Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-12-01
THE RAISIN INDUSTRY.
what IL Doing to Open an Eas'-
ern Market.

what lS Doing To open nh
ern Market.
Messrs. VIM, T. Coleman l. Co. have
done and are doing great deal 10 open
the Eastern markets to California raj
Sins. 1t is no simple matter to take
mn new brand of goods and replace in the
markets of the world an article that has
been in use for generations, which Is
known to consumers and dealers every
where. and whose quality suits the
tastes of the people. When, as in the
case of California raisins, the new goods
are from part of the world heretofore
unknown, as producers of such
goods the task is much harder. Even
conceding that the quality and style OF
the new goods are superior to the old,
they will not make their way into the
market without pushing, at least not
rapidly.
At the moment it is conceded that the
California raisin pack is equal to any OF
foreign growth, in all respects, and bet
ter than q great deal of that which
comes from Spain. Yet the very infe..
rior condition of the Valencia pack OF
the present year is being used by GER
tain unscrupulous dealers to depress the
market for the crop Of this State. The
door stuff is bought cheap, brought over
here and thrown on the market. Quo
tations based on sales of such poor
grades are industriously circulated with
the view of cheapening rais ms OF all
grades. Referring to this IN the pres
ent instance San Francisco paper says:
sThey have been laying great stress
in their circulars upon the low price
that valencias were selling at in New
York. They have forgotten to tell the
Door deluded grower that these Valen-
ca raisins quoted arrived in a sweated,
damaged condition, and were rotting;
they forgot to tell the grower that they
we're asking him to bid with his fine CAL
ifornia layered raisins against these
poor, retting, steaming Valencia raisins,
packed loose in tifty-pound.b boxes But,
glad of any excuse, they have been del
uging the State with circulars and call
ing the attention of the grower to the
low prices, and have been forcing him
to compete.
Messrs. Coleman & Co. have taken
hold of this matter with
great energy and wisdom, and it is very
much owing to their efforts that the
market has been maintained in the face
of these infamous efforts of designing
persons to lower the price for the fine
goods sent on from California. In re-
ferring to this matter the Grocer and
Country Merchant of San Francisco
says:
IMPROVED CONDITION OF THE RAIsiN
TRADE.
At one time this fall influences SCENE d
to operate against California raisins in
the markets East This was due not to
lack Of demand, but to the apparent
fear on the part of some, that other
shippers would steal a march on them
in marketing the fruit. But the dis
turbance in prices passed quickly under
brisk demand, and raisins are now going
overland rapidly, and realizing good
prices. In fact, California raisins are
now commanding better prices in the
New York market than the Malaga
product. This remark of course applies
particularly to high grade fruit. The
quality of Malaga fruit received at New
York this fall has been for the most part
poor, and some of it very poor. Both
Valencias and Malagas seem to have been
pushed forward to market before they
were properly cured. The consequence
is that the fruit has become seriously
damaged in transit, and much of it is un-
saleable at any fair price. In case of
California raisins, dealers have come to
realize that they have intrinsically more
merit than the bulk of Malaga brands,
and that in keeping qualities the Cali.
fornia fruit is exceptionally good. The
very low figures at which Valencias
have been quoted in New York have
been the basis for quoting low prices for
California product by dealers here, when
the fact is that the Valencia raisins,
which were selling at 4d@55c,
were only sold at these rates
on account of their unmer-
chantable condition, and the risk in.
volved in handling them. Com parison
between these and Californ ia fruits is
entirely out of the question, either in
the matter of price or quality. The
fact is that Spanish producers, anxious
to market their goods in advance of Cal
ifornia raisins, shipped uncured fruit
which sweated and spoiled before reach.
ing New York. 1t is unreasonable to
suppose that producers and dealers here
will attempt to compete with this fruit.
We say now, for the benefit of growers,
that the price of Valencia raisins in New
York this year, really has no effect on
the price of desirable California raisins
at all. The two do not come in
competition. The best brands are now
commanding $l.S5@Sl 80 per box for
London layers, and $l.70@Sl so for
loose muscatels fob, while good aver
age brands are selling at 5@l0c per box
less. Ralsin packers who have exercised
proper care in putting up the fruit, and
who have worked with the purpose of
establishing q reputation for their brands.
have done well this year, and some have
laid the foundation for fortune. What
il required is, to use their head, study
taste in packing, and show perseverance
In discovering the requirements of trade.
When it is remembered that only year
ago o few Eastern importers were
lighting California raisins, and de
termined to keep them out of Eastern
markets, and that now these goods are
known and purchased in every city of
this country, and that in Chicago, and
west, south and north of that great dis.
tributing market, they constitute per-
haps three-fourths of the supply, pro-
ducers are to be congratulated. Thanks
to few men, the standing Of California
raisins has been upheld, and the foes
of California producers have been van
quished.
Whether the present position would
have been given these grades but for the
efficient and almost warlike service of
VIM. T. Coleman & Co., we leave our
readers to Judge.