British Columbia's salmon industry is currently one of the province's major sources of income. Its development from a primitive fishery to a highly organized industrial operation has had many phases, one of the most significant occuring in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In this period several technological developments freed the industry from expensive and unreliable manual labour and laid the basis for the modern industry's organization. This study investigates the innovations made in fishing, packing, and canning machinery and shows how intimately related these developments were to each other. A central point in this thesis is the argument that the industry's development at this time was not due to the introduction of a major invention (the "great man" theory applied to machines) but rather to a series of interlocking, mutually supporting innovations which tended to occur in clusters. Another point is that these innovations were called forth by chronic labour shortages which afflicted the province in its early history. Some space is also given to the effects of technology on the workers and canners of the period. Whenever possible primary source material has been used, including company records, letters and other papers of the early canners, early newspaper and periodical accounts, government reports and regulations of the time, and interviews with pioneers of the fishing industry. Secondary sources have, as much as possible, been restricted to clarification or supplementation of the original material. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

The primary purpose of the study was to identify the demand for processed salmon from the West Coast. The basic approach in the demand analysis was to identify those variables that determine the supply and demand for processed salmon. An econometric model was established containing the supply and demand equations from which estimates for the parameters in each equation were obtained. The main source of data for salmon was obtained from publications printed by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries, and the Pacific Fisherman. Ordinary least squares using the wholesale price as the dependent variable in the demand equation was the principal method of analysis. Coefficients for the demand expressed flexibilities with respect to the price. Price flexibilities calculated at the mean values for all processed salmon indicated that a ten percent increase in volume would reduce price by a lesser percentage. For increases in the supply of processed salmon, total revenues would increase, where decreases in supply would cause total revenues to decline. The results of the study also indicated that for a small percentage increase in disposable income, prices would increase but by a lesser percentage. Inverse relationships were noted between the price of salmon and the quantity of canned meat and meat products. Effects of population changes on the price of processed salmon were inconclusive. / Graduation date: 1970

The purpose of the study is to investigate the competitiveness of the South African deciduous fruit canning industry in the global canned fruit market. The study was done in the Western Cape Province, the province where the deciduous fruit is produced and canned in South Africa. Both local and international literature on the deciduous fruit canning industries was used as part of the analysis. In addition to this, a variety of methods and techniques including descriptive, theoretical, analytical and quantitative were applied. These include: The Balassa’s Revealed Comparative Trade Advantage method, which was used to calculate the competitiveness indices of various canned deciduous fruit products. Time series data on South African and global canned deciduous fruit imports and exports was also used to calculate the competitiveness indices using the RTA method and Excel software. A structured questionnaire was used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data from an array of expert views from key industry stakeholders. These key informants included Chief Executive Officers of various companies and organisations in the fruit canning industry. Data collected was analysed using Excel spread sheet programme, SPSS and the Porter methodology. The competitiveness analysis of this study clearly pointed out that EU subsidies but not SPS conditions, definitely disadvantage the South African fruit canning industry and negatively affect its competitiveness in the EU market. However, it was revealed that the South African deciduous fruit canning industry is competitive on: <ul>(a) labour costs - Being a labour intensive country, South Africa’s labour cost is amongst the lowest when compared with other countries that compete in the EU fruit canning market. (b) product quality - The South African deciduous fruit canning industry has positioned itself world-wide to be the supplier of premium quality and premium priced canned deciduous fruit products. The industry’s second biggest market, Japan, demands mostly premium products, and South Africa is a key player in that market. </ul> Respondents differed in opinion in almost all variables, with the exception of two variables. All respondents viewed starting a new business in the industry is extremely difficult and the trust in the honesty of politicians is very low. <ul> There are variables where 90 percent of all respondents agreed, and these are: (a) The South African fruit canning companies are rated as having the world’s most stringent regulatory standards. (b) Entry to the local market by new competitors at the fruit canning stage of the value chain almost never occurs. (c) The administrative regulations in South Africa are burdensome. (d) Crime in South Africa imposes a significant cost to companies. (e) Companies’ approach to human resources is to invest heavily to attract, train and retain staff. </ul> Due to the nature of the methodology used and varying results that came out, it is difficult for the industry’s competitiveness position to be articulated in one sentence. Copyright / Dissertation (MInstAgrar)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Development / unrestricted

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin, 1958. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [362]-371).