The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1918-05-16
COOL WEATHER
PUTS CRIAIP in
BERRY MARKET
Cold. Rains on Coast and In Spo-
kane Cause Sluggish Demand
for Fresh Fruit
PRICE is AROUND S3.25 CRATE
Northwestern Fruit Exchange Sales
Manager Hopes for Stronger
Market Soon

With the shipment yesterday Of 600
crates, Kennewick's 1918 strawberry
season can be said to be on in earnest.
As usual at the opening of the season
some Of the first berries Of the week
were not of first class quality and
Were not packed as neatly as they
should have been. Yesterdays TO-
ceipts, however, showed marked inn
provement in both quality and pack.
The opening market is not altogeth-
er encouraging. The coast markets
are still full of the CALIFORNIA;, but
yesterday saw dealers endeavoring to
clean up on the CALIFORNIA; to make
way for the Northwest crop. The re-
.ent order of the. United States rail
road commission in reducing the train
service between Portland and Seattle
has helped considerably to clear the
situation and has prevented serious
glut in the strawberry markets Cd
the coast. Cold, rainy weather, not
only on the coast, but in Spokane as
well, has had its effect and the demand
has been unusually slow for this sea-
son Of the year.
Reports indicate that White Salmon
berries Will be in by the end of the
week and Hood Rivers by the end Of
aext week. These berries, however
will not become factor in the market
for some time after the first shipments
are made. No shipments have yet been
made to Montana, but here the Kenne-
wick berries will have to meet the
competition of the Arkansas berries
which are late this year.
The bulk Of the local crop is being
handled by the Kennewick- -Richland
Marketing Union, with H. G. Flechter,
sales manager of the Northwestern
Fruit Exchange, in charge of the mar
keting operations. Mr.. Flechter and
his assistant, ]. G. Welsh, arrived
from Seattle the first of the week and
will remain here until the berry sea-
son closes.
Mr.. FDechter said this afternoon
that he hoped for strengthening mar
ket as soon as the weather warmed up
in the marketing cities. He expects
to be able to get out the first full car
load tomorrow, after which carload
will be daily and the mar
keting territory, will be considerably
extended.
The Union has been holding the
market around 1925 TO $3.50 crate
and local cash buyers are today pay
ing s3.25.
Because of cool weather and slow
ripening the growers have been able
to keep up with the picking, but the
labor situation is anything but salts
factory. The closing Of school Friday
will undoubtedly help out consider
ably. as nearly all Of the children will
become berry workers. IL the weather
turns warm the labor problem is GO
ing to present rather a serious phase.
Mr.. Hunter, Of Spokane, u. s. labor
agent. arrived here today and will re-
main here for the next four or FIVE
days when he will be succeeded by
another representative Of the labor
bureau.
Mr.. Hunter is this afternoon con-
ferring with County Agent Lee M.
Lampson and F. H. Krug, local man.
ager for the Union, in an effort TO as
certain as nearly as possible the num-
ber of pickcrs that will be needed. As
soon as he has this information he will
endeavor thru the bureaus Offices in
eastern Washington, to bring in a sup
ply Of workers. ~