.3 per cent. The value of Brit- 

 ish Columbia fruits In 1900 was $436,000, 

 and in 1910, also according to the census, 

 was $1,000,335. 



The Provincial Statistician in his report 

 values the British Columbia fruit crop, 1913, 

 at $1,022,216; the crop increased about 25 

 per cent. In 1914, but its total value was 

 only $996,071. 



The Department of Agriculture has es- 

 timated that the capital directly invested 

 in our orchard industry amounts to over 

 $20,000,000, while there are directly inter- 

 ested some 2,500 to 2,800 orchard-owners. 

 The British Columibia apple crop is steadily 

 Increasing In quantity: 1912 being 430,000 

 boxes; 1913, 477,000 boxes; and 1914, 685,- 

 000 boxes. 



Tlie statements of orchard areas and pro- 

 duction show amply that all of Canada's 



apple consumption can readily be supplied 

 from within our own borders. British 

 Columibia has always looked to finding an 

 ample market in Western Canada for the 

 product oif our rapidly growing orchards. 

 The destructive and eminently unfair 

 American competition is the only essential 

 reason why we should not get the market. 

 It is true that we can market our apples 

 by accepting low prices. But this means 

 ruin to our growers, and the destruction of 

 our orchard industry would be a serious 

 thing for our province. The orchard indurs- 

 try is a fundamental one, and it is of the 

 greatest consequence to our mercantile life 

 that it succeed. 



If the failure of the fruit industry would 

 be bad for British Columbia, it would he 

 equally bad for tihe prairie provinces. Brit- 

 ish Columibia buys annually from the 

 prairies about $12,000,000 of grain, flour, 

 meat, hay, and other agricultural products. 

 This is a valuahle asset for the prairies, 

 especially Alberta. Interprovincial trade- - 

 trade within Canada — we all desire to fos- 

 ter. Its advantages are great, and the ques 

 tion, in this aspect, is a national one. 



In another way. the consumers of the 

 prairies and of British Columbia are vitally 

 interested in the success of our industry 

 The wholesale fruit trade Is highly organ- 

 ized, and dominated by a powerful, almost 

 monopolistic, organization, known as the 

 Nash houses or the American ring. The 

 supply of imported fruit in our markets 

 and its price rests with the wholesalers. 

 The records of the Department of Agricul- 

 ture show tliat, as long as there is no 

 British Columibia fruit of any certain kind 

 on the market, these houses hold down the 

 importations and hold up the prices. Brit- 

 ish Columibia fruit brings down these price.t 

 at once, and the quantity increases. Were 

 there no British Columbia fruit, the jobbers 

 would join together to control entirely the 

 supply of imported fruit, and increase the 

 r.ate of their profits. The consumer would 

 be liand.'capp<>d permanently in h:s efforts 

 to get a liberal supply of fruit at a moderate 

 price. 



The demand Is for increased protection 

 This Increase must be to the point of suffi- 

 ciency — adequacy. The present duty Is 40 

 cents per barrel and 13 1-3 cents per box. 

 These figures were originally fixed by the 

 rough-and-ready method of considering tho 

 quantity of the contents of the package — 

 rougihly, a barreJ contains three times as 

 much fruit as a box — without taking into 

 consideration the quality and greater rela- 

 tive cost of production (as to packing and 

 package) of the boxed article. That the in- 

 crease in the duty be adequate is essential. 

 Ontario is responsible for the suggestion 

 that the figures should be $1 per barrel and 

 33 1-3 cents per box. If $1 be taken as the 

 proper figure for the barrel, it s^iould be 

 40 to 50 cents on the box. Meantime, to 

 avoid possible contention, Brltisih Columbia 

 would concede that 35 cents per box would 

 be adequate. 



"The Disease Resistance of Potatoes," is 

 the title of Bulletin No. 179 of the Vermont 

 Ag-ricultural Experiment Station. Burling- 

 ton, Vt.. The Virginia Polytechnic Insti- 

 tute. Blacksbursr. V.-\., in Bulletin 306. de- 

 scribes the "Preparation of Nicotine Ex- 

 tracts on the farm." The Connecticut Ex- 

 periment Station, New Haven. Conn., de- 

 scribes "Snrav Treatment for Orchards" in 

 Bulletin 184. and "Tests of Soy Beans" in 

 Bulletin 185. The University of Florida, 

 Gainesville. Fla.. in Bulletin 125 deals with 

 "Tomato Insects," "Root-Knot," and 

 "White Mould." The Iowa Collesre of 

 Ae^riculture, Ames. Iowa, ii^ Bulletin 153. 

 K-ives the results of "An Apple Orchard 

 Survey of South Mills.'" 



