Quick Freezing of Vegetables; Big Development at Batlow

15 April 1949 The Land 

By Our Special Representative              

Big developments in the quick freezing and canning of vegetables at Batlow Packing House this coming season are expected to benefit growers in the Batlow, Tumbarumba and Tumut districts.  

Birds Eye Products, in association with the Batlow Packing House, have installed plant capable of quick freezing the products of hundreds of acres.

Field Manager of Birds Eye Products and former member of the Department of Agriculture, Mr. M. V. O'Reilly, is now touring the area signing contracts with farmers for the supply at lucrative prices of bush beans, sweet corn, cauliflowers, pole beans, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, and raspberries.

This year will be the first time that Pole beans have been grown for the Batlow Packing House. In fact few areas of this little-known climbing bean have so far been produced in the State.

Pole Beans Heavy Yielding

Mr. Dick Vincent, assistant man- ager of Batlow Packing House, who recently returned from an agricultural tour of the United States, says that these pole beans are exceedingly popular there for canning and quick freezing. He saw crops yielding the amazing return of 1,400 bushels to the acre.

Mr. Vincent was also enthusiastic about the taste and quality of the quick freeze peas lie had tasted in America.

Birds Eye Products plan this coming season also to quick freeze asparagus from the Batlow Packing House's plantation at Gundagai. This will be a development new to Australia.

Crops and Prices

Here are details of the crops wanted for quick freezing this coming season:

Bush Beans: Area required 10 acres, contract price 8/- a bushel, average yield 200 bushels to the acre, gross return to the acre £80, planted October - November and harvested February.

Sweet Corn: Area 100 acres, price £14 a ton, yield 3 tons to the acre, re-turn per acre £42, planted October November and harvested In January-February.

Cauliflowers: Area 30 acres, price £18/13/4 a ton, yield 8 tons to the acre, return £150 to the acre, planted January February and harvested May-June-July.  

Pole Beans: Area 20 acres, price 9/- a bushel, yield 500 bushels to acre, return £225 to acre, plant November December and harvest February-March.

Broccoli and Brussels Sprouts. Area 45 acres, price £56 a ton, yield 2 tons to the acre, return per acre £112, plant January-February and harvest May-June-July.  

Birds Eye Products are also urging farmers to grow ¼ to ½ acre areas of strawberries and raspberries as sidelines. These berry crops flourish in the southern districts particularly under irrigation. The organisation will shortly fix the contract price for these berry fruits.