W. Samoa's Revitalised
p. 29 · Read in the full issue
Banana Industry
From Our Own Correspondent
Apia, Nov. 19.
rE Samoan banana industry, the foundations for which were laid by Sir George Richardson when Ad ministrator of W. Samoa, is now 17 years old.
From small and difficult beginnings, the export shipments grew into an important factor in the Territory’s economy and promised to surpass in value the two old-established export Industries of copra and cocoa-beans. They actually took first place in exports in 1940 and 1941.
Then, however, with the coming of American defence Forces, the banana in dustry suffered a disastrous reverse; the Samoans left their plantations and the exports dropped from 177,416 cases in 1941 to 79 897 cases in 1942, 64,373 cases in 1943 and 32.486 cases in 1944.
At present, however, there is a distinct recovery of the industry, a factor of which is the new trans-island road built by the Americans which has opened up large and fertile stretches of land for banana planting and facilitated trans port, by trucks to Apia. It is expected that exports in 1945 will amount to about 100,000 cases and that further increases may be counted upon in the future.
According to official figures, since 1928 a total of 1,908,893 cases of bananas have been exported to New Zealand with total value of £500,000.