Produce Prices

(Unless otherwise stated, quotations are in Australian currency, Australian dollar (February 12) equals New Zealand $1.0663 (buying) $1.0617 (selling); Fiji $1.2607 (buying), $1.2190 Western Samoa $0.9093 (buying), $0.8953 (selling); US, $1.4900 (buying), $1.4850 se mg); UK, 62.8697 np (buying), 65.8804 np (selling); French Pacific. 136.07 (buying), 134 14 (selling); Tonga, $1.1131 (mid rate).

Copra

Copra industries are controlled through copra boards in PNG, the Solomons, the GEIC, both Samoas, Fiji, Tonga, the Cooks and the US Trust Territory. New Hebrides, French Polynesia and New Caledonia don't have boards and copra is either sold individually by growers to overseas buyers or used locally.

NEW GUINEA; The board, with planters' reps, directs distribution and sales and pays planters. Shipments are made to UK, European markets and to Australia and Japan, and coco nut oil mills on New Britain.

Latest prices per metric tonne, delivered main ports, were.- hot-air dried, $340; FMS, $337; smoke-dried, $335.

FIJI: —The board fixes prices on Philippines copra, taking into account freight, taxes, selling costs, shrinkage, etc. Prices recently were: Ist grade, $510.50; 2nd grade, $500.50; sub standard (ss), $BO.

WESTERN SAMOA; The board makes pay ments to producers through its agents—local firms—and sells the copra on the open market with a portion to Abels Ltd, NZ. Recent prices per ton fob: Ist quality, $258; 2nd quality, $244.

TONGA: All copra is sold to the board which sends it to Europe and the open market. Recent prices to growers were T 5344.40 Ist grade, and T 5332.40 2nd grade, per ton.

Per coconut 4.6 seniti.

SOLOMON IS: —All production through board at prices based on Philippines rates. Output goes to the UK, Japan, Australia and the rest to the open market. Recent prices were: hot air-dried, $200; smoke-dried, $lB6 per ton at BSIP ports (Honiara, Yandina and Gizo).

GILBERT AND ELLICE: —3c per lb (Ist grade); 2c per lb (2nd grade).

NEW HEBRIDES: Copra sold direct by planters to France and Japan. Official market price on Fabruary 8, Marseilles, was 345 French francs (per 100 kilos).

COOK IS: Copra goes to Abels Ltd, of Auckland, who operate NZ's copra crushing mill. Prices for January-March, packed shipping weights f.o.b. were fixed at SNZ2S4 61 Ist grade, hot-air dried, $NZ252.99 Ist grade sun-dried, and $NZ251.79 standard grade.

NIUE: —AII copra is sold to the Niue Develop ment Board which sends it to Abels Ltd, of Auckland. Prices for January-June 1974 f.o.b. per ton will be $NZ251.22, Ist grade, hot air-dried; $NZ249.49, Ist grade, sun-dried; and $NZ248.20, standard grade.

US TRUST TERRITORY: —Price per short ton SUS 182.50 (grade 1), SUS 172.50 (grade 2), SUS 162.50 (grade 3), delivered district centres; $170.00 (grade 1), $160.00 (grade 2), $150.00 (grade 3), picked up outer islands.

Other Produce

BECHE-DE-MER. Chang Sing Loong Co, Suva, quote 60c Fijian per lb (4 in. to 10 in.).

Honiara. —Best price paid is $1 per lb dried, for Ist grade; 70 cents per lb for 2nd grade.

CHILLIES. —SoIomons, Honiara, long red dried 12 cents per lb. Tabasco 22 cents per lb first grade.

'Bird's eye' (under in.) sun-dried, FAQ Grade Raba Raba, up to 30 cents per lb (Eastern Papua). Other grades are Long and U/FAQ 15-19 cents per lb.

COCOA. —lslands rates are based on Ghana prices. Ghana price on February 14 was spot £stg 671 ton, c.i.f.; UK, Continent.

January 11, in store Rabaul, export quality, $B3O per ton delivered ex wharf Sydney $935.

Solomons. —Delivered to Agriculture Dept, offices in Honiara and Auki 25 cents per lb dried beans first grade, 20 cents second grade.

COFFEE. —PNG: Good quality. A grade, 51 per lb; B grade, 50c, C grade, 49c, Y grade, 49c (ex-store Sydney).

W. Samoa. —Recently, WSTEC ground and dried beans, 60 sene per lb wholesale.

CROCODILE SKlNS.— Honiara: $1.89 to $2.25 per inch.

GREEN SNAIL SHELL.— I 3-14 cents per lb.

LIMES. —Niue Development Board pays growers NZ3c per lb for Ist grade fruit and NZlc per lb for 2nd grade fruit.

PASSIONFRUIT. —Niue Development Board pays growers NZ6c per lb for good fruit.

PAPUAN GUM DUMAR. —Steamships Trading Co Ltd, Samarai, quotes SA2OO per long ton FOB Samarai.

PEANUTS. PNG: Sydney agents reported recently f.0.b., Lae; Kernels —white Spanish 19c lb.

PEARL SHELL. —Torres Strait Pearlshellers' Assn has no recent quotes. Solomons.

Honiara, mother of pearl blacklip 15c lb.

Cook Islands. —Penrhyn, 20-25 c per lb del.

Rarotonga 33-35 c per lb. French Polynesia. — Tuamotu, Gambier shells, to $l,OOO per ton, Papeete. Fiji. —3sc per lb.

PYRETHRUM. —NG growers 17c lb, flowers.

RICE (Aust): — PNG: Dried brown, 25 kilo bags, $295 per metric tonne. Vitamin enriched white, 25 kilo bags, $3OO per metric tonne, all f.o.w. Sydney/Melbourne.

Pacific Islands: Calrose med. grain, white, 56 lb bags, $l7O a metric tonne. Kulu long grain white, 56 lb bags, $lB5 a metric tonne.

All prices f.o.w. Sydney/Melbourne.

RUBBER. —PNG prices are based on Singapore rates which on December 23 were: No. 1 RSS (Malayan cents a kilo f.0.b.), February, 262.50- 235.00; March, 260.00-233.50.

SANDALWOOD. -New Hebrides, landed on the beach, Vila and Santo, $lBO per ton "on consignment".

SHARKS FINS. Chang Sing Loong Co, Suva, offers 75c per lb for Ist quality, 45c for mixed quality.

TROCHUS.—BSIP 7-10 cents per lb. Fiji 8-9 cents per lb.

TURTLE SHELL.—BSI; No market at present.

VANILLA BEANS. Prices recently were; White and yellow label processed standard packs, $7.50; green label $7.40, c.i.f., Sydney Tonga.—sT4.2o, f.0.b., Nukualofa; $T4.50. Mel bourne.

Uk, Us Quotes

COPRA. —LONDON, January 25, Philippines, in bulk, $U5704.37 per long ton, c.i.f.

Better times

for Rotuma

Mathematically, Rotuma should be earning much more from copra now than it did at the time hurricane Bebe struck in October, 1972, although that big “blow” cut production by 75 per cent. The little island, about 240 miles north-west of Fiji, produced 300 tons of copra a year in pre-Bebe days. In 1973, it shipped barely 75 tons of copra to Suva.

In October, 1972, copra in Fiji was quoted at $60.25 to $70.25 a ton depending on grade. Now it is an unprecedented $413 to $423 a 1973. Thus, the current income should more than offset the produc tion loss, and leave a little over to help take care of inflation.

Rotuma, the island which sent a boatload of hurricane relief supplies back to Suva because the islanders thought they could manage on their own, and that the supplies could be put to better use elsewhere, has lear ned a lesson from Bebe. Instead of relying on copra as the main source of income, it has started a diver sified agricultural programme.

It will be three or four years yet before copra production is back to normal. The crop diversification programme should not be difficult because Rotuma’s rich volcanic soil can grow almost anything tropical, and grow it well.

The Rotuma Island Council, the Department of Agriculture and the people, working together, since the hurricane have planted 110 acres of coconuts, 160 acres of dalo, and 11 acres of citrus.