The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-05-08
FRUIT SELLING IN LONDON.

HnSilsh market from abroad Is done
in two ways One is through SOCIAL
ed brokers' although they are real
ly auctioneers pure and simple. an,
the other is through dealers" or pri
vate statesmen. The comparativ,
merits of the two methods of sellins
are variously estimated, and the onl,
sure way of arriving at a just opin
ion would seem to be by experience
1t appears to be true that the trend
of the business today is in the di
rection of the private-treaty sales
men. Practically all the California
seedless oranges Sold in Great Brit.
ain are disposed of through the deal
ers, and the same holds true of Cape
fruit, or South Africans" as they
are called.
The Importance of London as a fruit
market is becoming less every year.
/ OF course, with it's enormous popula-
ton, it will always be a large mar.
ket for its own needs, but as a dis
tributing center, it is rapidly giving
way to Liverpool and Glasgow. es-
pecially so far as the apple trade is
concerned. The apple is by far the
most important fruit coming to the
British market. American apples are
very popular, led by such varieties as
the Newtown Pippin and the Hood
River. The only objection urged IS
that of size. The most popular sizes
are those ranging from 100 to $50 a
crate, whereas some of the arrivals
from Oregon and California run as
large as 70 or 80 per crate. The Eng
fish retail trade does not want the
extra large apple. Fruit is sold by
the pound, and the number of fruit
that can be obtained in a fixed weight
plays a large part in it's sales.
The best prices, however, are OBJ.
tanned for Tasmanian and Australian
fruits. This is due not to any infer
iority of the American varieties, but
to circumstances of the apple market
Most of the American apples intend
ed for the United Kingdom are ship
ped from the interior to New York ,r
Boston, and put into cold storage,
where they remain for about six
If this were not done the
English market would be gIutted, and
fruit would have to be sold at prices
that would not pay the growers. Cold |
storage extending over a period Of |
six months is not the best means of |
the flavor of a fruit, and /
he American apple suffers. On the !
)ther hand. the Australian and Tas-
nanian crops being six months later
han the American, the fruit comes
lirect from the orchard with its or
ginal flavor almost unimpaired. The
commercial advantages of cold stor-
Ige as a method of regulating the
upply of fruit, and preventing the
Quitting of the market are becoming
ecognized in Great Britain; and, in
he near future, the English crop, in
tead of being all sold off before the
rival of the American fruit, will
verlap and seriously compete there
With.
The importation and handling of
american fruit has become such an
industry that representa-
ives of both auctioneers' and private
reaty houses take yearly trips to the
United tSates, visiting all the promin-
mt fruit centers, and it should be an
asy matter for growers to get in
ersonal touch with them. English
callers and brokers who have recent
Y returned from the western part
f the United States express grave
ears that there is imminent danger
overnroduction of American fruit,
} be followed inevitably by a glut-
I'd market the possible result to be
OF merely a lowering of prices and
reduction of profits, but drop that
ill mean a distinct loss to the
merican grower on this years crop.
United States Commercial Agent
Jhelpley. 2