Rkets for Fish British. West Indies Latin American Countries
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\-\ D :::> 4G,L\ £ Fisheries and Environment P~ches et Environnement C 2..\ \ I .... Canada Canada 0049871 0 \ ~4-2. CANADA DfPAR TMfN T Of TRAD DFO , rary I MPO • Bibliotheque f AND CJ~~~RCE 1111\ l ~ l i lllll ll llllfl~ l~l! !!lll llll llll 12026083 :RKETS FOR FISH in the BRITISH. WEST INDIES and LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES I HD 9464 C211 1942 cooy 2 MARKETS FOR FISH IN THE BRITISH WEST INDIES and LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES THE LIBRARY BEDFORD INSTITUTE Of OCEANOGRAPHY 80X 1006 DARTMOUTH, N.S. 82Y 4A2 Reprinted from the Commereial J11/tlligt11ce Journot DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND COMMERCE COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCE SERVICE OTTAWA, CANADA 1942 r CONTENTS PAGE British West Indian Markets- Ilarbudos . ..... .. .. .. ........ ... ..... .... ........ ..... ............. 5 British Guiana ......... ... • ............... • ....... ........ .... .......... 5 Leeward Islands ....................... .. ......... ...... .... .. .. .... 5 Trinidad .............. .................... ........ · ····················· · 5 Windward Islands ....... ........ ............ ...... .. ... ..... .. .. .. .. · · · · 5 Bahamas .. ... ........ .. ....... ... ...... ........ ... .. ... • . 13 Jamnica . .... ................... ............... • ........ ... .. .. 14 British Honduras ... ... ......... ... ..... .. ....... ....... .. .. ...... • . H Latin American Markets- Cuba ... .. ...... ... .. ......... .... .... .. .......... .... .. .. .. 21 Dominican Republic . ........ .... ......... .. ...... .. ... .............. 44 Haiti. ........ .. ...... · . ··. ········ ······ ·· ·········· · ·········· ·· ·· .... 50 Puert,o Rico .... ... .. ........... .... .. ...... .... ......... ... .. .. 55 M exico ........ • ........ • ......... • . ························• ··· · ······· ···· 60 Costa Rica .. ..... .... ................ ...... ... .. .. .......... .. ...... 69 Nicaragua ..... .. ....... .. ... .... .... ... ................. ...... ... 69 Panamn. ....... ... .............. ...... ... ... .... ............. ........ .• .. 70 Colombia ....... .... ... .... ... ............................. .. ........ 70 Venezuela . ... ....... .... ..... .. .... .. ............. ....... • .. .. ... .... 70 Netherlands West Indies ........... .................................... ... 71 Argentina .. ..... • . ................. .. ... ...... ........ ............ 72 75 Brazil ....... ....... .. ... ..... ....... ... .... .. .. ............ ....... ... Bolivia............. ...... ................ .. ............... .. ............. 81 Chile.................... .... ... ... ........ ...... .......... 83 Ecuador....... ...... ... ... .......... ...... ....... ...... .. .. .... 84 Peru........... ... ............... .... .. ........... ...... .. ......... 85 56962-14 ~ := rJ N D~Nq 4- .::r 01 u 0\ d I BRITISH WEST INDIAN MARKETS BARBADOS, LEEWARD AND WINDWARD ISLANDS, TRINIDAD AND BRITISH GUIANA G. A. NEWMAN, CANADIAN TRADE COMMISSIONER Port of Spain, January 30, 1942.-The types of fish imported into the British West Indies (Eastern Group) and British Guiana are the direct outcome of economic conditions prevailing in these colonies. Most of the 1,360,000 inha'bitants of these over-populated territories are dependent on a.griculture for a livelihood, and during the years 1929 to 1939 when prices of sugar, the principal cash crop, declined from lls. 6d. per cwt. f.o, b. to 7s. 6cL per cwt., the coloured1agricultural worker experienced. a difficult time. During this period a worker received a ·wage of about 24 cents per day, of which hardly more than 7 cents was used for food. Purchased in two- or three cent quantities, it consisted of penny loaves, driblets of flour and rice, bits of salt fish or pickled meat, small cuts of cheese, dabs of :butter, and other easily divided low-priced foods. This demand provided a market for cheap fish suita:bly prepared for tropical conditions, for the dry salt Nova Scotia and Newfoundland codfish, pol.lock and hake, pickled mackerel and salmon, smoked herring and low-grade tinned salmon and sardines. Bulked together, such imports for the British West Indies (Eastern Group) and British Guiana in 1939 ·had a substantial value of $1,487,000. The total value comprised 69·5 per cent dry salt fish, 23·2 per cent canned fish, and 7 ·3 per cent pickled fish. Distribution values according to principal markets were as follows, the Canadian dollar being at a 9t per cent premium over tJhe B.W.I. dollar:- Imports of Fish by Types and Countrfos of Supply in 1939 Saited and Cured Fish Pickled F ish Canned Fish Values in B.W.I. Dollars Trinidad . ......... .. .... 388,986* 52,748 170,0GS British Guiana ... ...... ... 198,688 24,964 98,967 Barbados . ... ...... ... ... 235,353 11,121 57,739 Leeward Islands . 88,483 13,195 10,924 Grenada .... ... ....• . .. 56,784 4,224 5,524 St. Lucia .......... .. ... 34,185t l,459t 480t St. Vincent . ... .. ... .. 31,113t 427t l,766t 1,033,592 108,138 345,465 *Trinidad figures are for dry salt codfish only. t 1938 figures. DRY SAI/l' FISH Imports of dry salt fish into this territory have remained fairly steady during the past few years. In 1936 the estimated value was Sl,500,000, and it was only slightly lower, a:bout $1,034:,000, in 1939. Canada supplied 25 per cent of the total imports in the former year and 47 ·4 per cent in the latter, the note worthy percentage increase •being due to an e:xipanding market for Canadian pollock in British Guiana and impl'oved imports of Nova Scotian codfish into Trinidad as indicated in the following ta'ble, which shows total imports of dried, 5 66962-2 I FISH MARICE7'S IN 'l'HE B.IV.l. AND LA'l'lN AMERICA 7 l3ARBADOS, WL'fDWAR)) AND LEEWAJ,lO i[SLANDS These colonies without exception -are wholly dependent on agricultme as a source of income, and in all of them serious over-populati·on tends to depress wa.ges. Barbados.-The importation of culls a.ncl low-price<;! coclfo~h from Newfound land on consignment has met this colony's 11eed for very cheap fo.od 1 but it has closed the market to Canadian shippers 0£ higher-priced Novi). Scotian dry salt codfish . It is not surpl:isfog, therefore, that Canada s\1pplied only 13 per cent of t.he colony's dry salt and cured fish in 1939. Windward Islands.-The neighbouring islands of Grenada, St. Vincent, St. Lucia and Dominica obtained abo.ut 68 per cent of their total imports of dry salt fish from Newfoundland in the period 1934 to 1938. Much of it was transhippecl thy schooner from Barbados. Of the. four colonies St. Lucia was most favomable to Nova Scotian dry salt fish, imports being about equal to those from Newfoundland. LeeW(trd Islands.-Tbere is no distinction in the local customs figures between irnports frorn Canada and Newfoundland, but imports must consist of Newfoundland codfish and low-priced salt fish such as .pollack from Canada. Dominion export figures indicate that for the general area of the Leeward and Windward Islands exports from Canada 'have remained between 4,000 and 5,000 'hundredweights of codfish in recent years, while there has been a steady increase in the supply of dry salt pollack, hake, etc., from 4,628 hundredweights in 1934 to 8,691 'hundredweights in 1939. BRITISH GUIANA The resources of British Guiana are ,more var:i~~ than ,those .of the other colonies, but the majority of the population is still dependent o.u agriculture for a livelihood and in receipt of limited incomes. Large pollock is the principal type of dry salt fish imported. Since 1932, imports from Canada have increased steadily, and imports from the United Kingdom •have declined. This is attributed to lowered freight rate for shipments fro)ll Canada and a reduction in supphes from Iceland, on which United Kingdom exporters were dependent. T~INIDAP With an estimated pre-war population of 465,000, 'f1:inidad is the most industrialized of all the colonies in this territory. Expanding oilfi:eld operations and, mo.re recently, the construction of United States bases have contributed to the maintenance of a buying power that is considerably higher than in the other colonies. This has permitted Trinidad to become the prime market for comparatively high-priced Novtj. Scotian dry salt codfish, which -constitutes about 72 per cent oj the average total imports valued at $338,000 (B.W.I.) per annum. The demand is fo r medium, large and extra large white, thick codfish, but experience has shown that the best keeping fish is medium cured, dry salted codfish. As there is only a limitech number of Nova Scotian shippers, it was possible in 1937 to organize a Trinidad Expol'ters Oroup, which ensured more stabilized marketing in Trinidad. PRICES T he prices for Nova Scotian codfish in 1939 (pre-war) per cask c.i.f. Trinidad were 120s., 130s., and 1403. for medium, large and extra large fish ·respectively. At that time Newfoundland codfish was selling at $21 to $23 56962-2! 6 DEPARTMENT OF TRADE A.YD COMMERCE, CANADA salted or cured fish into each of the colonies of this territory, with figure:> for each of the principal sources of supply:- Trinidad Imports of Dry Salted Codfish 5-Year A\•crage 1939 1040 1934·38 Cwt. $B.W.I. Cwt. $D.W.T. Cwt. $D.W.I. Total .. ... .. .... 53,720 388,986 46,981 412,463 51.017 338,001 Canada .......... ... 35,237 279,622 34,052 318,557 34,017 244,365 Newfoundland .. ....• 17,878 105,078 12,849 93,354 13,9 13 76,343 Barbados bnvorts of Fish, Dry Saltecl or Smolt:ed 5-Ycar Avernge 1!)39 1940 1934-38 Qu intnls £ Quintnls £ Qui ntnls £ Total ..•.••.. ....... 42,637 49,032 33,002 42,902 46,537 56,952 Cnnndn . ......... 5,576 6,412 5,124 6,6Gl