THE FRUIT SEASON

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 78, 4 May 1929, Page 8

THE FRUIT SEASON

EXPORT ENDS MONDAY WEEK. PEARS IIEAYILY EXPORTED. Just liow hadly tlie two hail storms iiiterfercd with the aetivities of Jocal fruitgrowers, is proved by the fact that up to tlie end of April, a tota] of Ilo,9Rl cavses of fruit had been exported from Hastings. \Testerdav f consignment of 3500 cases was despatched, and it is expeeted that "finis" will he written to tlie cxport season on Mondav week. In conl'ersation with a Tclegrapli reporter tliis morning, Mr A. L. Baumgart, Hawke's Bay representative of the New Zealan'd Fruitgrowers' Federation, stated tliat he expeeted the tota] export for tlie season wonld probably reacli 135.000 cases, as against last vear's 194.000. On Mondav a consignment of 5000 oa.so.s of pears lield in cool store will go forward for sliipment by the Rangitikei. . Mr Baumgart stated that a pleasing ftature of tliis vear's export was the increase in the pear consignments. wliich un-to-dafp fnrmed nlmost a tliird

of the total cases exported. He pointed out tliat growors wlio were hit by the hail storms found ■ their apples practicallv useless for export, ro they concentrated on pears, tliis being the niain reason for the big increase. Last year, tlie total pears exported was n mere bagatella, but tliore is every prospect of pears becoming a very important export fruit from tliis district. Tn eonfirmation of tliis, Mr Baum- j gart pointed out tliat last year an ex- 1 nerimental sliipment of 300 erates ot Nelis pears was sent from New Zeahind to Soutli Africa and so well did tliis experiment tuni out, tliat tliis ytar, arrangements have been made fo- tlie sending of 3000 erates. Tlye Doniinion is also experimentin'i with a sliipment of 50 erates of 10 differcnt varietics of pears for Soutli Ameriea. and it is worthv of note tliat of the ten varieties, no less tlian seven have been allotted to Haivke's Bay. The seven varieties were Winter Cole. Josephine, C'onfevenee, Clairgeau, Paekham's, Triumph, Beurre Diel and F. Barry. Mr Baumgart, in answer to a question, stated that quite a big percentage of the exported fruit had been sent to the Oontinenta) markets and also Soutli Ameriea. a largc consignment of Delicious going to tlie lattepiaee. lTe stated tliat tlie Continental markets wero experimented with last year and so promising were they that they would be more liberally treated this year. especially with the large grppti varieties. The monthlv export figures from Hastings to date are as follows:— February 0187. March 50,644. April 59,150. and it is estimated that the total will reach 135.000 hv tlie end of next weck, and consiclenng the hail storm periods. tliis must he regarded us very satisfactory.