Food in Fiji: the produce and processed foods

Transcription

The Australian
Notional University
Development Studies
Centre and
The University of the
South Pacific Centre
for Applied Studies in
Development
Monograph no. 22
Food in Fiji: the
produce and
processed foods
distribution
systems
Michael W.P. Baxter
Food in Fiji
This monograph ,
plus two o the rs , is a joint publicat ion of
The Un iversity of the South Pacific ' s Cen tre for Applied
St udie s in Development and The Aus tralian Nat ional Un iver
The research on which
sity ' s Development Studies Centre.
th is monograph is based was ftmded by the Internat ional
Development Research Cent re
(IDRC)
through a grant to The
Univers i ty of the South Pacif i c (USP) and the volume is
pub l i shed with the sup port of the IDRC .
ii
Development Studies Centre
Monograph no. 22
Food in Fiji: The
produce and
processed foods
distribution
systems
Michael
W.P.
Baxter
This monograph is published in association with the Centre
for Applied Studies in Development, University of the South
Pacific, Suva, Fiji.
Series editor Gavin W. Jones
The Australian National University
Canberra 1980
©
Michael Baxter
1980
This work is copyright. Apart from any
fair dealing for the purpose of private
study, research, criticism or review, as
permitted under the Copyright Act,
no part may be -reproduced by any
process without written permission.
Inquiries may be made to the publisher.
National Library of Australia
Cataloguing-in-publication entry
Baxter, Michael W .P.
Food in Fiji.
{Development Studies Centre monograph; no 22
iSBN 0 909150 03 6
1.
)
·
Food Industry and Trade - Fiji.
I. Title. (Series: Australian National University, Canberra.
Development Studies Centre. Monograph; no. 22
ISSN 0157-5767)
338.4'76413'0099611
Printed and manufactured in Australia by
The Australian National University
Sunnnary
Foodstuff imports,
Fijians,
Indians,
the involvement of racial groups -
Chinese and Europeans - in conunerce,
and government policy affecting both these areas are basic
concerns of this analysis of Fiji's food distribution system.
Food consumption habits in Fiji are the product of historic
trends and cultural bias as well as economic rationalization.
Save by a ban on imports,
food imports cannot be decreased
The food
tmless these factors are taken into accotmt.
distribution system has two discrete parts - one for produce
and the other for processed foods.
Produce enters connnercial trade through either public
urban retail markets or the government wholesale/retail
National Marketing Authority.
trade development.
There is little vertical
Markets are patronized by connnercial
and subsistence producer-vendors and also by non-producer
vendors.
The NMA was established in 1971,
efficiency of the internal produce market;
largely to increase
in fact it has
had limited success in breaking into the internal market
and has concentrated on foodstuff exports.
Fijians,
Indians
and Chinese participate in produce production and marketing
and each has a distinctive role.
marketing is increasing,
Fijian participation in
especially as non-producer vendors.
Selling in markets is an effective connnercial training
grotmd for Fijians as it overcomes key handicaps to their
involvement in connnerce.
The processed food distribution system has few entry
restrictions and there are many participants,
the retail level.
a back-order system.
except of prices,
especially at
It is generally under-capitalized and is
There is little government regulation,
although these controls have the additional
objective of influencing the structure of the trading system.
Racial involvement is as varied as in the produce trade.
Importing and wholesaling is handled largely by Europeans,
Chinese and Indians.
ing:
Fijians are deeply involved in retail
about 30 per cent of retail outlets are operated by
Fijian individuals�
(An
additional 20 per cent are operated
by Fijian co-operative societies.)
v
The government has a
vi
number of schemes to promote Fijian involvement in commerce
in general and in the processed food trade in particular
but these do not overcome the spatial and cultural disad
vantages facing Fijians.
Ways are suggested to increase the efficiency of both
the produce and processed food systems and to gain in them
more equitable racial participation.
Pre f ace
The Paci f i c Towns and Rural-urb an Dis t r ibut ion Sy stems
Proj e ct is a two-year appli ed research and t raining p ro gram
based at the University of the South Pacific , Suva , Fij i .
With funds from the Internat ional Development Research Centre
of Ot t awa , Canad a , the University of the South Pacif ic
appointed two research fellows and t hree a s s istan t s t o
inve s t igat e four que s t ion s :
(a)
What are the existing dist ribut ion sys t ems operat ing
within town s and l inkin g t owns to rural areas ?
(b )
What is the economic role o f in digenous and non
indigenous peoples in these sys t ems ?
(c)
What are the current governmen t policies t owards
ind igenous involvement in the distribut ion sys t ems
. and do governmen t att itudes or regul ations restrict
such involvemen t ?
(d)
What are the developmen tal implicat ion s of govern
ment policies regardin g the in c reased par ticipation
of indigenous group s in the distrib ut ion sys tems ?
Research was conducted in Fij i an d in Tonga f rom August
the Directo r of research in Fij i was Michael Baxte r
and the Director in Tonga was Epeli Hau ' o fa . A s imilar but
independent s tudy in the N ew Heb rides was conducted by Pro
fes s o r R. G . Ward and o t hers of the Aust ralian. Nat ional Uni
vers ity . The findings of each coun try s t udy will b e released
separately . Research in the three study countries was con
ducted independently , although it focused on a s imilar ' basic
p roblem ' core . In all areas , at ten t ion was confined t o the
internal distribut ion sys t ems of produce and pro cessed foods .
An imal produc t s and seafoods largely have b een un touche d .
1975:
The approach adop ted in F ij i was tha t re search p riority
should be given to e s t ab l ish in g a b o dy of b as ic data on
commercial foo d distribut ion that would serve as a source
of informat ion for dec i sion-makers . Some implicat ions of
the analys is of data are noted and recommendat ions are made
that could s olve fundamen tal problems in the sys t em , b ut
vii
vi ii
det ailed ' solut ion s ' have been left largely t o dec i s ion
makers .
Such an appro ach was adopted for three reason s . F irs t ,
a ' data b as e ' on food distribut ion is a key to economic
plannin g . We have not attempt ed to provide exhaust ive dat a
on any aspect of the system, but have t ried t o suggest the
depth of data that is readily availab le an d whi ch is a p re
requis i t e for sound p l ann ing . Second , att en t ion was con cen
t rated on the broad s t ruct ure of the dis t r ibut ion sys t em
b ecaus e effo rts to ' improve ' marke t ing syst ems of t en f al t er
when at t ent ion i s focused on sp ec if ic lo cal probl ems wit hout
the ben efit of a p erspect ive on the t o t al sys t em . The
successful sol ut ion of specif i c p rob lems depends on an
apprec iat ion of the fundamen tal s t ructure an d p ro cess e s of
the sys tem and the at t itudes and mot ivat ion of p articipan t s .
Third , as well as on an app re c iat ion of the sys t em ' s
s t ructure , succe s sf ul res olut ion of short comings in the
dis t r ib ut ion system is con t in gent upon dec is ion-makers and
researche r s having common obj ect ives . The con c lus ion s of
this s t udy t o uch upon very b as ic is s ues such as racial
par t i cipat ion in connne rce , ownership of and access t o
res ources , t h e role of overseas cap ital and ownership in
connne rce , and the degree of government involvement in the
e conomy . The conclus ion s highlight p o s s ib le alterna t ives
in the context of thes e basic is sues . Mo re det aile d solut ions
can be developed once the nature and exten t of des ired change
are known .
The con s equences of thi s app ro ach are apparen t in the
s t ruct ure of this report . Following a f ir s t chapt er that
puts the presen t food supply s it uat ion into perspec t ive ,
atten tion f o cuses in turn on the p ro duce and p rocessed foods
d is t r ibut ion sys t ems , an eas ily-made d i s t inct ion as there
is prac t ically no ove rlap in items handled by each sys tem,
although the busines s o rganizat ion of each , as well as racial
involvemen t in them , have mu ch in connnon .
Resul t s of the s t udy were o rig inally pub l ished by the
Univers ity of the South Pacific un der the same t it l e in
September 1977. That report was quickly p ut t ogether as a
d is cuss ion paper for a pos t- s t udy conf e rence of researchers
and decis ion-makers , which was held in S uva in De cemb er 1978.
When it was app arent that the report would b e rep ub lished ,
i t was rewri t t en an d polished t o remove some of the roughnes s
ix
which had b een included in o rde r to provoke dis cuss ion at
the con feren ce .
The argumen t s , con clus ions and the t ime
con text ( i . e . the ' pre s en t ' is 19 7 6- 7 7 ) of this vers ion are
e s s en t ially the s ame as the f irs t draft : it is hoped ,
however , that the path to them is smooth er .
Michae l Baxter
Acknowledgment s
The research for this repo rt has depended on the
ass i s tance of a number o f ins t itut ion s and many people .
The Internat ional Developmen t Research Centre o f Ot t awa ,
Canada , made availab l e generous ftmds fo r the project and
its representative showed a keen and con t inuing in tere s t
in our work .
IDRC concern was part icularly help ful in over
coming some administ rat ive problems and in s t re s s ing the
comb ined research an d t rain ing obj ect ives o f the proj ect .
Part icular acknowledgement is made o f as s is t an ce given by
Dr Jacques Amyo t , Region al Liaison Officer for the Social
S c ience s , IDRC , S in gap o re ; Dr Cro s Wal sh , fo rmer Head o f
Geo graphy at t h e Un iversity of t h e South Pacifi c ; Mr Derek
Medford , Director of the Centre for App l ie d Studies in
Developmen t , Un ivers ity of the South Pacific ; and Pro fessor
R. G . Ward an d Dr T . G . McGee , Departmen t o f Human Geography ,
Research S chool o f Pacific S tudie s , the Aust ralian Nat ional
Un ivers ity , who are workin g on a s imilar s tudy in the New
Heb rides and co-or dinated resear ch in the three s tudy
cotmt ries o f the Dis tribut ion Sys t ems Proj ect .
Grateful thanks are extended to the numerous government
o f ficers and p rivate businessmen in Fij i , not t o ment ion
the several thousand pat ien t market vendo rs and cust omers ,
shop owner s and cus t omers , farmers , produce t ransp o rt ers
and gro cery importers and wholes alers who were con tacted ,
generally for formal int erv iew . Almos t without except ion ,
all responded pat ien t ly and showed cons iderab le int erest in
the work .
Much of the field research on wh ich this report is
b ased was conduct e d by Jenny Baines and , to a lesser exten t ,
Raj e sh Chan dra (bo th were proj e ct research ass istant s ) and
by·many students of the University of the South Pacific . In
the fourteen months from January 1 9 7 6 , s ixty o r s o s t uden t s
worked a t ot al of about 4000 hours on the proj ect . Those
who cont ributed mos t inc lude Ab dul Shar iff , Viliame Lomaloma ,
Vij ay Naidu, Vij endra Prasad , Holland Seeto , Tevita Ba , Meri
Kaloumaira , L ily Bin gwor , Ram Autar , Ranjit S in gh , Jo
Roko ras e i , Is imeli Cokanas iga , Premlat a Banfal , Eci Kikau ,
xi
xii
Rishi Ram, Will iam Senegar , Inoke R aiko s o , Mos ese Uluiciciya
and Joketani Delai . Without the help of my res ear ch as s ist
an t s and these s tuden t s , and many other s tudent helpers who
are not named b ut who were no les s vit al in their p art i cular
role s , the p roject would h ave had t o b e conducted on a con
s iderab ly mor e limited s cale : grateful thanks to all .
Invaluab le as s i s t an ce in dat a analys is came from Jane t
Aisb et t , formerly of t he Aust ralian Nat ional University ,
who handled all the computer p ro ces s in g against t ight dead
l ine s . Jenny Baine s l earnt a n ew skill as P roject Carto
grapher . Premila Lakhan typed rough copy for f if teen mon ths ;
the f inal ver s ion of the repo rt was typed by Beverly
Brandenburg in Melb ourne . Again , my deb t to this as s is tan ce
is great . B ryan Begley of Honolul u was in s t rument al in con
vin cing me t o spend t ime reworking the original vers ion o f
the report an d p rovided key , const ructive crit icism.
Final thanks are due t o Epeli Hau'of a for b e in g an
in sp iring co-worker and t o Barbara Hau'ofa for her dis
pass i onate edit in g , and t o my wife and paren t s for their
involvement in d ifferent ways .
M.W. P . B .
Cont ents
Pref ace
vii
xi
Acknowledgmen t s
xix
Abb reviat ions
xx
Glos s ary
Chap t e r 1
Food p roduct ion and con sumption
in F ij i
Chapt er 2
Produce market ing
Chapter 3
The p ro cessed foods dist ribution
sys tem
133
Interview with a F ij ian p ermanent
vendo r at Suva.market
246
Appendix
1
43
Notes
250
References
275
Tab les
1.1
Comp o s ition o f Fij i ' s food imports , 19 74
8
1. 2
Fij i ' s foo d import s :
9
1. 3
Proj ec ted surp lus / defi cit of root crops
en tering connne rcial exchange , 19 7 3
11
Supp ly and demand o f s el e ct ed l ocal
vege t ables
13
1. 5
Selected food impo rt s , 19 7 4
14
1.6
Pos t -harves t life o f connnon foods
19
1.7
Rac ial and dist ribut ion charact e ris t ics of
urb an income , 19 7 3
28
Nut r it ional cos t o f connnon foods
36
1.4
1. 8
1 874, 1921- 76
xiii
xiv
Tables ( cont inued )
Characteris t ics of c onnnun it ies surveyed
in Cen t ral Divis ion food preferen ce s t udy
37
Consumption of imported foods in selected
communit ies o f t he Cen t ral Division
41
2.1
Revenue of selected marke t s , 1966- 75
50
2.2
Reven ue and expenditure of select ed marke t s ,
1. 9
1 . 10
19 7 5
51
2.3
Vendor at t endan ce at markets
58
2.4
Occup at ion of head o f vendor ' s household
69
2 .5
Race of market vendors
70
2.6
Res iden ce-to-market distan ce o f market vendors
72
2. 7
Mean s o f vendor t ransport t o market
73
2. 8
Produ ct ion sys tems o f producer-vendors a t B a
and Labasa market s
79
Product ion sys t em of F ij ian producer-vendors
at Ba and Labasa market s
80
Part icipation and income of F ij ian p roducervendo rs at Suva market
82
Markups from purchase to retail price by nonp ro ducer-vendo rs at Suva market
84
Trading activity of a Fij ian and an Indian
non-p ro ducer-vendor at Suva market , 7-11
Septembe r 19 7 6
86
Net p ro f i t s o f non-producer-vendors at Suva
ma rket
87
2 . 14
Composit ion o f foo ds tuf f s t raded b y market
89
2 . 15
Food t rade variat ion by day in selected
marke t s
91
Share of t rade in main foodst uff categories
by race and market
92
2 . 17
Trade in main p roduct lines by race
93
2. 18
Trade composit ion by race of vendo r
94
2 . 19
Distance of vendors ' residence from market for
selected product s sold by p roducer-vendo rs
98
2 .9
2 . 10
2 . 11
2 . 12
2 . 13
2 . 16
xv
Tables ( con t inued )
2.20
Correlat ion b etween quant ity of p ro duce and
producers ' re siden t ial dis tance from market
99
2.21
Proport ion of food s old by p roducer
102
2.22
Producer-ven do r part i c ip ation in s ales of
dif ferent foods
103
2.23
Comp o s it ion of producer and non-producer t rade 104
2.24
Vehicles transport ing p roduce to market
10 7
2.25
Type o f j ourney made by people bringin g food
to market in non-bus vehicular t ran sport
108
Distance o f j ourneys made by t rucks and
' carriers ' t ransporting produce t o selected
market s
110
2.27
NMA t radin g , 19 71- 7 5
116
2.28
Origin of NMA purchase s b y d ivis ion and
p rovin ce
11 8
2.29
Product comp o s it ion o f NMA purchas e s , 19 71- 7 6
119
2.30
NMA purchases by race of s eller
123
2.31
NMA dalo buy ing p rices , 19 76
1 25
3.1
Forms o f comme rcial o rgan izat ion
137
3.2
Trade act ivity of regional co-operative
who le s ale associat ions
142
Impo r t , who lesal e and retail markup s on
p rice-controlled items
145
Lo cat ion and ownership of retail and wholes ale-ret ail grocery out lets
161
Ownersh ip of reta il and wholes ale-re tail food
s t o re s , Cent ral Division
162
3.6
Employmen t of ass is t ance by ret ail s tores
182
3.7
Nature o f s to ck in retail gro cery s t o res
1 85
3. 8
Numb e r of di fferent food types s t o cked by
ret ail shops
1 86
Di splay and s torage invent ory of retail food
s t o re s
187
2.26
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.9
xvi
Tables (continued)
3.10
Mode of payment for supplies and food stock
characteristics of retail stores in the
Central Division.
1 89
3.11
Food stocks and store distance from Suva
3. 1 2
Store distance from Suva and food stock
191
characteristics
192
3.13
Food stocks and retail store accessibility
3.14
Transport access and food stock
19 3
194
characteristics
3.15
Storeowner's possession of business transport
195
and food stock characteristics
3.16
Form of store ownership and food stock
197
characteristics
3. 17
Distance of retail shops from Suva and years
199
of operation
3. 1 8
Number of items displayed and stored,
by race
200
of storeowner
3.19
Race of owner and foodstock characteristics
201
of individually-owned stores
3.20
Race of store ownership and food stocks
(all stores)
202
3.21
Food stocks of Indian-owned retail stores
203
3. 22
Occupation of storeowners
205
3. 23
Patronage at shopping centres and expatriate-
211
owned supermarkets in Suva
3. 24
Trade characteristics of twelve grocery shops
215
in or near Suva
3.25
Trade performance of consumer and consumermarketing co-operative societies
3. 26
232
Amotmt and source o f initial capital of
Fijian and Indian retail shops
2 36
Figures
1
Dominion of Fiji
2
Vegetable imports, 1955-74;
quantity
xvi ii
value and
10
xv ii
Figures
( continued)
3
Price trends of vegetables in Suva market,
4
Agricultural production by province,
5
Urban food consumption and composition of
1974-76
expenditure,
1968
by income quartiles
6
Urban food consumption by race
7
Food preferences of Central Division
communities
8
Rural-urban variation in food preferences of
Central Division conmumities
12
16
29
31
34
38
9
Produce marketing channels
44
10
Marketing channels of dalo
45
11
Vendor numbers and racial composition at
produce markets
63
12
Vendors at Suva market
64
13
Supply hinterlands of urban producer markets
66
14
Origin of food at Suva market
97
15
Grocery importing channels
16
Supply areas of retail grocery stores in the
Central Division
149
165
E18 I�
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9
I
I
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:
I
190
WESTERN
.)
1fl
tf' VASAWA
-!'PGROUP
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INSET ROTUMA
Figure 1
, 1e·s
Note on un i t s of we ight
Wei ghts of commodit ies for s al e are quo t ed in pounds ,
rather than kilo grams , as imperial uni t s are hab itually
used in the Fij i wholesale and retail areas .
Abbreviat ions
CASD
Cen t re for App l ied S tudies in Developmen t ,
Univers ity o f the South Pac i fi c , Suva .
FAO
Food and Agricultural Organ isation , UN.
FCA
Fij i Co-operat ive Ass o c iat ion Lt d .
FDB
Fij i Development Bank .
FMF
Flour Mills o f Fij i Ltd .
MAFF
Min is t ry o f Agriculture , Fores t s and Fisheries .
NMA
Nat ional Marke t in g Authority .
USP
Univers ity o f the South Pacific , Suva .
$
Fij i dollar , equivalen t to app roximately
Aus t ralian $0 . 9 7 in 19 7 8 .
xix
Glossary
Hibiscus manihot
bele
Leaves of
dalo
taro
dalo-ni-tana
Xanthosoma
dhal
lentils
d uruka
Fiji asparagus
Fijian
ethnic Fijian
galala
(CoZocasia e scuZenta )
taro
(Saccharu.m eduZe
Linn.)
Fijian farmer living and working outside
the village
Indian
Indo-Fijian;
a citizen of Fiji,
but not a
Fijian
(Inocarpus fagiferu.s )
ivi
Tahitian chestnut
mataqali
Fijian social unit
ota
fern
roti
unleavened bread;
rourou
dalo leaves
sharps
semi-refined wheat flour
( DipZazium proZiferum)
staple in Indian diet
(used for making
roti)
taukei
indigenous Fijian person
tikina
Sub-provincial administration unit
yaqona
plant
( Piper methysticum )
used to make the
beverage also known as yaqona or
Fiji)
kava
xx
(outside
Chapter
1
FOOD PRODUCT ION AND CONSUMPTION IN FIJI
Food imports and food dependency
Pacific island countries depend on food imports:
between
and
38 . 5
15 . 7
stuffs.!
p er cent of imports to Guam and Norfolk Island
per cent of imports to Niue,
by value,
are food
This dependency on foreign sources for food is
ironic since until contact with European traders and settlers
during the first half of the nineteenth century,
individual
Pacific islands were largely self-sufficient in foodstuffs.
Links with the extra-Pacific world have led to dependency on
external food supplies
as well as dependency in other fields.
Numerous factors have contributed to this situation in
the Pacific.
One is the creation of food preferences that
cannot be satisfied by local production.
Another is the
tendency of colonial and later administrations to promote
export production of indigenous or introduced agricultural
products.
Such products b ecame the foundation of island
monetary economies through either the indigenous production
system being adapted to cash cropping or foreign owned and
managed plantations using indigenous or imported labour.
Links with external markets were given high priority to
facilitate retur ns;
internal links with the exception of those
of the export sector, were largely ignored.
The result was
often a developed export sector contrasting with a poorly
articulated inter nal trade system.
In such circumstances, whilst much of the indigenous
population remained largely self-sufficient in food,
introduced population,
etary class,
the
especially the managerial and propri
became as externally oriented in food supplies
as in commercial interests.
A major factor in the spurning
of local foods by expatriate populations was cultural prefer
ence.
Also important,
however, were difficulties of access
to surplus local foods and of the establishment and mainten
ance of effective links between producer and consumer,
1
and
2
the perishable nature of local produce.
Whilst the two pro
duction systems - expatriate commercial plantation and
indigenous,
another,
locally.
however,
largely subsi stent - remained isolated from one
demand was limited for food that was not produced
With increased involvement in the monetary economy,
the indigenous population adopted some imported
foods as subsidiary foods and even as staples for similar
reasons to those of the expatriate population:
accessibility,
taste and status.
There is concern in the Pacific and elsewhere about
reliance on external food sources.
obvious financial cost,
detrimental consequences.
add ition to
Apart from those linking commercial
producers to export outlets,
are neglected.
In
food dependency has a number of
internal distribution systems
Agricultural activities decline,
and with
this there is a possibility that traditional technologies,
including the means to exploit particular eco- and bio-types,
will be lost.
Additionally,
substitution of locally-grown
by imported foods may be nutritionally undesirable.
Finally,
dependence on external food sources can result in a wider
loss of economic and political independence.
While these
reasons for limiting food imports are largely defensive,
there are also positive reasons to promote domestic food
production.
There is considerable scope for income generation and
employment at all stages of the food system:
assembling,
ing.
transporting,
producing,
processing, wholesaling and retail
Local food production and concomitant support of an
internal marketing system can be a significant stimulus of
broader economic development.
Development schemes based on
agriculture or industry have frequently been ineffective
because inadequate attention has been given to delivery
channels linking producer and consumer.
An efficient dis
tribution system contributes to the internal integration of
an economy,
makes effective use of production and insti.ls a
2
degree of self-generation.
Because of the costs of food imports and the benefits
deriving from the promotion of local production and trade,
food imports are often the target of publicized initiatives.
'Grow more food' campaigns are politically irreproachable
and appear to strike directly at the problem - limited local
production.
What they and other approaches disguise,
is the fact that self-sufficiency in food supplies,
however,
or even
substantial decreases in food imports, are not easily achieved.
3
This is not so much b ecause of the amoun t o f foodstuf fs
ac tually imported but o ften b ecause the cultural and histor
ical con t ext of food dependency is not fully appreciated .
As much as overcoming environmental or economic ob stacles
to local production , cultural pr eferen ces an d consumpt ion
patterns mus t be able to be satis f ied by lo cal product ion .
Fij i is a cas e in p o int .
Located in the South Pacific , equidistant b etween
Aus tralia and Hawaii , the Dominion of Fij i is a group of
300 is lands that have been ind ep endent from the United
Kingdom s ince 1 9 6 9 . The p opulation of almost 600 , 000 i s
concen trated o n t h e main is lands o f Viti Levu , where the
cap it a l , Suva , is lo cated , and Vanua Levu , which together
account for 85 per c en t of the nation ' s land surface . The
proportion of the indigenous Fij ian p opulat ion has declined
s ince con t ac t with European s , and e specially s in ce the late
nineteen th cen tury when Indians were introduced . Today , 50
per cent of the p opulat ion i s Indian ( Indo-Fij ian) , while
Fij ians account for 44 per cent . The b alance i s comprised
of o ther Paci f i c Islander s , p ar t-Europeans /F ij ians , Europeans
and Chinese .
The prob lem facing Fij i is p ar ticularly
int eres t in g , then , and d i f f icult be cause of the ethnic and
cultural divers ity of the p opulat ion . This s ituat ion is
unequalled in the Pacif ic .
Like other Pacific coun t r ies , an d for the reason s
noted above , the government o f F ij i i s con cerned about the
level of food import s ; about one-f if th of imports by value
are foodstuf f s . Thus f rom t ime to t ime , as well as on a
con t inuous b as is , the n eed to decrease foodst uff imports
is s tres s ed . More than fo r most o ther nat ions , an appreci
at ion of the se factors is cent ral to designin g a succes sful
st rategy t o redu ce this reliance on imported foo d . Con s e
quen t ly , before moving to an analys is of F ij ian food
d i s tr ibut ion sys tems , it is useful t o examine b riefly the
b ro ader con t ext of the sys t em.
Trade sys t ems and food hab it s
Although hampered b y past neglect , there i s much t o
build on in develop in g in t ernal food market ing in F ij i : the
lon g involvement in tran s f er an d t ra de by Fij i an s 3 and the
Ind i an ' cormnercial t radit ion ' are obvious advantage s . Prior
to con tact with European s , exten s ive exchange sys t ems operated
4
b oth wi thin the Fij i islands and with Tonga , s ome 800 km to
the eas t . Exchange in these systems was ' trans fer ' rather
than ' trade ' in that t ransact ions were interpersonal b etween
donor and recipient ; trade involves a mul t iplicity o f l inks
b e tween originator and re cip ien t . Transac t ions were p rimarily
rec ip rocal ( ' balanced movemen ts be tween s ymmetric p o ints in
a system ' ) and redist ribut ive ( ' movement s to a cen tre and
then out again ' ) ( B rookfiel d and Har t 19 71 : 315-16 ) . Market
type t rans ac t ions took place b ut we re less common . One
market-type exchange in the 1850s was des c rib ed as follows :
Heap s o f c urious looking art icles were piled ab o ut
on the b each - fantas t i c earthenware pot s , long
rol l s o f tappas , skins , c arved calab ashes , spears ,
oars , e t c . ; and around th ese the c rowd ga thered ,
dan cing and voc if erat ing as i f in the perfo rmance
of s ome ce remony (Aylmer 1 860 : 2 35-6 ) .
Ext ernal trans fer was p rimarily in non-food items; food
was more important in in te rnal trade , es pecially in intra
gro up exchan ges . Because communit ies were largely sel f
s uffic ient in foo d , an d b ecause o f it s perishab il ity , food
was not as s i gnifican t in tradit ional exchange as other items .
There was , however , a cons i derab le demand for food by
Eu ropean ve s sels that vis ited Fij i to replenish sup p l ies
o r to gather beche-de-mer and sandalwood . Th e Europeans had
l it tle difficul ty in ob tain ing l o cal foods tuf fs b e cause the
items t raded for food were highly prized and the mode o f
transac t ion was familiar t o Fij ians .
The es tab l i shment of plan tat ions did en courage some
internal t ra de of foo d . In the early y ears , plantat ion
labour was suppor ted largely with local foods . Some was grown
on the p lantat ion and s ome bought from Fij ians l iving nearby .
To mee t the demands of p lantations and ships' store s ,
an extens ive trade in less-perishable local foods soon
developed . Th e t rade was centred on European f irms in Levuka .
Fo r example , in 1 8 7 3 a Levuka firm advertised for sale
5 00 , 000 yams . Patt.o f this supp ly had b een ob tained a couple
of months previo us ly in the Waidina valley , where one t rade r
had purchase d 1 80 , 000 yams in three days (The Fiji Times,
2 7 March 19 1 7 ) .
Much of this e arly trade with European ship s and plan
tat ions was in kin d , b ut Fij ians als o quickly adapted t o
monet ary exchange . When selling pro duce in Levuka , fo r
ins t an ce , Fij ians woul d
5
always make a po int of asking fo r a shill ing
at firs t , [but ] they will frequen t ly t ake s ixpen ce ,
or even a small p iece o f tobacco .
They have got
the names o f our coins without havin g any very
d i st inct idea of the ir value , espec ially on the
o uter island s , so that the new arrival may b e
asked " a p o un d " for hal f a doz en eggs ( p rob ab ly
It must not b e supposed that there are
bad) .
shops and s t all s , where a choi ce of fruit s
is
o f fered . All that is sold by nat ives in Levuka is
hawked about , e ach hawke r having on ly one art icle
to dispos e o f , as a rule . His s to ck-in-t rade , if
capab le of divis ion , is suspended in two coarse
co conut - leaf b asket s from the ends o f a s tout
st ick , whi ch he car ries acro s s his shoulder
(Pechey 1 8 70 : 15-16 ) .
.
.
•
•
.
.
.
.
•
Food product ion and consumpt ion in pre- and early post
cont act Fij i was in s ome ways more int ri cate than today .
There were fewer crop variet ies b ut metho ds o f p ro duct ion ,
p ro ce s s in g and preparat ion were o ft en mo re varie d . A number
of pro duct s , includin g dalo ( t aro ) , breadfruit , coconut , ivi
( Tahit ian che s tnut ) and vudi ( pl an ta in ) , were pro cessed for
preservat ion and s torage .
Culinary skil l s were also int ricat e ,
foo d b e in g cooked by ro ast in g , s t eaming in a b uried oven , o r
b o il in g . One n inet eenth cen t ury ob s e rve r listed twelve
b re ads , thirty puddings and twelve soups that were common
fare ( Calvert 18 70 : 119 ) .
In cont ras t , the Euro pean settl ers who b ecame more
nume rous from the mid-nineteenth century had l it tl e variety
in their food . At Levuka, the early centre o f European
settlement , and on the plantat ion s , s t aples for Europeans
were f lour , b i s cuit s , s al t beef and canned f ish . Suppl ies
on plantat ion s included yam an d dalo , but it was felt that
yam ' is a poo r s ub s t it ute for cabb age , an d that mot t led ,
soap-looking root , the t aro , is
anything but appet is:ing '
(Cooper 1880, i:75) .
•
•
.
Even though imported s al t b ee f and canned meat and fish
were reported to be h i ghly conducive to indigest ion and
dyspep s ia (Brews t e r 19 3 7 : 1 34 ) and European fare comp arab le
to ship s ' rat ion s , lit tle at t empt was made to int egrate lo cal
foods into the diet . Produce pur chased f rom Fij ians was
mainly fowl s , pigs and fruit ( some of whi ch - l ike watermelon s ,
p ineapples an d oran ge s - had b een int ro duced by European s ) .
6
I t was some rel ief to the lo cal expat r iate populat ion when
Chine s e farmers became e s t ab lished around Levuka and p ro duced
for s ale ' lima b eans , cabba ge , radish , wat ercre s s , spring
onions and let tuce ' ( Cooper 1880 , i : 7 5 ) .
Consump t ion pat t e rn s o f Fij ians were affected by the
new items that ent e red their exchan ge t ransact ion s , an d
which in cluded foo d a s well a s non-edible good s .
One
ob s e rver in the early 1 8 80s averred that Fij ians
are t aking kindly , very kin dly t o our imported
foo d , t inned me at s , salmon and sardines , bread an d
b i s cuit s . Tea with them is a favourit e refreshmen t .
They have overcome their early obj ect ion to the u s e
of milk , will soon l e a rn t o appre ciat e e ggs , an d
are even acquiring a decided pen chant for Ro s s '
gin ger ale of the b es t Dub l in b ran d (Webb 18 84 : 2 5 0 ) .
Undoub t e dly repo rt s o f such eat ing hab it s were roman t i
ci zed and even exaggerated.
It is difficult to gauge the
exten t o f imp o rted foo d consumpt ion , b ut it is l ikely to have
been fo r many y ears con f ine d to areas in trade con tact with
Europeans . Diet elsewhere was based on t radit ional an d a
few int ro duced crops un til well into this century when foo ds
l ike s ugar , s alt , flour and tea gained wider ac cept an ce .
Although some F ij ians might have developed a t aste for
imported pro cessed foods early , for a lon g t ime con sumpt ion
of the s e was negligib l e .
Compared t o the Fij ian ' s minimal consumpt ion o f
imported foo d , the establishment o f t h e Indian p opul at ion
from the lat e n ineteenth c ent ury ent ai led con siderable demand
for non- ind igenous s t ap le s .
Ind ian foods have remained rice ,
wh eat flour and dhal ( lent ils ) , o f whi ch only rice has s i gni
ficant local product ion .
Food import s and lo cal p ro du ct ion
The rel i an ce on imported s t ap le s by Indians and the
gradual development o f demand for imported foods by Fij ian s
focus attention on the role of imports in food supply.
Foo d imports in 1 9 7 5 were valued at $ 4 6 million , or about
19 per cent o f all impor ts (Table 1.1). While in b o th
ab s o lute and relat ive t erms Fij i ' s food import s are signi
f i cant , three poin t s should be kept in mind .
•
7
First , although the Indian populat ion has grown sub
s t antially - it now comprises one-half o f the t ot al populat ion and Fij ian consumpt ion of imported foo d s has in creas ed , the
cont ribut ion of foods tuf fs to t o t al impor t s has alt ered only
s light ly over the p ast century ( Tab le 1 . 2 ) . The demand fo r
imported foo d s was e s t ab lishe d early in Fij i ' s po st- contact
hist ory and while t he comp o s it ion of foo d import s has alt ered
in response to changes in con sumer popul at ion and domest ic
product ion , t he proport ion o f tot al import s: that is food.
has remained relat ively s t ab le . The value of food import s
has r is en from an average o f $ 10 . 5 million in 1960-69 to
$ 31 . 7 million in 19 7 0- 7 6 , b ut the increase in value has b een
far in exces s of increases in quan t ity . Dat a on veget able
imports (Fig . 2 ) . for example sugges t that the growth in
volume o f import s is what would b e exp ected from increases
that have occurred in populat ion and urb an settlemen t .
Secon d , while t he re are s eason s of relat ive shortage ,
loc al food produc t ion is sub s t an t ial an d the product ion o f
many crop s is regularly character ized b y over-supply . Local
root ve ge t ab les are a case in po int . During 19 7 3 , the market
for roo t crops was under-sup plied by an average of 300 t onnes
a month f rom January t o June , but in the s econ d half of the
year the average monthly s urplus was 4 5 3 tonnes ( Tab le 1 . 3) .
Seasonal avail ab ility of p ro duce is reflected in ret ail price
Data on veget ab le p ro duct ion and
fluctuat ions ( F ig 3 )
price t rends are incomplet e , b ut what are available sugge s t
that indigenous vegetab les have more uniform product ion and
price levels throughout the y ear than introduced ' t emp erat e '
vegetab les ( Tab le 1 . 4 , Fig . 3 )
• .
•
.
•
.
With foods grown locally the supply p roblem is not p ro
duction volume as much as s easonality , an d a need fo r c onsumers
t o accept seasonal alt ernat ives , p ar t icularly among non-roo t
vegetab les . Half the y ear is characterized by short ages of
lo cally-grown root vege t ab les , a s ituat ion that can only be
overcome by t he encouragement o f o ff-season crop s , the wider
cul t ivat ion of t he s t o rab le yam , or the development of post
harves t t echnologies . Con s umer s have con s iderab le choi ce in
the availab i lity of o ther c rop s . The more perennial rourou,
ota , bele, e ggplant and okra are all goo d p rice sub s t itutes
fo r temperat e vegetab le s in the off-seas on .
8
Tab l e 1 . 1
Comp o s it ion of Fij i ' s food import s , 19 7 4
a
$ ' 000
% t o t al
food import s
Meat and meat preparat ions
4 , 691
11 . 4
Dairy products , eggs
3 , 5 46
8. 6
Fish and fish preparat ions
7 , 761
18 . 8
15 , 32 5
37. 1
5 , 889
14 . 3
654
1. 6
Co ffee , t e a , sp ices
1, 579
3. 8
Mis cellaneous foods
1 , 2 31
3. 0
Animal feed
5 14
1. 2
Live animals
113
0. 3
Imported f oods
Cereals and c ereal product s
Fruit and vegetab les
Sugar and sugar p reparat ion s
Total
a
4 1 , 3 02
Tot al import s for 19 7 4 were $2 19 . 3 million , 18 . 8 per
cen t of whi ch was o f food items .
Source :
Fij i Trade Rep o rt , 19 7 4 .
Table 1 . 2
Fiji I s food imEo rts - 1 8 7 4 , 1 9 21-76
Per iod
1 9 70- 7 6
1960-6 9
d
1950- 5 9
e
194 0-4 9
1 9 30-39
19 21-29
4 th q tr
1874
Mean annual food
a
.
imp o rts
Food a s %
tota1···impor t s
Compo sition of food impor t s ( % )
Rice
O ther
c ereal s
Dairy
Erod s
Fruit/
veges
22 . 3
14 . 1
7 .6
4 .5
7 .4
6 .4
7.9
10 . 1
5.7
3 .5
7 .4
5.1
22 . 8
27 . 5
21 . 1
27 . 8
32 . 5
37 . 6
10 . 1
9 .4
9.7
6.5
4 .4
7.1
12 . 4
13 . 9
15 . 4
10 . 4
9.9
8.0
2.9
3 .3
20 . 4
6.7
2.9
$ mil.
Mean
stand .
devi .
Mea t
Fish
31 . 7
10 . 5
5.8
1.8
0.5
0.6
18 . 7
20 . 7
21 . 5
24 . 2
18 . 8
21 . 8
0.6
1.3
2 .1
3.2
2.5
1.5
10 . 2
9.3
11 . 6
9 .3
9 .0
11 . 6
20 . 8
15 . 0
c
b
(No te that animal feed
a
Excluding l ive animal s , al cohol , tobacco and animal feed ing s tuff .
and l ive animals are included in data o f Table 1 . 1 . )
b
Figures in upp er row of ' composi t ion o f food impor t s ' are for 1 9 7 0- 7 3 (no t 1 9 70-7 6 ) .
c
Figures for 1 9 6 0 -6 9 and 19 7 0- 7 3 includ e f ish impor ted to a cannery in Levuka , almo s t all
o f which is sub sequently expor ted .
d
1 95 2-54 figure s no t ava ilable .
e 1 9 41 figure s no t available .
Source : Fiji, The Trade Report ( annual ) and Thur ston n . d . : 4 .
10
Potato
Figure 2
Vegetable imports , value and quant ity , 1 9 5 5 - 7 4
(S ource: Fiji Trade Reports)
11
Tab le 1 . 3
Projected s urElus / def icit o f root era�
en tering commerc ial exchange� 19 7 3
{tonnes
Dalo
Cas s ava
Sweet
potat o
Yam
Tot al
Jan uary
- 2 35
- 164
- 66
- 60
- 52 5
Feb ruary
- 173
- 164
- 66
- 60
- 463
March
- 143
- 164
- 66
+
40
- 333
Ap ril
- 224
- 164
+
89
+
40
- 259
May
- 160
- 164
+
89
+
90
- 145
June
- 180
- 164
+
89
+
90
- 165
July
- 15 7
+
3 31
+
89
+
90
+
35 3
Augus t
- 10 7
+
481
+
89
- 60
+
403
87
+
481
+
4
- 60
+
338
Septembe r
October
+
328
+
481
+
4
- 60
+
753
Novemb er
+
10 8
+
4 81
+
4
- 60
+
53 3
24
+
479
+
1
- 60
+
396
2 60
- 70
+
866
De cembe r
To t al
Source :
- 1 , 05 4
+
1 , 750
+
Fij i , Department o f Agricult ure .
The third poin t to b e cons ide red is t hat food impo rt s
con s i s t largely of produc t s that have n ever b een produced ·
commerc ially in Fij i .
Foodst uffs that are imports and which
in terms of climat ic requiremen t s could be produced lo cally ,
inc lude rice , pulses , s p i ces , all meat except p o s s ib ly mutton ,
and da iry produc t s.
These foo ds accounted for about one
third of fo od impo r t s in 19 7 4 ( Table 1 . 5 ) . However , s ome
cat egories of impo rted food , such as ' Fruit and vege t ab les ' ,
' Fish and fish prep aration s ' , that appear t o b e suited to
import-sub s t it ut ion in fact include it ems such as potatoes ,
on ions , garl ic , o ff-season tempe rat e ve getab les and cann ed
mackerel ; the s e woul d be diff icult to pro duce locally .
Neverthe les s , con cern over the in creased value of food
import s should not ob s cure a b as i c fact : as s uming that the
t o t al demand for p ro duct s now impo rted b ut al so produced
12
1976
1975
cents
........ \
60
\
\
I
I
I
I
40
20
.
,.
,'
1,
'1
pt'
I
,
A �r�: ·....
�·· · ····· J/\.vy v ·..... .. -...
...
-�/�
\.
.
A
M
1975
cents
80
I
I
..
I
I
,
�
/
'"
.. · .
·
..
..
..
... 1"
.
.
��.. ��·b·�� . ....... . \ i\
.
.
....\ r-..
v
.
.
.
\:111\
11
I
I
I
I
\} \
c�ese �abbage
v-v···· -\ N'\ f\l.
v
Lt
M
M
M
M
1976
,
/
60
40
20
M
1975
Figure 3
M
1976
Price trends of vegetables in Suva marke t ,
1 9 7 4- 7 6 (Source : Weekly price data in
The Fiji Times )
Table 1 . 4
Supply and d emand of selec ted local vege tables
( E s t imates in tonnes for 19 7 3 )
January-April
May-Sep tember
To tal
Produc t ion
Demand
Pro duc t ion
Surp lu s /
defic it
1 00
4
60
73
-16 7
180
2 70
80
160
310
-34 0
100
9
125
10
75
23
-2 7 7
1200
10
1500
35
1 000
45
-36 5 5
Produc t ion
Demand
Produc tion
Le t tuc e
16
80
53
Toma toes
50
220
Carro ts
4
Onion s
0
Source :
Oc tober-December
Fij i , Department o f Agricul ture .
Demand
14
Table 1.5
Selec ted food imp o r t s , 1974
b
Rice
Pulses
Spices
Potat oes
Onions
Garlic
c
Vegetables
tomatoes , f resh
canned
beans
peas , f resh
pea s , other
other vegetables
o th er frozen vegs
veget ables , o t her
preparat ions
Meat
beef , frozen ,
chilled d
beef , canned
mut t on , frozen ,
chilled
mut ton , canned
p i gmeat e
goat f
g
poultry
Fish
canned
fresh , f rozen
h
.
Dairy pro duct s
milk , all t ypes
b ut ter
ghee
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
Percent
food
import s
by value
Tot al
$ ' 000
Import s
tonnes
5 , 52 5
1 , 4 31
2 83
1 , 432
577
230
20 , 787
3 , 216
164
7 , 204
3 , 080
539
13 . 4
3.5
0. 7
3.5
1.4
0.6
1 , 796
45
142
59
52
27
2 05
56
51
262
110
86
75
380
86
4.3
0.1
0.6
0.3
0.2
0.2
0.9
0. 2
ll9
12 6
4 , 69 1
0. 3
Percent
demand
a
imported
4 7.9
c.90.0
l.1. a.
c.95.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100 . 0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
11.4
Percent change
in import s
19 7 1-19 74
value volume
2 9.5
31.9
36.5
33.0
7 7.9
71.2
180.2
-61.3
12 4.4
9 9.4
64 .3
112 . 5
-15.0
100 . 0
39 . 2
30.3
4 7 .l
2 7.8
2 0 7 .1
49.3
19 9.6
132 . 0
194.9
71.1
102.6
345.6
6.8
61.1
141.7
477
422
377
296
1.2
1.0
1 7.7
267.7
61.3
319.4
29. 9
1, 716
356
302
ll 7
82 3
1 , 816
188
135
ll6
89 9
4.2
0.9
0. 7
0.3
2 .0
100.0
100.0
28 . 2
2 4 .1
c.50 . 0
173.4
109.2
63.5
189 .l
12 3 . 9
24.5
4.6
12.4
51 . 8
43 . 1
n.a .
n . a.
7 , 09 1
38 7
n.a.
n.a.
98.0
18.3
n . a.
n.a.
88.1
2 39 .6
3 , 546
1 , 960
69 7
657
2 , 015
662
510
8. 6
4.7
1. 7
1.2
99.8
84.2
73.9
23.9
3.9
33.2
-2 5.2
Because o f home pro duct ion and , in the case o f some meat p ro duct s ,
tmregi s t ered slaughter s , the p ro portion o f commerc ial meat demand
met through local product ion is di f f icult to est imate. Figures here
are derived from import figures and local product ion est imates made
by the Department of Agriculture in 19 7 3.
Tonnes padi equivalent .
Includes dr ied and preserved vegetables as well as fresh ; excludes
vegetables listed above.
Regis tered p ro duc t i on of 312 0 tonnes.
Registered production of 2 86 t onnes plus 20 per cent for informal
killings.
Est imated p ro duct ion of 355 tonnes.
Est imated product ion of 1000 tonnes.
Includes eggs , honey and o ther p ro ducts as well as milk , b ut ter and
ghee.
Source:
Fiji , Central Planning O f f ice , 19 75 , and Fiji Trade Report,
19 7 3 , 19 7 4.
15
lo cally were met by lo cal p roduct ion , at least 12 per cen t
o f all impor t s would con t inue t o b e foodstuffs un til con
sumpt ion hab it s chan ge .
In cont ras t to th e foundat ion for internal food market ing
provided by the invo lvement of Fij ians and Indians in trade ,
foo d consump t ion patterns are a conservative fo rce . Before
examin ing the consequen ces of this , another factor should be
reviewed , that of Fij i ' s flexibl e and innovat ive agricult ural
system .
The agri cultural system
�rops , product ion and change
About 11 per cen t of Fij i ' s land area of 7 09 5 s quare
miles is suited to agriculture . On ly 8 per cen t of this
poten t ially arable area was cult ivate d at the t ime of the
19 6 8 Census of Agriculture ( Casley 1 9 69 ) , an area that had
not changed greatly in the preceding twenty y ears ( Blackie
19 4 9 ) and whi ch p rob ably h as not altered s ign ifican t ly s in ce .
Agriculture in Fij i is characterized by con siderable
var iat ions in th e s c ale and n ature o f p ro duct ion s ys t ems .
In the s ize o f holdings , for ins t ance , the 19 6 8 agricult ural
cen sus revealed the mean area of holding s to be 1 8 . 1 acres ,
rangin g between p rovinces from 4 0 . 3 acres ( Cakaudrove) t o
2 . 2 acres (Namo s i) . The Cen t ral Divi sion p rovinces of Rewa
( 5 . 2 acres ) , Tailevu ( 9 . 0) and Naitas iri ( 1 3 . 2 ) were amon g
tho se with small average holdin gs .
S imilar variat ions were
apparent in connne rcial orientat ion of producers . Throughout
Fij i , 18 per cent of lan dholders were primarily engaged in
sub s is t en ce product ion . Provinc ial variat ion in the pro
port ion of sub sis t en ce pro duce is con s iderab le , risin g to
71 per cen t in Rewa . The p roport ion of holdin gs devo ted t o
' p roduct ion mainly for sale ' ran ged from 9 p e r cent ( Rewa)
to 94 per cen t ( Rotuma) : the Fij i average was 59 p er cent .
There is con s iderab le regional variat ion in crops grown
and c ro p area (Fig . 4 ) .
Main c rops grown for local
consumpt ion are root crops and a variety of other ' native '
and ' in t ro duc e d ' vegetab les , rice and t ree crop s such as
b anan a , plantain , co conut an d b readfruit . The chief root
crops are dalo ( Colocasia escuienta) , cassava ( Manihot
es cuienta) and yaqon a ( Piper methysticum , the b everage known
el sewhere as kava) . Cul t ivat ed and wild yams ( Dis corea spp.) ,
sweet potato , Xanthosoma taro ( 'dalo ni tana') and swamp
E'22:J
illIIIIIll
�
§
l:JJ
��
t::::: :I
CJ
Dalo
N umbers indicate
Cassava
total crop area
Other root crops
in hectares
Yaqona
Fruit (bananas. pineapple. watermelon)
Rice
Pulses. maize. groundnuts
Leaf vegetables
0
0
•0
LAU
1002
0
Q
Figure 4
0 10
Agricultural product ion by province , 1 9 68
50
km
0
t:?
0
100
( S ource :
Casley 1969)
17
taro ( Cyrtosperma charrr issonis , via ) are o the r root crops .
There are varied edaphic an d climat ic opt ima for these c rop s .
Dalo , for ins t ance , requires mo i s t ure throughout the n ine
mon th growing p erio d . Yams grow b e s t wh ere pre c ip it at ion is
markedly seasonal ; swamp t aro grows in b rackish water . Yaqona
grows well in condit ion s suit e d to dalo and the crops are
frequently interplan ted .
Cas s ava and , to a lesser ext ent ,
xan thos oma t aro grow s at i s f actorily on poor s o il s in dry
areas and may b e planted at any t ime o f the y ear .
' Nat ive ' ve getab les are l eafy ve get ab les estab lished
prior t o int ens ive European con t act , in cluding t aro leaves
(rourou) , fern (ota, Diplazium proliferum) and bele , the
In the wet t er areas these vege
leaves of Hibis cus rranihot .
t ables are pe renn ial . With the except ion of a few it ems l ike
e ggplan t , okra , some b eans , kerela and cucumb e r , in t roduced
veget ab les are highly season al . They are abun dant in the
cooler June-to-Octob er period but are generally unavailable
at o t h er t ime s . Given close at t en t ion , in t ro duced t emperate
vegetables may be pro duced in mo s t areas , parti cularly in
the coo ler regions that inc lude the s outhern i slands o f Beqa
an d Kadavu and Vit i Levu highlands . With the except ion o f
b ananas an d p l an t ain , mos t t ree crops have a marked season
ality but p ro ducers can t ake advan tage of varietal dif feren ces
fo r a longer p roduct ion s e as on .
The commercial agr icultural s e ct o r is dominated by the
product ion of sugar and co conut p roduc t s that togethe r account
fo r 81 . 5 per c en t o f Fij i ' s export s ( $ 9 5 . 4 mill ion , 19 7 4 ) .
In comparison with t hese p ro duc t s , the value o f othe r agri
cult ural expo rt s , of which gin ger is the main one with export s
o f $ 0 . 55 mil l ion in 1 9 7 4 , and o f the int ernal commerc ial
food t rade , is s light . 5
While there are phys ical parame t ers to c ro p product ion ,
c rop dis t ribut ion is at odds with the b ro ad un i fo rmity o f
the phys i cal environmen t . An expl anat ion o f the anomal ies
is that the cult ure of pro ducers has a s igni f i c an t infl uen ce
on crops grown . Roo t crops are mainly grown by Fij ians ;
ri ce p roduc t ion is almo s t en tirely in the hands o f Indians .
Cult ural b iases in product ion have a s t ron g spatial exp re s s ion
that reflec t s the sett lemen t pat t ern s o f differen t races .
Rural populat ions are largely s e l f-suf fi cien t in food
s t uffs that are grown in Fij i . There is minimal int ra-rural
produce t rade at e ither a local or regional level .
Self-
18
s uff iciency in basic local foods , howeve r , is f requen t ly
dis t urbe d by hurricanes and floo ds : at the se t ime s the main
movement s of locally- grown food between producin g areas
occ ur . With in the Eas tern Divis ion , fo r instance , there are
o ccas ional l ar ge government-o rgan ized t rans fe rrals of yam
and other p ro duce from Lomaivit i to Lau .
The ease o f p roduct ion o f indi genous crops and o f
in troduct ions l ike cas s ava and green vege t ab l e s , adequate
lan d resources for home product ion , surplus labour supply
and a sho rt age o f c ash to p urchas e foo d , all encourage rural
self-s uff i ciency . Ano t her s ignifi cant fac tor is the po s t
harvest cha racte ris t i c s of local p rodu ce ( Tab le 1 . 6 ) . Apart
fro m co conut and yam , most l o c al crops have a post-harve st
life o f less than one week , many las t ing only a few days .
Some root cro p s such as cas s ava may be left in the ground
for some t ime after the opt imum harves t t ime and mo st t ree
c rops have s imilarly flex ible harves t s chedules .
But overall ,
flexib le po s t-maturity periods do not compensate for short
post-harve s t l ives . As ide from the drying and mill ing o f
rice , pos t-harvest technolo gies to preserve o r s t o re lo cal
food produc t s are not connnon . Moreove r , the t ro p i cal humid
climate shorten s the shelf-life of foo ds that in more
mild climat e s have goo d s t o rage qual it ies . Flour , sugar ,
dhal , p o t at oe s , onion s and garl ic deterio rate quickly un le s s
s t o red in p art i cularly dry and ven t ilated condit ion s .
The high perishab il ity o f lo cal produce and irre gular
t ranspo rt and conmnm.icat ion l inkages cont ribute t o a marked
dis t an ce decay in market p articipat ion . In termediate s t orage
an d han dl in g of produ ce is discoura ged for s imilar reason s .
It is t e chni cally po ss ible t o inc re as e the post-harves t life
o f mo s t p ro duc t s ; when this does o cc ur , there could b e a
con si der ab l e ch ange in the source of p roduce and the st ruc t ure
of the produce t rade .
The agr icultural syst em is flexible , p art icularly wh ere
change doe s not involve modifi cat ion of i t s b a s ic s t ruct ure .
The chief c ro p s of pre-cont act Fij i were dalo , yam, banana ,
plan tain and b readfruit , the dist ribut ion o f which largely
refle cted variat ions in the p ro duct ion environment . Swamp
and giant t aro and ' arrowroo t ' , for ins t ance , in some areas
were emergency foods and in o thers were s t aple s . Today ,
b oth are rarely con sumed . Th e mo s t s ignificant pos t-con t ac t
roo t c rop int ro duct ions are cas s ava , swee t potato an d
xan thosoma t aro , although none h a s us urped t h e s ymbolic
19
Tab l e 1.6
Pos t-harves t l if e of connnon foods
Foo d
Post -harve s t
l i fe
Commen t s
dalo
1 we ek
Unwashe d , uncut corm att ache d t o
s t em
dalo-n i- t ana
2 weeks
Unwashed , uncut corm
yams , all var iet ies
6-12 months
I f sprinkled
Harve s t e d mat ure .
with ash , post �harve st l i fe is
in creased
cas sava
3 days
If b uried
No t cut or bruis ed .
and ke pt mo i s t , will keep 7 days
sweet pot ato
1 week
b readfruit
1- 2 d ay s
Harve s t ed mature
p lan t ain
3 weeks
P i cke d green
co conut
4-6 weeks
t aro leaves
2 -3 days
fern
(o t a)
be le
ginger
2 - 3 days
2 - 3 days
( green )
citrus fruit
chi l l ie s
( l arge )
1 mon th
1-2 weeks
1-3 weeks
duruka
3-4 days
t omat oes
2 weeks
Chinese cabbage
2 - 3 days
Engl ish cabbage
2 weeks
beans
4-5 days
e ggplant
4-5 days
okra
4-5 days
pumpkin
4 weeks
Irish po t ato
2 - 4 weeks
onion
2 - 4 weeks
dhal
4-6 weeks
rice
2 - 3 mon th s
flour , sharp s
8 weeks
Note :
Source:
Depends on mat urity when harve s t e d
Picked green
Can be t reat ed to last
6 mon ths
Foo ds s t o red in cool and dry place ; the cooler and l e s s humid
the we ather , the longer post -harves t life .
Local ob servat ion .
20
Cas s ava has
funct ion o r prest ige of t radit ional roo t c rop s .
b e come wi dely disseminated s inc e its in tro duc t ion in the mid
n ineteenth c en tury , and is now p rob ably the mo st widely
p lan ted roo t crop .
It i s the bas is of home garden s in many
urban and per i-urb an areas . The wi des pread int ro duct ion o f
c as s ava - a s o f an y o ther int ro duced crop - o cc urred largely
be cause it s cult ivat ion did not re quire maj o r chan ge s in
agricultural t e chno logy , labour o rgan izat ion o r lan d t enure .
In te rms of the
Another s i gnificant in t ro duct ion is r ice .
area llll d er cult ivat ion and place in lo cal die t , rice is
almost as important today as roo t crop s .
Change has al s o o ccurred in the int en s ity of produc t ion .
Pre- cont act a gricul tural te chnolo gy include d ext ens ive
irrigat ion s chemes , fo r dalo , and large s cale product ion ,
part icularly for yams .
In mo st areas both thes e metho ds o f
cult ivat ion fell in t o di suse s oon after ini t i al con tact an d
agricultural product ion b ecame increas in gly fragmented .
The t ren ds toward c rop dive rs if icat ion an d product ion
dis int en s i fi cat ion have b een rein forced by involvement in
pro duct ion for cash . This has contrib uted to a reduct ion in
the area tm der sub s is t ence c rops an d a chan ge in the relat ive
importance of crops in respon se to deman ds f o r labour an d
part i cular e co- types . The growth o f urban populat ions has
en couraged p ro du ct ion fo r the in ternal ma rket , b ut l it t l e o f
the pro duc tion fo r this is by farmers who are ' commercial '
in the s ense of producin g solely , o r even largely , fo r s al e .
More common is product ion by f armers who grow much o f the ir
own foo d and also r ely on p roduce s ales for a maj o r part o f
their income .
Pro duct ion systems and market in g
Bas i c fo rms o f agricul t ural product ion are re co gn izable
in Fij i . Pro duct ion sys t ems may b e differen t iated by tech
nolo gy , form and source o f labour , dispo s al of pro duct ion an d ,
to a les s e r ext ent , s cale o f operat ion and crops grown . At
on e end o f a p ro duct ion system cont inuum are comme rc ial
farme rs who p ro duce ent irely for s ale , employ wage-labo ur
Connne rcial farmers
and f requently have large holding s .
produce mainly for export , b ut a numb er grow foo d fo r the
in ternal market . At the o ther ext reme of the con t inuum are
sub s isten ce p ro ducers ; they are most common in areas that
are marginally in t egrated in the n at ional e conomy .
Sub s i s t ence
product ion is characterized by small , irre gular holdings ,
21
mixed- c roppin g , unpaid family lab our , s imple technology an d
no p roduct ion fo r connne rcial exchan ge .
Between the ext remes o f connne rcial and sub s is ten ce pro
duct ion lies a b ro ad middle ground that en comp asses various
types of p ro duction involved in , b ut only p artly committed to
the c ash economy . Two b a s ic forms of sub s isten ce-connne rc ial
pro duct ion are recognizable : the vill age and the small
independent f arm sys t ems . Village farme rs are Fij ians us ing
land under t radit ional (mataqali ) t enure and producing
primarily for dome s t i c con s umpt ion . Land holdings are small
and labour is from the family , although connnun al labour can
be impo rt an t fo r speci f i c t asks . Product ion is ' t radit ional '
in that it is no t me chan ize d , there is con s iderable in ter
cropping an d s equential plant in gs and male and female work
tasks ar e dif ferent iate d . Produce from th e village product ion
sys tem that enters commer cial exchange is mainly surplus from
dome s t i c requirement s or p ro ducts , such as fruits or animal
and wat er p roduct s , that are semi- cult ivat ed or collected .
Towards the sub s is ten ce end of connne rcial-sub s is tence pro
duction , cro p s are rarely p lanted specif ically for s ale .
The small independen t farmin g sy stem covers a numb er of
pro duct ion forms , all o f which are distinguished from village
pro duct ion by the farmer having individual land tenure right s .
Wage-labour i s employed on a s eason al short-term basis , phases
of production are mechanized and crops are cult ivat ed specifi
cally for sale . Lit t le o f the produce sold by small inde
pendent farmers is collected from s emi-cult ivated or wild
s tates . Among Fij ian s , people f arming ind ividually leased
mataqa ti land - one type of small independen t farmer - may
not appear s ignificant ly dif feren t f rom village farmers .
However , not on ly do th e farmers on leased land have individual
t enure right s , but often they have a dis t inctive ' connne rcial '
outlook : in come from agricultur e is required to main tain
their s tyle o f l ivin g .
The three product ion modes - commercial , connne rc ial
sub s is t en ce and sub s i st ence - are as much a key to the under
s t an ding of produce market ing as food produc t ion . The p ro
duction mode has consi derab le b earin g on the volume and price
of p roduce which enters the market sys t em. Farmers near the
sub s istence end of the p roduct ion con t inuum may delib erately
plant crops for s ale or p lan a surplus in a crop plan ted
pr imarily for hous ehold consump t ion . However , whether the
p roduce is actually put on the marke t depends on the p roducer ' s
need fo r cash and whether the effort and cost of harves t ,
22
tran sport an d s ale b rings a return appropriate to h i s expect
at ion s .
Village p ro ducers and many small indepen den t farmers
b r in g irregularly t o market limited amo un t s of produce whi ch
they invariab ly ret ail themselve s . In contras t , mo re connne r
c ial producers grow crops spe c ifically to sell . Poor pr ices
are as discouraging t o connne rc ial producers as t o o thers ,
but do not lead to violen t fluctuat ion s in their market
involvemen t . Th e dif feren t product ion modes and attitud�s
to market in g are refl ected in two dis t in c t pricin g syst ems .
That of commercial producers funct ion s primar ily in respon s e
to supply and demand . The o ther sys t em, the provin ce of the
less commercially involved producer s , exis t s within the broad
c on text of supply an d demand fact ors but pr ices are strongly
in fluenced by money requiremen t s of producers and the returns
they expect .
•
The dual pricing sys t em has two s i gnificant con s equences
for food market in g . Firs t , if the amount o f p ro duce en terin g
the market sys t em i s i n fact inf luenced a s much b y pro ducer
requiremen t s as consumer demand , it will no t be affec ted
by guaranteed prices o r market s , b o th o f which are commonly
advo cated means of increas ing the amount of produce entering
the comme rc ial sys tem .
Secon d , there is con s i derable corre
lat ion b etween the e thn ic origin of t he producer , pro duct ion
mode and crop grown . Fij ian pro ducers are generally closer
t o the sub s is t ence end o f the product ion con t inuum an d more
irre gular in market part i cipat ion than the more ' commer cial '
Indian or Chinese farmers . As produc t ion o f c rops is some
what racially- specif ic , c ro p s are associated with part i cular
commercial sys tems and so with d ifferent pricing p r inciple s .
The p rice o f dalo , for ins t anc e , is affected by its p ro duc t ion
b e ing largely in the hand s of Fij ian vill age p roducers .
Cons iderab le research n eeds t o b e done int o the pricing
mechan isms a s s o c iated wit h product ion-market in g modes .
The government and agriculture
A basic obj ect ive of government development policy is
' maximum pos s ib le self-sufficiency ' in agr icultural p roduct ion
(Fij i , Cen t ral Planning Offi ce 1 9 75 : 65 ) . The paramet e rs of
the ' po s s ib le ' are not def ine d , but the Department o f Agri
cult ure dire c t s its att en t ion t o the techn i cal asp ect s of
p ro duct ion o f a wide range o f foo d and other pro duct s .
Extens ion s t a f f o f the Department act as market-in tell i gen ce
23
sources fo r farmer s , and a t t imes organize the s ale o f produce ,
but their chie f role is to improve p ro duct ion techniques and
raise pro duc t ivity . Fo r farmers , there are numerous formal
sources of loans for p roduc t ion co s t s - the Departmen t it self
and the YMCA lend small amo un t s , mainly t o Fij ians , and
larger amo un t s are availab le from t he Fij i Developmen t Bank .
In con trast to this as s istance for production , market ing
i s largely left to the producer . The Depar tment of Agri
cul ture sees market ing as s is t ance pr imarily in terms of the
Nat ional Market ing Authority , ' the key to s tab ilisation o f
pri ces and supply of agricul tural p roduce for con sumers and
of remunerat ive prices t o farme rs ' ( Fij i , Cen tral Plann ing
Office , 19 7 5 : 65 ) . Three per cen t ( $6 6 9 , 000) o f the Department ' s
19 7 6-80 capital expenditure budget has b een allocated t o
' development o f market in g ' , that is the Nat ional Market in g
Authority . An o ther $ 1 million under ' Rural Services ' will
go to the estab lishmen t of market s in rural areas .
The con s umers
In an examinat ion o f the prob lems o f the food supply and
dependence sys t em of Fij i , atten t ion invar iably centres on
pro duc t ion . Although they ' have a s ign ifi cant in fluence on
the l evel an d form o f food con sumption , con sumers rec eive
lit tle at ten t ion . Failure t o t ake in to account the aspira t ion s
and p ref erences of consumers reduces the chan ces o f suc ce s s
of any program relatin g t o food produc tion o r consump t ion .
The con sumers of Fij i c an b e s een from three perspectives :
(a)
the nature of the economy ;
(b )
spat ial aspe ct s o f the e con omy and set tlement ,
particularly rural/urb an lo cat ion an d ac cess t o
supply cen tres ;
( c)
the rac ial and cultur al feat ures o f the populat ion .
The nature . o f t he e conomy
Links between th e indigenous sub s is t ence economy an d
int roduced monetary act ivitie s were fo r many y ears tenuous
and spat ially circums cribed . Today , however , while feature s
o f the clas s i c co lon ial sub si s t en ce- connne rcial dual econ omy
are s t ill app aren t , connect ion with the mon et ary sys tem is
increas in gly pervas ive . Aft er limited growth until the early
19 50s , the e conomy has been relat ively buoyan t . 6 Over the
decade to 19 7 5 real e conomic growth averaged 3 to 4 per cent
24
annually . The Gro s s Dome s t i c Product was $476 mill ion ( $ 837
per capita) in 19 7 5 and is p redic ted to in creas e at an annual
rate of 7 p er cent between 19 7 5 and 1 9 80 . Primary indust ry
contributed to 2 7 p er cent of the GDP , s econ dary indus t ry 19 . 3
per cent , s e rvices 4 3 . 2 p er c ent , and in dire ct t axat ion the
remainder .
The pas t three or four years , however , have b een a period
of comb ined s tagnat ion and in flat ion that has reached even
the most isolated areas . The annual rat e o f increase of the
Con sumer Price Index ros e f rom 4 . 1 per cen t in 19 7 0 to 14 . 4
per cent in 19 7 4 . Th e rat e of inflation in creased markedly
in the early 19 7 0 s , con t rib ut ing to the impos it ion o f price
con t rol and wage res t raint measure s . However , apart from
con t ro l s on prices of s ome twelve ' es s en tial connno dit ies ' ,
rent s and in ter- island shipping rat e s , the s e restrain t s have
now been lifted .
In fl at ion in 19 7 7 is about 12 p er cen t per
annum; real growth con t inue s , although not at fo rmer levels .
Th e s t ate of t he mon etary sector is s uggested by employment
dat a . Durin g the 1 9 6 0 s and early 19 7 0s , wage and salary
employmen t in creased 6 p er cen t annually .
Sin ce 19 7 3 there
has b een a fall in the rate of employment exp an s ion whi ch is
expected to average on ly 3 p er cent from 1 9 7 5 t o 19 80 .
In spite o f th e recent e conomic downturn , Fij i is a
relat ively wealthy developing nation .
In addition to in creas e s
in real wage and s alary growth , indications o f general p ro s
pe rity are numerous . One particularly relevant to food
market ing and consumpt ion is the t rend in vehicle ownership .
From 1 9 60 to 19 7 4 , the numb e r of licen sed veh icles increased
threefold t o 2 3 , 700 . The numb er of private cars rose at an
even f as t er rate t o 12 , 7 00 in 19 7 4 from 3200 in 1 9 6 0 . Weight
ings of food s t uffs in con sumer p rice index calculat ions
derived from urban income and expenditure surveys are another
indicat ion of p ro s perity . From 5 4 7 ( out o f 1000 ) in 1 9 5 9 ,
the foods tuff weight in g in the CP I decreased to 4 9 0 ( 1 9 65 ) ,
434 ( 1 9 6 8 ) and mo st recently 400 ( 1 9 7 3 ) . 7 Great e s t increas e
in weight ings between 19 6 8 and 19 7 3 o ccurred in ' Hous ing
and household operat ion ' ( from 3 32 to 360 in 19 7 3 ) and
Surveys in 1968 and 19 7 2 b o th con
' Transport ' (66 t o 8 4 ) .
cluded that urban con sumpt ion p at t ern s have changed and
become more varied wi th ris ing in come .
In creas es in real wage and s alary rates are enj oyed by
les s than one-hal f of the t o t al lab our force . Fij i ' s labour
force in 19 7 3 was es t imated at 16 7 , 000 o f whom 154 , 000 were
25
economi cal ly act ive , al though only 6 1 , 000 of these were
clas s ified as wage or s alary earners .
The remainder was
accollll ted for by s elf-employment in b o th the agricul tural
and non-agricultural s e c to rs . Data on the s elf-employed are
not availab le , b ut overall they are less well-off than wage
or salary earners ; for mos t , annual income is probably under
one-quart er the nat ional average . During the early 1 9 7 0 s ,
ther e was a decl ine in the real s t andard of living of farmers
an d th e rural population in general ( Fij i , Cen t ral P lanning
Off ice , 19 7 5 : 6 5 ) . Moreover , the proj ected one per cent annual
growth ( 1 9 7 6- 8 0 ) in the ' sub s i s t ence ' agriculture sector ,
that is self-emp loyed commer cial-sub s is t ence farmers , will
b arely cove r proj ected p opulat ion increase .
Spatial asp ect s o f the e conomy and settlement
Rural /urb an dicho tomie s are s t ron g in Fij i and have a
s ignificant exp re s s ion in food con sump t ion through the ir
as sociat ion with par t i cul ar forms of l ivelihood an d degree
of invo lvemen t in the monetary economy . Conunercial act ivity
is concent rated in the Suva and Lautoka urban areas which
accollll t for 2 5 per cen t of Fij i ' s populat ion . Out s ide thes e
areas and other towns an d the sugar producing areas , th ere
is limited involvemen t in the cash economy , parti cularly on
the out er is l and s where 13 per cen t of the populat ion lives .
The spat ial isolation of many areas of Vit i Levu an d
Vanua Levu is b eing ove rcome by road development , b ut dist ance
decay of e conomic act ivi ty from t own s and ro ads is marke d .
E f ficient l inkage o f the island s with the conunerc ial syst em
has not b een achieved . Marked variat ion in levels of
l ivelihood is equally app aren t at very lo cal levels . Even
areas that are ' urb an ' by definit ion have a sharp j uxt a
p o s it ion of rural ( including agricult ure for home consumpt ion )
and urb an (monetary employment ) act ivit ies .
' Rural ' and
' urban ' populat ions are in no way mutually exclus ive ; the
labels mask a bro ad range o f economic activit ies and standards
of living within each .
Populat ion s ize has changed great ly over the past
century . From 12 7 , 000 at the first cen sus in 1881 , the popu
lat ion has inc reased to 5 8 8 , 000 in 19 7 6 , 36 p er cent of whom
l ive in urb an areas . 8 Populat ion is inc reasin g at ab out 2
p er cent annually ; 39 p er cent is les s than fifteen y ears o f
age and 5 0 p e r cent le ss than twenty . Populat ion composit ion
In 1881 , Fij ians represented
has also al tered dras t ical ly .
9 0 p er cent of the populat ion ; they now represen t 44 . 2 per
26
c en t . Oth er racial component s are Indian s ( 49 . 8 ) , p art
European s ( 1 . 8) , Ro tumans !311d Paci fic Islanders· other than
Fij ians ( 2 . 4 ) , Europeans ( 0 . 8 ) and Chinese ( 0 . 8 ) . 9
Racial and cultur al food con sump t ion hab i t s
The rac ial composit ion o f t he populat ion o f Fij i affect s
food consumpt ion in two ways . Fir st , var iat ion s in the
amoun t and type of foo d consumed that coul d be exp e ct ed as
a re flect ion of dif feren ces in in come are ob s cured by the
fact that there are marked differen ces in income by race .
Se cond , racial , and cult ural , group s have t radit ion al food
consumpt ion preferences an d hab it s . Each o f these f act ors
is examin ed below .
Useful in format ion is availab le on income , race and
food consump t ion , at leas t for the urb an populat ion . The
19 7 3 househo ld income and expenditure s urvey , for in stan ce ,
reveals a mean average Fij ian for tn i ghtly hous ehold income
o f $100 . 5 compared to $115 . 3 for Indian s and $ 1 86 . 3 for the
mainly Ch inese and European ' others ' ( Tab le 1 . 7 ) . Fij ians
comprise 5 4 . 5 p er cen t o f the first in come quart ile , compared
to 35 . 2 per cent of the fourth . The respe ct ive rat es fo r
Indians are 44 . 1 and 52 . 7 per cent and for ' others ' 1 . 3 an d
12 . 1 p er cen t .
From ano ther p erspective , 2 9 . 9 per cen t o f
Fij ian hous eholds are in t h e f i r s t quart ile an d 2 0 . 6 per
cen t of th e fourth ; fo r Indians the rat es are 2 1 . 2 an d 2 7 . 1
per cen t ; and for ' others ' , 5 . 1 an d 5 1 . 3 p er cen t . These
rat es are fo r urban p opulat ion s where 9 7 p er cen t of Fij ian
res pondent s received s alary or wages compared t o 70 p er cen t
o f Indians ( Fij i , Bureau o f S t at i s t ic s , 1 9 7 4 : 2 1 ) : i t i s
l ikely that i n rural areas income dif feren t ials , by race ,
are s i gn i f icantly great er .
Chan ges in income a re reflected in b oth the propo rt ion
of income devo t e d to foo d and the type of food con sumed .
The 19 7 2 urban househol d income and expen diture survey
revealed that the proport ion o f in come spen t on food was
50 . 7 per cen t in th e fir s t quart ile , de creas in g to 3 6 . 7 per
cent in the fourth (Fig. 5 ) .
Food group s in which there
are the greatest decreases are ' baking p ro ducts , pulses and
cereals ' ( 12 . 8 to 5 . 1 p er cen t ) and ' frui t s an d veget ables '
( 8 . 3 to 3 . 8 per cen t ) . Expenditure increases in ' beverages '
( 2 . 8 t o 5 . 1 per cen t ) an d remain s rel at ively even in o ther
cat e gories .
27
Li ttle in fo rmat ion i s available on food deman d elas
t icit ies although s ome inference is po s s ible from the hous e
hold expenditure and income surveys . An index o f elast icit y
cal culated f rom the range of demand and the average
demand lO reveals greate s t variat ion in demand occurs with
meals ( 9 0 . 7 per cent ) , b everage s ( 84 per cen t ) and t obacco
( 71 . 1 p er cent ) . Amon g ' es s ent ial ' foods , b akery pro duc t s ,
pulses an d cereals (62 per cen t ) an d f ruit an d ve getab les
(58 . 3 p er cen t ) have great e s t elast icity . Leas t el ast ic ity
occurs with milk , cheese and b ut t er ( 2 4 . 1 per cent ) , o ils
and fat s ( 2 7 . 3 per cent ) an d eggs ( 2 7 . 8 per cent ) . Fresh
fish ( 36 . 3 p er cent ) , con fect ionery ( 3 7 . 1 per cent ) , sugar
( 3 8 . 5 per cent ) and meat and canned fish ( 4 1 . 5 p er cen t )
comprise a middle level o f elas t i city . Dat a on individual
foo ds are no t ava ilable .
It is likely , however , that at
least amon g the wage-earn ing populat ion there is a higher
demand elast i city fo r t radit ional roo t crops than for
in troduced dry goods like wheat flour p roduc t s , rice and
sugar .
The s e con d way in which the rac ial compos it ion o f the
populat ion has a s igni ficant e f fect on foo d con sumpt ion is
that racial - and ethnic and cultural - group s have t rad
it ional food consumpt ion hab i t s and preferences . Each race
has a b as i c diet , the cor e o f wh i ch chan ges but s lowly .
The t radit ional Fij ian diet , f o r ins tan ce , comp rises s t archy
roo t ve get ab le st aples , such as t aro , yam, cassava and sweet
potat o , a small variety of indigenous vegetab les l ike rourou ,
bele an d ot a , an d seafoo d an d o th er animal pro te in . Connnonly
Fij ian cuis ine has a co conut cre am (lolo) base and l i t tl e
addit ional s eason in g . Diet o f o the r Pacific Islanders in
Fij i is e s s ent ially that of the Fij i an s .
Makin g allowan ce fo r vegetab le and meat-eat ing diet s ,
the t radit ional Indian diet comprises large amo un t s o f
cereal in the form of r ice and wheat flour p roduct s , pulse s ,
a ran ge o f green veget ab les, of whi ch e ggplan t , okra , t omat o
and b eans a r e t h e mo s t common , and small amotm t s o f an imal
pro t e in . Indian cookin g i s characteriz ed by masala-based
curries and con siderable us e o f on ion , garl ic , ve get able
oil and ghee .
The other main minority groups , the Chinese and the
Chinese diet is b ased
Europeans , als o have dis t inct diet s .
on ric e , leafy veget ables and meat . European con sumpt ion
of local pro duce , as ide from int roduced temperate vegetables
N
00
Table 1 . 7
Racial and d i s tribu tion charac teri s t ic s of urb an income , 19 7 3
Q
Fij ian ( % hous eholds
in quart ile )
Indian (% househo lds
in quartile)
Other (% hous eholds
in quar tile)
Mean fortn ight ly
household in come ( $ )
Range o f fo rtnightly
household income ( $ )
Numb er hous eholds
No te :
S ource :
l
Q
2
Q
3
Q
4
Number
h ' holds
54 . 5
46 . 3
40 . 1
35 . 2
2 81
44 . 1
51 . 3
51 . 9
52. 7
3 21
1. 3
2.5
8.0
12 . 1
39
45 . 6
70 . 9
108 . 1
213 . 0
0-5 7
5 8-88
89-137
> 138
15 4
160
162
165
Informat ion derived from a survey of 641 randomly sampled households in six urban
areas over s ix weeks in Oc tober-Novemb er 1 9 7 3 .
Fij i , Bureau of S ta t i s tic s , . 1 9 74 : 10 , 18 .
29
(/)
(lJ
CJ)
C'CJ
Qi
>
(lJ
.D
CJ)
£
-0
..c
0
u
0
0
u..
c
Q
ro
Qi
Cl.
cii o
£ -o
3o
0 ,c
I ..c
(/)
::J
0
(lJ
c
0
C'CJ
�
�
o. =
(/) Q)
c ()
C'CJ . �
S::: :::::::: ::J • • llll
1st qua rtile
total expenditure $ 7 136
ELHYY \\TYTU 1 1 1 11
2nd quartile
El\jjjjjj:\H\\jj\:H\\jjjjjjjjj/jjjjj]: ·••:11 1 1 1
3 rd quart i le
11 1 1 1 1 1 1 111
4th quartile
5000
1000
(/)
Q)
cli
u (/)
::J -m
-0 Q)
0 Qi
c. ()
2i
C'CJ
Q)
CJ)
..c
(/)
Q)
>
.;::
..c (/J
�
� g;
:;
U:
U..UJ
I II
I
\\
�
CJ)
::J
(/)
II
II
> cli
TOTAL EXPENDITURE ON FOOD
�
Qi Q)
-"'" (/)
C'CJ :;
C'.l Cl.
Q)
�
I 1 1 II J I
:
:
I II
I 1·
lst quartile. $ 3 611
2nd quartile. $ 5 031
1 .1 11 11
I
II
. .
Figure 5
-0
Q)
c
c
C'CJ
()
'1 1
I II
10
dollars
/! f
I If
per cent
11 1 I
3rd quartile. $ 5 224
4th quartile $ 7 464
100
Urb an foo d consumpt ion an d compo s it ion o f
exp enditure , by income quart iles
( Source : Fij i Hous ehold Income and Expendit ure
Survey , 1 9 7 3 , Bureau of Stat i s t ics , Suva ,
1 9 7 4 : 22 )
30
and some meat s , is limit ed .
Of all groups , th e European is
mo st dependent on non-local foods .
Trad it ional diet s are also temp ered by numerous in flu
en ces . Rel i gious beliefs , fo r ins t an ce , have s ignificant
diet ary ramif i cat ions . Amon g the Indians , Hin dus will not
eat cat t le p ro duct s , Mus lims avo id pork and vegetarians shllll
all meat . Al though the re are few t radit ional food t aboo s
among Fij i an s , Christ ian s e c t s have int roduced a n umber to
the ir Fij ian adherent s .
Tradit ion al die t s are no longer as exclus ive as b e fo re .
A de cl ine in racial exclus ivenes s and religious z eal and an
inc rease in urb anizat ion have cont ributed to more shared
diet pat t ern s . Bread and o ther b akery p roduct s , rice , canned
fish and all s eafoods , b ee f , cas s ava , dale an d rourou are
consumed by urban In dian and Fij ian al ike .
In spite o f these
change s , foo ds of the t radit ional diet s remain b as ic even in
urb an areas .
Racial differen ces in diet are readily recognisab le in
findin gs o f the 1 9 6 8 urb an household and expen diture survey ,
one o f the few s ources o f in format ion on food con sumpt ion
by race ( Fi g . 6 ) .
In comparison to o ther race s , Fij ians
made a great er proport ion o f food purchas e s in f ish an d root
crops and a smaller share in b akery p ro duct s , cereal s and
p ulses , f ruit , oils and fat .
In dians spen t more on bakery
pro duct s , cereals , pul s es , o ils and fat and f ruit than
Fij ians , Chin es e o r European s . European (and part-European )
households spent least on b ake ry p ro duct s , c ereals and pul s es ,
o il and fat s , b ut con s i derably more than o thers on meat an d
b everages .
Chinese hous eholds had greater expenditure on
meat , s ugar and con fect ione.ry than o t her races .
In all urban househol ds , breakfast generally includes
s ome cereal p roduct s an d tea . Fij ians commonly eat b read
o r b i s cuit s , or some t ime s starchy vege t ab le s f rom t he p revious
day , with t e a .
Indians are l ikely to have a ve get ab le curry
an d ro t i with the ir t ea . In rural areas Indians eat a
s imilar b reakfas t , b ut Fij ians are l ikely t o h ave a lat er ,
heavy br eakfas t , eat in g rice o r left-over s t ar chy ve getab le s
a s wel l a s t e a . Fo r both Indians an d Fij ians the evenin g
meal is the chi ef me al o f the day , differin g f rom lllll ch mainly
by the great er variety of foods consumed .
The role o f purchas ed food in diet has def inite rac ial
and s pat ial characteris t ics . No connnun ity in Fij i is
31
0
10
EU ROPEAN
C H I N ESE
I N DIAN
FIJIAN
. . . . ·1
.
B a k e ry p rod ucts.
p u l ses. ce re a l s
.
Meat
F i sh
M i l k. c h eese etc .
O i l s . fa ts
F r u i t veg eta b l e s
S u g a r. confecti o n e ry
Tea . coffee. cocoa
Other food
Beve ra ges. a l c o h o l
R oot c ro p s
Toba cco
100
p e r cent
36.8
$ 99
44.4
$ 61
38.6
$ 74
52.4
Per cent household
expe n dit ure on food
$ 44
Average fortn ightly household
expe n dit ure (all items)
Figure 6
Urb an foo d con s umpt ion by race
( So urce : A preliminary report on the 1968 urban
hous eho l d in come and expendit ure survey in Fij i ,
Bureau o f St at is t i cs , Suva , 19 6 8 )
32
comp letely s e lf - suf f i cien t in food : and f ew are f ar f rom a
s tore where s ome foods may be purchas ed . Every Fij ian village
househo l d has acce s s to land for food garden in g from which
b as i c veget ab l e requiremen ts are met : there is very l i t t l e
purchase o r c ash exchange o f these foods in rural village s .
Rural Fij ians pur chase es sent ial foo ds such as flour ,
sugar , canned mackerel and corned beef , s al t , t ea , rice an d
canned evapo rat ed milk a t private ly-owned or co-operat ive
soc iety s t o res in the ir villages . The st ores do not have
re frigerat ion . Perishab le foods in cludin g fish and other
seafo o ds and meat may be purchased o ccas ion ally at a shop
o r market in a t own or perhaps at a nearby Chinese o r In dian
store .
In mo st rural areas , p roduce is rarely p ur chased
and expenditure on p rocessed foo d i s l imite d .
In village s ,
each adult con s umer p rob ab ly spends $ 4 - $ 5 on food e ach mon th ,
al though the actual amotm. t is l ar gely dependent on the avail
ab ility of cash .
Seasonal i ty o f foo d pro duc t ion con t ributes t o cons ider
ab le vari at ion in con s umpt ion pat t ern s in those rural Fij ian
connntm. i t i es l ar gely s elf- suffi c ient in food . Rural hous e
holds do no t p ur chase vege t ables t o compens ate fo r season al
shortages of st archy vege t ab le s t ap le s ; rather , rice an d dry
In town s , the type
b is cuit s are con s umed mo re f requen t ly .
of foo d c onsumed varies more than in rural areas , but is
also , to a large ext en t , seasonal . Part i cularly in urban
areas , b ut also in s ome rur al zones , the diss eminat ion o f
cas s ava has done much t o s t ab il i z e the season al avail ab ility
of s t archy vege t ab le s .
Indians are more dependen t on purchas e d foo d than
F ij ians b e caus e local p roduc tion of the ir s tap les , r i ce an d
pul ses , i s l imit ed and in t e rms o f energy expended more
d i f f icult than the product ion o f root veget ables . Rural
households , however , frequen t ly have garden p lo t s wh ich
s upply mo s t o f their green veget ab le s . Rural Indians pro duce
a great er share o f their animal protein requiremen t s than
Fij ians . In urban and per i-urban areas , Fij ian s an d Indians
s omet imes have con s iderab l e home garden s but their act ual
cont rib ut ion to foo d con sumpt ion is unknown . Europeans an d
Chinese in urb an areas purchase p ract ically a l l their food .
The survival in Fij i o f t radit ional con sumpt ion hab it s
in the face o f s o c ia l and economi c chan ge s ugges t s the conserv
a t ism o f die t . Non-economic criteria l ike taste and as cribed
33
s t atus o f foods cont rib ute t o d ietary conservat ism, but also
con sumpt ion hab i t s are often the pro duct o f rat ional evalu
ation and select ion . When t radit ional foods are omit ted
from that diet , it may be b ecaus e they do not f it the pro
gre s s ive self- image of consumers .
Equally importan t , how
ever, are e conomi c con s ide rat ion s : out s ide produc in g areas
t radit ional foo ds are often in sho rt s upply and expen s ive .
Informat ion on the nut rit ional co s t o f food ( Tab le 1 . 8 )
suggest s that consumer s in Fij i pur chas e food wisely . Rice ,
dhal , flour , sharp s , b read , cas sava and canned macke rel form
an economic al b asis of d ie t . Nut rit ion from lo cal alt ernat ive
s t arches and p ro t e in is markedly more expen s ive .
In addit ion to cos t con side rat ion s is the fac t that a
foo d ' s utility in a cash e conomy differs great ly from that
in sub s i s t ence so ciet ie s . Many ind igenous foods of the
Pac i f i c have short s t o rage l ives and are h ighly p erishable .
Seasonal ity and the available s i z e un it s cause sharp fluctu
at ion s in availability and con s umpt ion . Mo reover , preparat ion
o f indi genous foo ds by t radit ional mean s can be a lengthy
pro ces s . Prob lems o f availab il ity , s t orage and p reparat ion
may b e accep t ab l e where t ime is not at a premium and foo d
suppl i es are l ar gely con sumer-grown . But i f foods mus t b e
purchased and pr epared in the t ime s chedule pe cul iar t o wage
lab our , diffe ren t considerat ions are impor t an t . In urban
areas , f o r in s t ance , as well as being cheap , readily avail
able , easy to prepare an d involvin g minimal cooking t ime ,
food needs t o b e availab le in un it s large enough to supply
a family , but small enough t o l imit the number o f out s iders
whos e meal-t ime vis i t s are more free-loadin g than s o ciab le .
Foo d consumpt ion - a case s tudy
Foo d con s umpt ion pat terns are the product o f a variety
of factors .
To put the main influen ces in Fij i in to pers
pect ive , that is , the consumer ' s race , e conomic s t at us and
res i den tial lo cat ion ,
it is us eful t o cons ider a case st udy
of foo d con sumpt ion condu cted in the Cen t ral Divis ion in s ix
rural connnu nit i es ; two Fij ian peri-urb an village s , another
per i-urb an s e t t l emen t an d three urban connnun it ies in the
greater Suva-Nausori area ( Table 1 . 9 , Fig . 7 ) . 11
The diet o f rural Fij ians in th e Central Divis ion is
b ased on home-grown s tarchy vegetables .
In five o f the s ix
en t irely F ij ian communit i es surveyed , ro ot crops , plan tains ,
bananas and b readfruit are the mo st connnonly eaten foods ;
34
CJ cereals
[IlililIJ] Root vegetables
h/J Meat. fish
� Vegetables. fruit
CJ other
- - Main road
F ood preferences of Cent ral Divis ion comnum it ies
( Source : Fieldwork )
35
in one , almo s t one-half o f the recorded ' p erson-servings ' one p erson eat ing a part icular food , irrespective of amoun t ,
at one meal - are of s t archy ve getable s . Fo r all Fij ian
households , 2 9 . 4 per cen t o f p erson-servings are of st archy
vegetab les ; ce reals and cereal p roducts are almo st as commonly
consumed , mea t only sl ight ly les s so . Vegetab les o ther than
the s t aple s t arches account for much of the b alance . Within
these broad categories part icular foods are favoured . Bakery
p roducts and r i ce are frequen tly consumed . Cas s ava is a
maj o r foo d , being consumed on over 60 per cen t of po s s ib le
occasion s in two commun it ies an d over 50 per cen t in two
others .
Canned fish , almo s t solely macke rel , accounts for
mo s t imported ' meat ' ; local meat is primarily f ish and sea
food although b ee f is al so impor tan t . Taro leaf , bele , ota
an d variet ie s of ' cabbage ' accoun t for almo st all other vege
tab le consump t ion . Co conut cream is frequen tly u sed , being
served on 40 per cen t or mo re o f po s s ib le o c casion s in four
commun i t ies .
Food consump t ion fre quen c ies , that is ' food preference s ' ,
o f Indian hous eholds dif fer great ly from those o f Fij ian s
( Fi g . 8 ) .
Dat a were collected f o r 31 Indian households ,
although on ly one s amp le commun ity , Raralevu , was composed
en ti rely o f Indians . In the Indian households , cereals and
ce real products accoun t for 5 0 . 6 p er cen t of to tal person
servin gs ; non-st archy vegetab les fol low with 1 7 . 4 per cent ,
meat accoun t s for 15 per cen t and s t archy ve get ab les for
s l i ghtly les s . Eggs and sweet s are more frequen t ly consumed
by Indians than by Fij ians but remain negl igib le .
The frequen cy with which cereals an d cereal produc t s
are consumed b y Indians and roo t crops by Fij ians a r e about
equal . Each group also con sume s vegetables and fruit with
about the s ame frequen cy .
St archy vegetables are less fre
quen t ly eaten in Fij ian urb an an d peri-urb an households than
in Fij ian rural households , but urb an dwell ers apparen t ly
compen sate by eat ing cereals and cereal product s twi ce as
often as rural Fij ians . F ij ians con sume meat and f ish more
frequen t ly than Ind ian s ( 2 4 . 3 to 15 . 0 per cen t of person
servin gs ) , and the rate of meat and fish con sump t ion does
not di ffer greatly among Fij ian hou seholds . In con trast ,
meat and f ish consumpt ion is markedly more common in urban
and peri-urb an than in rural Indian households .
Although Indians an d Fij ian s may appear to have s imilar
con sumpt ion patterns at the l evel of b road food categories ,
consumption is in fact markedly different . Among ' cereals ' ,
36
Tab le 1 . 8
Nut rit ional cost of common foods
( cen t s )
Food
dalo
dalo-n i- tana
cas s ava
yam
Irish potato
plan t a in
b read fruit
j ackfruit
carro t
pumpkin
fern
t aro leaf
l e t t uce
eggp lant
En gl ish cabbage
Ch inese cabbage
amaranth
okra
long bean
tomato
pawpaw
banana
rice
dhal
flour
sharp s
dry b i s cuit s
b read
chicken
b e e f ( mo d . fat )
mut ton (mod . fat )
f i sh ( lean )
canned mackerel
canned corned b e e f
No te :
Source :
kg
Co s t (cen t s ) per :
lg
lOg
100
pro t e in
calories
fat
lOOg
CHO
10 . 3
15 . 4
10 . 6
4.6
20 . 0
22 . 4
10 . 0
9.3
24. 0
1 31 . 6
50. 0
1 00 . 0
12 2 . 5
8 90 . 0
65 . 0
312 . 5
1 30 . 0
200 . 0
111 . 2
181 . 7
22 . 0
3. 6
11 . 5
5. 7
2 .8
3.2
3.5
9. 7
6.5
7.9
2.8
2 .2
2.5
4.0
3. 7
5.0
9.5
4.9
4.7
13. 4
9.1
13 . 4
9.5
9. 3
6. 7
4.8
10 . 8
3.6
0. 7
0. 7
22 . 7
1. 3
1.7
40
28
17
52
38
26
24
38
92
40
38
49
267
26
12 5
33
80
67
109
88
33
31
3.5
2.4
1. 1
5.0
5.1
2.4
2.1
5.3
27 . 9
11 . 1
11 . 5
17 . 5
1 40 . 5
11 . 8
44 . 6
18 . 6
28.6
20. 2
32 . 1
44 . 0
8.5
2.7
20. 0
13. 8
24. 4
26 . 0
19 . 0
31 . 0
16 . 1
25 . 6
92 . 1
4.0
10 . 5
24. 5
1 90 . 7
26. 0
62 . 5
26. 0
40. 0
33 . 4
54 . 5
88 . 0
54. 2
31 . 0
40
55
35
35
97
48
1. 1
1. 7
1.0
1.0
2.7
1.9
2 55
152
1 39
144
99
249
18. 3
5.8
5.6
15 . 6
5.0
11 . 0
8.6
15 . 5
6.1
12 . 8
2.9
16 . 3
41 . 7
17 . 3
26. 7
Cal cul at e d for net co sts o f food ( i . e . p re-cooked edib le
Fif teen per cen t allowed for was t e with chicken , b e e f
port ion ) .
an d mut t on , 10 per cent w i t h f ish ; net co s t s o f o t h er foods f rom
experimen t s .
Cos t s f rom ob servat ion in Suva , February 19 7 7 ; n ut rit i onal
data f rom South Pacific Health Service , Food Composition
Tab les for Use in the South Pacific , n . d .
Tab l e 1 . 9
Charac t e r i s t i c s of
Connnun i t y
__ _ _ _ _ _
�aralevu
Wainihuku
Cal i a
Davuilevu
Km
to
Suv�_
24
15
43
16
Access
Se t t lement
N aus o r i
19
Suvavou
Frequen t b u s e s
D i s p e r s e d rural
to
N a us o r i a n d Suva
F r e q ue n t b u s e s
s e t t lemea t
to
H a l f-mile
Rural-urban f r in ge
Suva
f rom Navua;
regular b us e s
t o Suva
On K i n g ' s Road one
mile
f rom Naus o r i ;
Naus o r i ;
25
46
Nasaut oka
82
Tuvatuvavat u
93
67
1
U p p e r- c l a s s r e s i
den t ia l area to
N a us o r i
Pe r i- urban v i l lage
to
f ro m S o lomon
Lakia
land ing ,
Buses
to
Korovou
thence
Suva or
(3
km)
De l t a
Roa d ,
66
_ ______ ______ _ __
Wage employmen t i n Suva and
rice
farming ,
ma i n ly
F
t w o s emi
Lo cal s t o re s
6
48
Semi-p ro f e s s ion a l and semi-
Local s t o re s
4
7
2
F
8
and N aus o r i
skilled;
two
f a rmers
i n t h r e e househol d s ,
husband a n d w i f e emp loyed
118
H i ghe r level p ro f e s s i on a l ;
husband and w i f e emp l o y e d in
so
5 km walk t o
road ,
to Suva
(42
1 hour by b o a t
km)
to
t h e n c e b us
to
21
Two d a i l y Suva wo rke r s ;
F 10
14
i n t w o househo l d s ,
and w i f e emp loyed
F 10
20
of Navua River
8
Suva
8
husband
one
23
local s t o re s
(2) ,
V i l l age
and
local
(3) ,
s tores
(2)
Al l
V i 1 1 age s t o re s
All
V i l la ge s t o r e
All
S ale o f p r o d u c e a t urban
ma r ke t s ; one l o cal t e a c h e r
Vil lage s t o r e
Al l
S a l e o f p roduce a t
V i llage s t o r e s
All
V i l l age s t o r e s
All
b o a t ope rat o r ;
i r regular
Two weekly Suva worke r s ;
road- s i de and market
marke t s
F
N auso r i ,
Suva
F 10
V i l l age o f f King ' s
V i l l age on midreaches
Naus o r i
husban d and w i f e emp loyed
three h o useho l d s ,
Un sk i ll e d and semi - s k i l l e d ;
20
Wain i b uka
(2 ) ,
Navua
V i l l a ge s t o re ,
s k i l l ed ;
41
F 10
Ro ad ,
(2 ) ,
Semi-p r o f e s s i on a l a n d s emi
F 10
V i l l age on King ' s
Wain ibuka
Local super
market and shop
four hous eho l d s
1
1
s k i l l e d worke r s ,
p roduce s a l e s
Road ,
Naus o r i
Un s k i l l e d lab o ur ;
Suva
in come f rom co p ra and market
Ve r a t a
(3) ,
22
in
garden s
Lo cal s t o r e s
6
Semi - p ro f e s s ional and s emi-
3 k i l le d employment
with
l_o_o_g__
53
1
Mix
_ _
7
3
H ' holds
Sources o f
purchased
Income s ou r c e s
N&uno r i ;
I s l an d s
V i l lage i n the Rewa
V i l l age o n King ' s
( 32 km)
then c e b us
Suva
to
to Suva or
Korovo u
Navua ,
populat ion d e s c ended
Suva
1 5 min u t e s boat
Buses
P e r i - u rban v i l l a ge ;
f re q uen t
F
Mix
on Queen ' s Road
T e rminal of b us
o r Korovou
Nuku
Urban s e t t lement
b o un d a r i e s
mo s t
b u s t o Suva
N a i l e ga
F
families have c a r
buses
Nado i
of Navua
Frequen t b use s to
r o ut e ;
1 10
F
w i t h in N a us o r i town
Walk i n g d i s t ance t o
Mean weekly
h ' ho l d n e t
com_E_._ in c_o_�e__J_$_L__ _
Re c en t m i d d l e - income
s ub - d ivis ion
o r ien t e d to
Suva and Lami
13
Sample
e thn i c
f o r home consump t ion
N a us o r i and Suva ;
( 3 km)
Wailoku
t y pe
____ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ ____ _ _ _ _ _ ___ ______ _ _ _
f re q uen t b us e s
Vuni vi vi H i l l ,
corrnnun i t ie s surv�ed in Cen t r a l _l)_i_v i s ion �o-�J�ren c�s s t udy
Navua
Korovou
(3)
Two b o a t oper a t o r s ,
t e a c he r ;
urban
(2 )
one
market s a l e s a t
(4 ) ,
---- -- - - - - ---- ------------ - - - - - -------
Navua
38
nI
Cerea l s and
cereal products
Starchy vegeta bles
Meat (including
poultry a n d fish)
F ruit and
vegeta bles
Other
PERI-URBAN & U RBAN
Figure 8
RURAL
ALL AREAS
Rural-urban variation in food preferen ces o f
Central Divis ion commun ities
( So urce : Fieldwo rk)
39
for in st an ce , bo t h consume rice , but ro t i ( un leavened bread )
and dhal are exclus ively consumed by Indian s .
In Raralevu
rot i is eaten on almo s t 60 per cen t of p o s s ib le o c c as ion s
and dhal on 2 4 pe r cent .
In dians as well as Fij ian s consume
t aro an d cas s ava , b ut j ackfruit an d Irish potatoes are con
sume d almo st exclus ive ly by In dians . Mut ton , ch i cken , duck
an d goat are preferred meat s for In dian s , while b eef and
pork are popula r amon g Fij ians . Taro leaf and cabb age , the
two ch ie f leafy ve getab les of Fij ians , are al s o eat en by
Ind ians , but e ggplan t , okra , t oma to and a numb er of varie t ies
of bean are their ba s i c veget ables .
In ad dit ion , Ind ian s
make chutneys and p i ckles from a wide range o f ve getab les
and fruit .
Frequen cy o f consumption o f fruit , e ggs and
swee t s by both Ind i an s and Fij ians varies great ly between
co nnmm it ies .
Th e rural Fij ian commun it ies have relat ively un iform
p at terns of food p re ferences but there are con s iderab le
In
differenc es be tween rural and urban Fij ian households .
ru ral househol d s , 3 9 . 8 per cen t of all person-s ervings are
of s t archy veget ables compared to 2 7 . 2 per cen t in urban and
peri-urb an Fij ian hous eholds . Vege t ab les and fruit are con
sume d mo re frequen t ly ( 2 2 . 4 compared to 1 6 . 5 per cen t o f
p erson-servin gs ) and cereals an d cereal p ro duct s less commonly
( 14 . 5 to 2 8 . 9 per cen t in rural than in urban or peri-urb an
Con sumption frequencies o f foo d s o f Fij ian
households .
households in two per i-urb an villages , Suvavou and
Wai loku , are prac t i cally iden t i cal with con sumpt ion in o ther
Fij ian urban and peri-urban hous ehol d s .
Di fferen ces b etween rural an d urban d iet are much less
marked amon g In dians than Fij ians . For rural , peri-urb an
an d urban In dian househol d s , one-half o f person-servings
are of cereals an d cereal p roduc t s - in cluding len t ils .
S tarchy veget ables ( 1 3 . 2 again s t 9 . 7 p er cent of person
servings ) and meat ( 15 . 8 ve rsus 10 . 7 per cent ) , but fewer
veget ab les and fruit ( 1 7 . 7 to 2 4 . 7 per cen t ) are more
frequen tly consumed in urb an an d peri-urban than rural In dian
househ o l d s .
Dat a from the community s tudies suggest the ext ent of
penet rat ion by imp ort ed foo dstuf fs .
' Imported foods ' we re
t aken as all cereals and cer eal p ro duc t s excluding rice ,
I rish pot atoes , canned meat and fish , fro z en an d canned
ve get ables and fruit .
Consumpt ion of import e d foo d s ranges
from 10 . 4 to 4 8 . 6 pe r cent of t otal person-s ervings ( Tab le
1 . 10 ) .
If imported r ice was in c luded , the share of imported
40
foo d , undoub t e dly , woul d b e higher . Imported foo d con s umpt ion
is highe st in the Indian and lar gely Indian connnun i t ie s .
Consump t ion o f import ed food in the F ij ian peri-urban village s
i s higher than in rural villages , b ut is st ill not equal t o
the level in the Indian connnunit ies . The effect o f income
and source o f inc ome on the rat e o f lo cal food con sumpt ion
is s uggested by the fact that the three F ij ian villages with
great e s t involvement in wage lab our (Nado i , Suvavou and
Wailoku) have the h i gh es t frequen c ies of imported food con
s ump t ion amon g the Fij ian connnun it ies .
The type of imported food consumed varies b e tween commun i t ie s accord in g to raci al compo sit ion and rural-urban st atus
( Tab le 1 . 1 0 ) .
In the f ive rural F ij ian villages , imported
foo ds are almost equally divided b etween canned mackerel and
b akery product s - largely dry b is cuit s .
In the p eri-urban
village s b akery p ro duc t s are more f requen t ly con s umed and
cann ed f ish con s i derab ly less frequen t ly than in rural
villages . There is als o great er divers ity in import ed foods
in per i-urban than in rural connnun it ies .
In Raralevu , ro t i ,
dhal and po t at o accoun t fo r 7 6 per c en t o f import ed food ,
by pers on-servings . Th ese foods are als o importan t in the
peri-urban connnun it ie s , but b akery product s , p art icularly
b read , are mor e connnonly con s umed there .
There was no evidence from the foo d p references s urveys
of a causal relat ionship b etween in come l evel and con sumpt ion
o f imported foo ds , even within the same rac ial group . For
in st an ce , the l argely Fij ian upper- clas s commun ity o f
Vunivivi Hil l , Naus o ri , has t h e lowes t frequen cy o f con s umpt ion
of imported foo ds of all urban and p eri-urban commun it ies .
Two con clus ion s may b e drawn from the connnun it y s urveys
Firs t , t radit ional racial d ietary
of food preference s .
p at t e rn s remain s t ron g , par t i cularly in rural areas b ut al s o
in t owns .
Tradit ional d iet s h ave b een maint ained in the
face of pervas ive forces t owards un i fo rmit y and s ugge s t the
con servat ive force of ' t radit ion ' in diet . At temp t s to
change eatin g hab it s without making allowanc e fo r the cons er
vat ism of t radit ional diet have l it t le chan ce of succes s ,
particul arly as s ome reason s for t radi t ional diet t hat at
firs t s i ght s eem bas e d on t radit ion rathe r than lo gic act ually
have sound economic j us t ifi cat ion . A s econd con clus ion is
that people in many conmnm it ies purchase min imal amo un t s o f
foo d and that the re are s ignificant dif ferences in rural
urb an cons ump t ion hab it s , p art icularly in terms of con sumpt ion
of purchased foo ds .
Table 1 . 10
Consump t ion o f imported foods in s elec ted communi t ies o f the Cen tral Divis ion
a
Per cent share o f imported f o o d
rl
C1l
Q)
l-1
Q)
% personservings
b
imported
CJ)
.w
>. (.)
l-1 ;:l
Q) "Cl
� 0
Ctl l-1
.0 0..
CJ)
(.) .w
rl
Ctl
..c
"Cl
•ri
.w
0
l-1
(.)
l-1 ;:l
Q) "Cl
..c 0
.w l-1
0 0..
0
.w
C1l
.w
0
0..
..c
CJ)
•ri
l-1
H
..c
UJ
•ri
.w
C1l
Q)
"Cl
Q)
�
"Cl
Q)
�
4-l
�(.)
13
�(.)
i:::
Q)
N
0
l-1
4-l
- �
..c 0
u:i .w
Cl) .w
Jj �
CJ)
Q)
rl
.0
Ctl
.w
Q)
00
.w
·ri
;:l
l-1
4-l
"Cl
� �
Raralevu
48 . 6
7. 7
43. 7
18 . 3
0.5
14 . 0
7.4
0. 6
5.9
Wainib uku
43. 5
15 . 8
39 . 6
12 . 9
3. 3
14 . 2
11 . 3
0. 3
2.6
Cali a
40 . 7
13. 4
37. 6
16 . 0
16 . 4
9.9
2.9
3. 8
Davuilevu
46 . 2
19 . 0
35 . 3
9.5
5.5
9.1
14 . 1
1. 7
4.8
1.0
Vunivivi Hill
29 . 3
49 . 5
11 . 3
2.3
10 . 8
7.6
9.0
1. 3
5.2
3.0
Suvavo u
36 . 6
43. 9
6.4
1. 7
10 . 9
7.0
21. 5
4. 7
3.9
Wailoku
30 . 3
48 . 7
3.5
8. 8
3.7
31 . 8
0.7
7. 3
37 . 6
5.4
1.9
2.8
Nadoi
23. 8
39 . 6
4.2
5.9
Nailega
16 . 9
38. 6
3. 0
5.1
49 . 3
4.0
Nas autoka
11 . 3
41 . 4
6.6
9. 3
39 . 7
3. 0
Tuvatuvavat u
10 . 4
45 . 9
Nuku
16 . 9
18. 7
17. 4
1. 7
61 . 5
54 . 1
0. 7
--- -----
a
b
Beverages and mis cellaneous foods excluded ; rice trea ted a s ' lo cal ' .
A ' pers on- s erving ' is the uni t o f one per s on eat ing a p ar t ic ular food , irrespect ive of amount , at o ne meal.
S o urce:
Food pre ferences s t udy , Central Div i s ion , July 1 9 7 6 .
.i::-�
42
Summary
The ar gumen t of thi s chapt er c an b e summariz ed in three
maj or p o in t s .
First , the marke t ing/dist rib ut ion system of
any one food or group of foods must be seen in th e con t ext
o f both the b roader food sy st em and the so cio-economic
environment : chan ge in one part has rami f icat ion s for the
b roader sy stem.
Secon d , the in t ernal food dis tribution sys t em in Fij i
is poorly deve loped . Thi s is due to p ast emphas is on ext ernal
rathe r than in ternal t rade l inks and government failure to
support int ern al market ing , rather than to inheren t weakne s ses
in the sys t em.
There i s a s ub s t ant ial foundat ion on to whi ch
improvement s may b e b uilt : a long involvement in t rade by
Fij ians an d In dians , innovat ive agricultural sys t ems , in creas
in g int ernal demand and improving t ran spo rt-conunun i cat ion s
facil it ie s . A real is t ic market ing pol i cy woul d t ake advan t age
of these exist ing feat ures and be developed from t he pers
pect ive o f the to t al food system.
Third , food con sumpt i on hab i t s do no t change rap idly ,
part icularly as many have sound e conomic j us t ific at ion .
The mo st cert ain way o f de creas in g food impor t s is to estab
lish foo d preferences that can be met from lo cal sources .
Without dras t i c changes in local food preferen ce s , food
impo rt s in Fij i will cont inue to be around 12 p e r cent o f
to t al impo rt s by value . F o o d con sumpt ion hab it s canno t be
chan ged by fiat . Awarene s s of the bas i s and s i gnif ican ce
of food pre ferences is a prerequi s ite for succe s s ful int e r
vent ion in foo d con s umpt ion hab it s , includin g the con sump t ion
o f non-lo cal foods .
It i s a ga ins t the b ackgroun d o f th ese general p o in t s
that the following analyses o f the pro duce and proces sed
foo ds dis t rib ut ion sys t ems should b e read .
Chapter 2
PRODUCE MARKETING
Thi s chapt er analyses F ij i ' s produce market ing system .
Atten tion fo cuses o n t h e chief p a r t s o f the contempo rary
sy stem - the urban produce market s and the Nat ion al Market ing
Authority - although evolu tion o f the sy stem is also des
cribed . Key par t i cipan t s and the ir roles ar e ident if ied ,
as are s ome s t ructural impedimen t s t o effic ien cy in the
market ing sys t em . The f inal section of the chap t er summarizes
prob lems presen t in the market in g sys t em and sugges t s p o s sib le
remedie s .
Produc e market ing in Fij i re flects features o f the
agr icul tural system . Commercial ism of product ion var ies by
produc t , region and race of p roducer . Prob ably no more than
15 p e r cen t of total vegetab le and fruit pro duct ion en ters
commercial t rade . l Mo s t p roduce en terin g the market system
come s from commercial-sub s is t ence farmers who are committed
to market in g to a greater o r les ser degree and who ret ail
small amol.lll t s of their own pro duce .
There are no guaranteed market s or guaran teed prices .
When a crop i s ready f or harve s t , a farmer must dec ide whether
to whole sale or retail it at a p ro duce market or to sell to
a large- s cale in termediary buyer such as an assembler
whole s aler of the governmen t Nat ional Marketin g Authority
(NMA) . Except f or Chinese farmers arol.lll d Suva who grow on
info rmal ins t ruc t ion s from Chinese market vendors o r as semb le r
wholesalers , p roduc e rarely has an as sured commercial out let .
The movemen t of lo cal produce in Fij i is largely un i
dire c t ional f r om rural pro ducer to urb an c onsumer ( Fig s 9 ,
10) . Much of the t rade i s in th e hands o f the p roduce rs
themselves . Pro duce mos t commonly en ters the commercial
sys tem by bein g taken to an urban pub lic market by the pro
ducer where he ret ail s it o r , less frequen t ly , sells it to
a non- farmin g permanen t ven dor . Some sales are also made
to con sumers in rural areas at roads ide s t alls or at the few
re cen t ly-es t ablished rural market s . 2
43
44
Rural consu mer
Prod ucer
Roadside sales
R U RAL ZON E
U RBAN ZO N E
Other retai I outlet
Wholesa le buyer
H awker
Non producer
vendor
1
:
Producer
vendor
- - - - - - - _L - -
M A RK ET
-
-
- - - -
U R BAN CON S U M ERS
Figure 9
Pro duce marke t in g channe ls
Vertical trade links are not highly developed although
there is con s iderable variation by p roduct . Few it ems pass
through more than one int ermediary and through more t han
two is uncommon ; much is s o ld without such involvement .
Independen t assemb ler-wholesalers and the NMA al so purchas e
in rural areas , but generally for resale t o in st itutions
and ho tels or for export , rather than for s ale to ind ividual
con sumers . Ap art from co conuts at ' gen eral s t o res ' and a
ran ge o f produce at a few supermarket s and greengrocers in
the larger t own s , very l it tle f ruit o r vegetab les is ret ailed
through shop s .
45
H i red .1 P u b l i c
H i red I B uyer I Producer
Tra nsport
Transport
Nation a l M a rket i n g
Authority
Wholesa le
buyer · assembler
Export
- -
- -
Non producer
- - -
1
Hotels,
resta ura nts
1
:
r-- - - - -
: :
- - - - -,
Prod ucer
Government
i n stitutions
MA RKET
- -,
1
Non prod ucer
r- - - - - - - 1
Roadside
sa les
Prod ucer
I nd i vid u a l s
- - - - - - - - - - � - - - - - - - - - - -� - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
CONSUM ERS
Figure 10
Market in g channels o f dalo
The gove rnmen t has shown con s iderable int eres t in
in ternal pro duce market ing over the pas t ten y ears . However ,
apart from in direct involvement through f inan c ing t ranspo rt ,
connnun icat ions and agricult ural ext en s ion , emphas is has b een
p laced mo re on e s t ab l ishing addit ional and dif ferent market
outle t s than on b uilding on to the exist ing s t ructures , of
which the urb an produce market s are the mo st import an t .
Support is g iven to the creat ion of rural market s and t o
co-operat ive marke t ing so ciet ies , but more charac teri st ic
of government involvement is t he p riority given to the NMA.
Be fore examinin g the cont emporary system, however , it is
useful t o review its an te ceden t s as it is very much a pro duct
46
o f pas t experience . A review o f prio r deve lopmen ts illumi
nates two ba s ic is sues affecting the present sys t em : the
nature o f governmen t involvement and dif feren t ial partici
pat ion by d i f feren t races .
Governmen t concern with market iE_g_ :
an historical perspe c t ive
Early market s
Food producers in Fij i have always t aken con s iderable
in it iat ive in the e st ab l ishment o f the commercial food t rade .
At earl i es t con t act with Europeans , Fij ians b art ered food
fo r supplies and s oon ent e red int o cash exchan ge . Indian
sett lers qui ckly estab l ishe d weekly foods tuf f an d gene ral
merchandise b az aars within their sett lemen t s and arotm d the
cane mil l s . Apart f rom the b az aars that catered almo s t
exclus ively to Indian vendors an d cus tomers , the f irst f ormal
market was built in Suva in 1892 from a sub s c r ip t ion o f 6 d .
p er head from F ij ians . Five years l ater it was reported t o
be
. . . rap idly gain in g in the f avour of the natives ,
numbers o f whom come from n eighborin g provinces
t o e arn an honest shill in g by the s ale o f fruit s
an d ve ge tab les . . . Th e canoes that b rought thes e
wares down the rivers may b e seen d rawn up alon g
the beach o ppo site the market-house
( Thomson
189 6 : 9 ) .
Pro duce market s in t owns and at sugar mills we re a boon to
town dwellers and rural pro ducers al ike , but l i t t le was done
to en courage the development of in ternal market ing . 3 No other
market s were establ ished - the Suva market exi s t ed as the
' Cummin g St reet Bazaar ' tm t il moved t o it s present s it e in
1950 - an d Ind ian b a z aars were left alone by b o th government
and sugar comp any .
Interest in internal p ro duce market ing revived during
the late 19 30s , the impetus probab ly b eing the 1937 visit to
Fij i of S i r Frank Stockdal e , Agricul tural Advi se r to the
Secretary o f State for the Co lonies .
In the report o f his
vis it , S tockdale noted that Fij i was fort tm ate in b e ing
l argely s el f- s ufficien t in food supplies and that an inc reas ing
diversity o f foods was bein g pro duced and consumed by both
Indians and Fij ians . Nonethele s s , he was crit i cal o f the
tm der-development of in ternal market in g systems :
47
Fij i , fo r the in ternal market ing o f agri cult ural
pro duce - part icularly foo dst uf f s - is ve ry b ack
ward .
Cen tral market s have not so far been creat ed
or as s i s t e d by the Admin is t rat ion and l it t le
thought s eems to have been given to the developmen t
o f rural market cen t res .
Some market s do exis t , it
is t rue , at the factories in the sugar- growin g
di st rict s , b ut much improvemen t in the organisation
can b e made . The po sit ion in Suva it self seemed
to me to b e cap ab l e o f con s iderable improvement .
The con t rast with t he pos it ion in other dependen c ie s
was marked and it d i d n o t seem t o b e reco gnised b y
the Di st rict Administ rat ion that agricult ural pro
duct ion cannot b e expected to deve lop along sound
l ines unle s s facilities for the dispo sal of pro du ce
are afforded
•
•
.
The organ isat ion o f facil it ies for the int ernal
marke t is o f even great er impor t an ce to the small
producer than the developmen t of facil it ie s for
eX,ort ( St ockdale 19 3 8 : 3 8 ) .
At the t ime o f S t o ckdale ' s vis it , p ro duce market ing was
largely semi-re gular trad ing by pro ducers , either from a
f ixed s it e , often on o r near a town main s t reet an d at a
f ixed t ime - S aturday morning b e in g the mos t popular - or
by mob ile hawkin g . The market s i tes , like the In dian b azaars
and even the Suva ' market ' , were un improved and t rading
un regulated .
Immediately fo llowing S t o ckdale ' s visit ,
concern for int ernal mairket ing was app aren t .
In tere s t came
from two s ources : first , local author it ies anxio us for
' more o rde rly ' t rading and for in come from vendors to supply
improvemen t s for this purpo s e ; second , from producers
seeking more effect ive outlet s . The e s t ab l ishment o f market s
in S igatoka and Naus ori illus t rates t hese fo r ces .
The Sigat oka market , opened in 19 3 9 , replaced the
Saturday mo rn ing t rading which had been conducted for man y
years f rom s to re veran dahs and t he b anks o f the S igatoka
Rive r . The ' market ' was a demarcated area with n o improve
ments : the only shelt er s in th e area were tho se con s t ruct ed
by vendors . Vendors were no t charged for use of the market ,
which funct ioned only on Saturday , b ut produce sales else
wh ere in the t own were prohib it ed . Within two mon th s the
new market was b e ing us ed by fo rty Fij ian and twenty Indian
p roducers ( Surri dge 1940 : 32 ) .
48
Wh ereas t he impet us for t h e creat ion of a market a t
S i gat oka came from local admin ist rat ive o f f i cers dis sat isf ied
with marke t ing arrangement s - chiefly the over flow of pro
ducers on to ' pub lic ' thoroughfares - the ini tiative at
Nausori was f rom exemp t ed Fij ian farmers ( ga lala) s eeking an
ou tle t for their p roduce . Wi th money advanced from the Depart
men t of Agricultu re , a market bui lding was erected and opened
in January 1940 , t iming tha t p roved for tui tous as the market
became a maj or source o f produce fo r the war- t ime mil it ary
forces . 4 In 1942 , 15 00 t onnes of p roduce valued at £2 0 , 000
was sold . The marke t was paid a connn i s s ion on sale s , p ro duce
b e ing ac cepted from ' any Fij ian growe r
and o ccas ionally
even Indian and Chinese p roduce is handled ' (Harvey 1 9 4 3 :
3 6 ) . As a s t imulus to p ro duc t ion and t o improvement s in
· pro duct ion methods , input dis t ribut ion an d market in g , the
market was a succe s s , but this was largely due to the ext ra
o rdinary circums tances of war- t ime demand and int ens ive
government invo lvemen t .
.
.
•
Inve s t i gat ions
Largely in response to the impl icat ions o f the S t o ckdale
repo rt and war- t ime dislo cat ion , two o ther invest igat ions
in to agriculture were cond ucted in the mid-1940s . The
res ult an t repo r t s ( Shephard 1944 , Pat t erson and Dodds 194 5 )
emphas ized the impo rtan ce o f in ternal market in g and reveal ed
a fear that the improvemen ts achieved during the war p eriod
would be short-lived witho ut p os i t ive government act ion .
The Pat terson and Dodds report inc luded reconnnendat ion s that
a market ing officer be appo inted to a s s i s t smal l-holders
dispo s e of p ro du ce , that rural market areas be estab l i shed
and that co-operat ive market ing venture s be s t imulated .
All this would be in addit ion to con t inuing developmen t o f
ext ernal marke t s .
Co in ciden t ally with the inve s t igat ion s o f Pat t erson
and Dodds an d Shephard , there was con s iderab le act ivity in
internal market ing . Old market s were re con st ruct ed and others
e s t ab lished - with loan s from the gove rnment - under lo cal
government regulat ion s and the count ry ' s first Market s
Ordinan ce ( 19 4 5 ) . Market s we re re-es t ab l ished or foWl ded
at S igatoka , Labas a and Nadi in 1 9 4 8 , at Nausori in 1 9 4 9 ,
at Suva in 1 9 5 0 and at Tavua , Ba and Lautoka in 1 9 5 2 .
Market s we re es tabl ished at Vaileka an d Levuka durin g the
1950s .
Compet it ion with the new out l e t s was curbed e ither
by local By- laws or the Market s Ordinance . The Market s
Ordinance , fo r in s t ance , made i t p o s s ib le to p rohib it s ales
49
of produce within three miles o f an o f f ic ial market , except
at a licen sed whole sale or ret ail out let . Heal th regulat ions
and other legislat ion were al so used to con cen t rate market ing
in the new cen t res . Fo r f ifty y ears prior to the open in g
o f the ma rket at Lautoka in January 1952 , wh i ch was b uilt
wi th an £11 , 000 government loan , a Sat urday mo rn ing bazaar
had been hel d on the ro ads ide oppo s ite the Colon ial Sugar
Re f inery ' Toplines ' .
In June 1 9 52 the bazaar was clo s ed
by local Health Autho rit ies and t he Town ship Board ; vendo rs
were forced t o s el l in the new marke t . 5 Unregulated produce
t rad ing con t inued in o the r cen t res on ly un til an o f f icial
market was e s t ab l ished and local market regulation s were
en acte d ; this included the p rohib it ion of tm l icensed p roduce
sales out s ide marke t s . Formal market s were estab l i shed at
Korovou and Navua during the 19 60s and later at S avus avu
( 19 7 3 ) and Waiyevo ( 19 7 4 ) . Today all ' urban ' cen t re s have
an official p ub li c p roduce market ; Suva has two , a second
havin g b een opened at Raiwaqa in 19 7 1 . There are also three
small of ficia l ' rural marke t s ' at rural service centres .
The fo rmal marke t s quickly showed s igns of succes s .
Nausori marke t , fo r example , was des cribed by the Dist rict
In
Connni ss ioner as ' a peculiar ly s uc ce s s ful innovat ion ' .
July 1949 it was pat ron i z ed by over 1 300 Fij ian s , 5 3 6 Indian s
and 82 Chine s e vendor s , each o f whom had a daily gro s s
income o f one t o two pounds . 6 Presumab ly mo s t vendors a t
the market s were producer s , although at Nadi and Sigatoka
s ome s ales were handled by Fij ian co -op erat ive s o c ie t ies .
Lo cal government b odie s realized that , in addit ion to
b e in g o f b enefit to producers and con sumers , market s had
It was apparent that market revenue could
o ther advan t ages .
eas ily out s t rip expenditure , even all owing for cap i t al
inves tmen t .
In 1 9 5 1 , for in st an ce , the market was the source
o f 42 per cen t o f the local ly-raised revenue of Naus ori
township . Many market s con t inue t o be import an t s ources o f
cash revenue .
In maj or t owns they raise more than $2 0 , 000
p er annum ( up to $ 17 3 , 000) with as lit tle as one-quarter of
this b e in g ac cotmted f or by expenditure ( Tab le s
2.1
and
2 . 2) .
Int e rn al food market ing re t ain ed a low p r ior ity in
governmen t p lan s , despite S t o ckdale ' s report , the broad
con currence o f Shephard ' s and Pat terson and Dodds ' f indin g s ,
and the succes s of the n ew urb an p roduce marke t s . Clo s e
involvement was dif f icult in that market s we re the respon s
ib ility o f lo cal governmen t bodie s and thus were e f fect ively
V1
0
Table 2 . 1
Revenue ( $ ' 000) of selec ted marke t s :2 1 9 6 6-75
196 7
1968
1 9 69
1970
19 71
1972
1973
1 9 74
1975
80 . 2
85 . 8
88 . 5
98. 8
104 . 7
146 . 5
148 . 9
15 8 . l
172. 5
Nausor i
2.5
2. 7
5.5
5 .6
6.6
8. 7
15 . 3
15 . 8
20 . 2
Nadi
6.4
6.6
8.8
10 . 1
15 . 2
15 . 7
17 . 5
25 . 8
1 9 66
Suva
Lautoka
34 . 9
Ba
9.1
S iga toka
1.5
1.5
1.9
3.8
Labasa
6.4
7.0
7. 2
9.8
8.0
12 . 0
12 . 4
11 . 2
11 . 5
22 . 3
9.3
10 . 0
13. 3
18 . 6
16 . 3
18 . 8
18 . 5
22 . 1
1.6
2.6
3.2
0.5
0. 7
Savusavu
Levuka
No te :
0.2
. ., -
Source :
0.2
0.2
0.5
0.5
0.4
0.4
' indicates no informa t ion available .
Local government records , Mini s try o f Urban Development , Hous ing and Social Wel far e ,
S uva .
Table 2 . 2
Revenue and expend i ture ( $ ' 000) of selec ted marke t s , 19 75
To tal c i ty/
town revenue
Marke t r evenue
as % o f total
revenue
Revenue
Expend iture
Expenditure
as % of revenue
1 72 . 5
80 . 2
46 . 5
Raiwaqa
5 .9
27.5
466 . 1
Nausori
20 . 2
6.3
31 . 2
77. 7
26 . 0
Lau toka
34 . 9
21 . 7
62 . 2
452 . 5
7.7
Sigatoka
18 . 6
4.6
24 . 7
74 . 6
24 . 9
Nad i
25 . 8
13 . 5
51 . 2
n.a.
n.a.
Ba
22 . 3
12 . 0
53 . 8
114 . 9
19 . 4
Labasa
22 . 1
5.6
25 . 3
n.a .
n.a.
Savusavu
3.2
n.a.
n.a.
22 . 5
14 . 2
Levuka
0.8
0.6
75 . 0
18 . 4
4.3
Suva
No te s :
Source :
)
)
1 , 8 24 . 9
)
)
9 .8
' General Revenue ' i s compri sed primarily o f rates , l icence fees and service charge s , and
exclud es income sources such as electricity and sewerage account s . Accounts o f
marke t s adminis tered b y Rural Local Authorities (Ko rovou , Navua , Tavua , Waiyevo and
Vaileka) are not available .
Local governmen t record s , 1 9 75 , Ministry o f Urban Development , Hous ing and S o c ial
Welfare , S uva .
52
beyond the amb it o f direct cen t ral governmen t inf luence .
Several at temp t s we re made t o develop in te rnal market in g .
In 19 4 8 , fo r example , a marke t ing o f ficer was appo inted .
Within a year , howeve r , he was t ran s ferred to the Dep artmen t
of Co-op erat ives , wh ich was then invo lved in p ro duce
market in g . 7 Three Economi c Development Off icers were appoin ted
to deve lop commercial part i cipat ion by Fij ian p roduce r s in
th e mid-1950s . Th ey , too , were generally tm succe s s ful in a
diffi cul t t ask , notwiths t andin g their concen t rat ion on expo rt
crops rathe r than p rodu ce fo r the local marke t . 8
The Spat e and Burn s repo rt s
The Spate and Burns report s ( Spat e 19 5 9 ; Burns , Wat s on
and Peaco ck 19 6 0 ) are import an t for the ir b e ing watersheds
in attitude s towards Fij ian e conomic development . Bo th
report s emphas ized the cent ral ro le of market ing in agri
cultural developmen t .
Spate claimed , ' market ing is p erhap s
the mo s t int ract ab le of th e purely economic factor s hampering
Fij ian development ' , and s t re s sed the importance o f the
in t ernal market ( Spat e 19 5 9 : 4 8 ) . P robl ems as s o ciated with
marke t ing were isolated by Spat e as the growers ' failure t o
fulfil con tract commitment s and their ins is t ence on advan ce
cash paymen t , the government ' s accept ance of ad hoe market ing
organizat ion , a l ack of understanding of the role of middlemen ,
p oo r commun i c at ions an d a lack of s t o rage f acilit ie s .
Spat e
believed the market ing s i t uat ion could b e improved with
s cheme s for part i cul ar ( expo rt ) commo dit ies and involvement
of e c onomic developmen t o f f icers and co-operat ive s o ciet ies ,
b ut the rep o rt did not inc lude many speci fic re commen dat ions .
Th e Burn s repo rt was even less spe c i f i c in it s recommen d
at ions : improved communicat ion s and road s ' would help
les sen the degree o f market imperfe ct ion ' and chan ges in
land tenure in th e lon g run wil l , it s t ated , 'make the Fij ian
more famil iar with the elemen t s of economic o rgan izat ion in
a monetized e conomy , en courag in g h im , p arti cularly , to
famil iarize himself with market condit ions ' .
Th e f ind in gs of the Spat e an d Burns report s reflected
It was accepted
government at t it udes to in ternal market ing .
that i t was nece s s ary t o st imulat e internal t rade b ut mean s
to this end were n o t clear . Whether through t h i s uncert ain ty
or be cause of a low priority to market in g in real it y , the
prob lem was approached p ie cemeal and re ceived few resource s .
The nat ional deve lopmen t plans of 19 61-65 and 19 64-6 8 , for
in st ance , failed t o ment ion int e rnal market in g at all . Even
the 1966- 7 0 plan had on ly one reference to in ternal marke t in g .
53
Reasons for the lack o f connni tment t o marke t ing we re prob ab ly
short age o f funds , ab sen ce of leadersh ip an d host ility towards
middlemen .
Development during the 1950s and 1960s
In spite o f the weak lead from governmen t , t rade between
rural p roduc e r and urb an consumer con t inued and even
expanded during the 1950s and 1960s . S ome t rade movemen t s
we re remarkab ly exten s ive given the s t ate o f conunun icat ion s
In the ear ly 19 50s , for example , dalo an d other
and roads .
veget ab les f rom the Suva and Nausori areas we re occas ionally
s o ld by p roducers and as s emb l er-wholesalers in the Wes t ern
Divis ion . 9 In the 19 5 0 s , such movemen t s were con f ined largely
to Indian p ro duce rs and as semb lers , b ut during the followin g
de cade Fij i an producers b ecame inc reas ingly involved in
supplying urban marke t s .
One s ource o f p roduce was small
in dependent farmers on s et t lement s chemes o rgan i zed , f rom
1 9 61 , by the Land Deve lopmen t Authorit y . The s chemes were
e s tab lished t o grow exp o r t crop s , but many farme rs s oon
turned to p ro duce such as root crop s , which could be sold
on the local market . For examp le , the Lomaivuna s cheme in
Naitasiri was est ablished t o p roduce bananas for export .
By the lat e 19 60s farme rs on the s cheme had converted to
mixed cropp in g for the Suva market . 10
Ano ther factor behind in creased Fij ian part i c ipat ion
in market ing - and a s trong influence on governmen t at t it udes
toward market ing - was the ins is t ence o f p roducers in Lomaivit i
and even Lau that they receive as s i s t an ce in putt ing p roduce ,
part icul arly yaqona , on the Suva market .
They want ed a
mark et in g organ izat ion that would give higher re turns t o
growers than were ob t ained through the e s t ab lished mi ddlemen
channels . Government resp on se marked an o ther phase o f
governmen t invo lvement in market in g . The Department o f Co
operat ives - through market ing unions - and the Fij ian Af fairs
Board with a p rodu ce-purchas ing agency at Suva wharf op erat ing
in conj unct ion wit h the Department o f Agriculture , became
involved in these market in g ef fo rt s . The Koro and Gau
Market ing Un ions we re the mos t eff iciently organ ized , with
agen t s in Suva to handle shipmen t s an d retail market s ales .
Both , howeve r , we re short- l ived an d f in ancially un successful .
The Fij ian Affairs Market ing S cheme was phas ed out on ce the
Nat ional Marke t ing Authority was e s t ab l i shed .
In addi t ion to the government- suppor ted market ing
organ izat ion s , cons iderab le ent repreneurial l inks exi s t ed
54
Between Beqa and Suva ,
between islands and urban market s .
and the Yas awas and Lautoka , where di s t an ces were short and
the re were few non-Fij ian s on the is lands , trade was
largely in the hands of Fij ian producers . 11 Lomaivit i , Kadavu ,
Lau and Cakaudrove were served either by itinerant or res iden t
Indian buyers ( in the case o f yaqon a ) or b y p roducers bringin g
the ir own goods t o marke t . As kin set t led in Suva , growers
info rmally ' con s i gned ' an inc reas in g amo tm t o f produce to
res ident relat ives for s al e in the marke t . This fo rm o f
' con signment ' transfer remains a chief method o f market
part i c ipat ion for island producers .
Notwith s t andin g the ad hoe governmen t involvemen t in
marke t in g , reports of at least two FAO expert s and the short
term appointment o f a lo cal market inve s t igat ion of f icer in
1961 , 1 2 an even t that cont rib uted great ly to the awaren e s s
of the s i gnificance o f int ernal market in g was the vis it to
Fij i in 1 9 6 5 o f Maj o r H . C . Biggs , a market ing expert ,
sponsored by the Brit ish Min is t ry o f Overseas Development .
Biggs was to inve s t i gate the organ iz at ion of market in g of
lo cal produce and to re commend improvement s that should and
could be made to the efficiency o f the sys t em.
His
Report on th e Marketing of Agricultura l 'Produce in Fiji
( B iggs n . d . ) was impor t an t not on ly fo r it s specific recommend
ations b ut al so for focus ing att en t ion on the dist rib ut ive
and generat ive feature s o f the int ernal food market in g sy stem .
Awarene s s creat ed by the Biggs inves t igat ion was p o s s ib ly
a maj o r facto r b ehind the 19 6 8 dec i sion of the Developmen t
Committ ee that the governmen t should b e an act ive agen t in
the market in g of p ro duce , b o th locally and overseas . A
market ing divis ion was e s t ab li shed in the Min is t ry of N at ural
Res ources to p romo t e pro duce s ales , p rovide market int elligence
and to act as a gene ral fo cus of pub l ic and privat e sector
act ivity t o improve p ro duce dist rib ut ion . In 19 6 9 the mar
ket ing divis ion was t ran s ferred to the Minist ry of Commerce ,
In dus t ry and Co-operat ives , whence came the suggest ion that
a connne rcial market in g o rgani za t ion should be created . This
in it iat ive l ed to the fo rmat ion o f the Nat ional Market in g
Autho rity in 19 7 1 . It should be noted , howeve r , that wh ereas
B iggs did encourage the deve lopment o f a n at ional market ing
body , he s aw the parallel improvemen t o f exi s t ing marke t ing
fac i l it ies a s a basic mean s o f general market improvement .
55
Leg islat i�n a.lid change
Governmen t involvemen t in in t ernal produce market in g
is re fl ected through legislat ion rel at in g to the pro duce
marke t s and the NMA. Legislat ion relat in g to the NMA will
be covered b e low . Market leg islat ion is revi ewed here to
give an i dea of changes in both the form of market ing and
government at t itudes t oward marke t in g .
Prior to the mid-19 30 s , no legi slat ion dealt spec ifically
with marke t s , al though they fell under pub lic health and
o ther legis lat ion . The firs t market legislat ion was enacted
by the Suva Town Board un der the Towns Ordin an ce , 1935 . The
Suva (Marke t s ) By-laws , 19 37 , es t ab l ished the role of the
market as the chi ef fo rm of urb an p ro duc e outl e t : the s ale
of pro duce , or any o ther good s , elsewhere in town without a
1
l i cen ce was p rohib it ed . 3 The By- laws e s t ablished gene ral
market o rgan iz at ion and admin istrat ive pro cedures , in cluding
the powers o f the Market Mas t er , fee s chedules and the
general conduct of the market s , which included a b an on
shout ing o r adve rt i sin g by the ven dor s .
The firs t legislat ion dealin g specifically with market s
outs ide gaz e t t ed towns was the Market s Ordinance , 19 45 .
Al though the Ordinance does not apply t o market s within towns ,
it has had con s iderab le influen ce on the ir legis lat ion
through being taken as a guide to areas of authority. The
influence of the Ordinance was s tronge s t in the late 19 40s
when many local government bodies were enacting or revis ing
market re gulat ion s . The curren t un iformit y in form an d
funct ion of market s in Fij i is in part due to the s imilarity
of market re gul at ion s .
The marke t regulat ions develop ed under the Market s
Ordinance prohib ited the s a l e of produce wi thin two miles
of a market s ave through a licens ed retail or who le sale
outlet . 14 Regulat ions un der the Ord inance we re more det ail ed
than any p revious market regulat ions , despite the fac t that
t rading in the market s to wh ich they appl ied did not appro ach
the s ophis t i cat ion of t own markets . Produce was de fined as
' agricultural and forest p ro duce , fish , f resh meat , fresh
frui t an d ve getables , poul t ry and eggs ' . Advert is in g , shout ing
and auct ions within market s we re ill egal . At other market s
' pro duce ' was b roadened t o include local t ob acco and handi
craf t s and at Nausori , Levuka and Suva included rice , split
peas , pulses and ' goods o f that nature ' . I t was only at Ba
56
and Labasa that this round o f 19 4 7- 4 8 marke t regul at ion s
did no t de fine goods that could b e sold .
An impre s s ion o f the changin g nature o f market t rade
is sugge s ted by amendmen t s to marke t regulat ion s . Men t ion
of pro ducer and non-pro ducer t rade was fi rst made in 1 9 5 3
when t h e Suva and Levuka re gul at ions were amended to give
preferen ce in the allocat ion of selling space to ' producers
and their agen t s sell in g dire ct t o the pub l i c ' . Another
indicat ion o f the increas in g s ophis t icat ion o f b o th ven dors
and con sume rs was that in 1954 the Suva market regulat ion s
were amende d t o make mandat ory the d isplay o f selling prices .
A new phas e in le gislative development o ccurred in the
1 9 6 0 s . At Suva an d Lautoka , re gulat ion s made in 1 9 62 - 6 6
outlawed whole s al ing , prohib it ed the exchange , sublet t ing
and mul t iple o ccupan cy o f s t all s , required the prices o f
fish to be marked with f igures three in ches high and allowed
handicraft deale rs to s ell ' provided that s t all space is
avail able ' , the prefe rence in s ell in g s pace go ing to pro ducers .
This lat t er provis ion has be come a bone o f con t en tion .
In
June 1 9 72 the Suva City Counc il p ropos e d to end the p re fer
ent ial t reatmen t g iven p ro ducers , b ut the Central Farmers
As s o ciat ion won an inj un ct ion in the S upreme Court that pro
h ib it e d the move . The inj un c t ion s t ill s t ands and hand icraft
dealers are prohib ited from us in g the market aft er 2 pm on
Fr idays an d all day Sat urday . 1 5
Market regulat ions are int ricate b ut all are not enfo rced ,
whi ch is prob ab ly j us t as well as some are inappropriate t o
the presen t s i tuat ion . The regulat ion s most commonly not
enforced deal with the display o f prices on p ro duct s , the
p re feren ce g iven to producers or th eir agen t s , the prohib it ion
of wholesalin g and the type of produce o ffered for s ale .
Mo st vendo rs deal in g wi th potatoes , on ions an d rice display
prices ; few o th ers do .
Conflict is common between p roducer
an d non-p ro ducer vendors , also b etween foods t uf f and handi
craft vendo rs at the market s where there are handicraft
dealers , over the shortage o f sellin g s pace and the occu
pat ion of pr ime sell in g s i tes . Wh ere regulat ion s favourin g
pro ducer vendors are en fo rced a t all , it i s usually by limit ing
the space availab le to hand icraft sellers an d the t imes t hey
may ope rate , rather than by res t rict in g s t all space for non
produ cer foo d stuff vendo rs . Al though wholesale t ran sact ions
are ille gal in mo s t marke t s , they are t he on ly mean s by wh ich
non-pro ducer vendors are ab le to ob t ain s t o ck so they con t inue
b o th wit hin and around market b uild ings .
If wholesalin g
57
farme rs o r non-produce rs are encountered in side a market
(while making a del ive ry ) , they may be charge d the s t andard
ret ail vendo r ' s fee but this re gul a t ion is not common ly
en fo rced .
Market re gul at ions were drawn up with lo cal producers
in mind at a t ime when both perman en t vendo rs and imported
food sales in market s we re ins i gnificant . To day , the place
o f b oth is o ft en quest ioned by pro ducer ven dors who are
unable to f in d sellin g s pace , and also by gro cery s t o rekeepers
who fear compe t it ion . The i ssues are clouded because imported
it ems are mainly b as ic s t aples ( r ice and pul s es ) and luxury
produc t s ( ap ples , et c . ) , of wh ich there is l imit ed or no
Imported it ems that are unpro ces sed foods
local pro duct ion .
have gene rally been permi t t e d in market s , but the s ale of
imported foo d remains a b one of con t en t ion , espe cially when
related to c on fl ict b etween pro ducer and non-producer vendors .
Both do cumented and p opular opin ion suggest that the
int e rnal market in g o f lo cal pro duc t s has chan ged great ly s ince
o f f icial p ro duce market s b ecame firmly e s t ab l ished in the
early po st -war pe riod . The vol ume of t rade , for in s t ance ,
has in creased in respon se t o sub s t ant ial growth in the urb an
and con sumer populat ions and the numb er o f pro ducers : an
indi cat ion o f t rade volume is the in crease in ven do rs as
revealed by market income in the ab sence of b et ter data
( Tab le 2 . 3 ) . Another change is greater market in tegrat ion
with the expan s ion o f pro duc ing areas that are l inked t o
purchas ing cen tre s . Th is h a s o ccurred mo s t markedly with
the involvement of the NMA in the p ro duce t rade . The ext ens ion
an d imp rovemen t o f roads through Vit i Levu an d Vanua Levu
has al s o en larged cons iderably the area ac ces s ib le to marke t .
While hin terlands have expande d , there has been also some
fract ionin g o f s upply are as with the e s t abl ishment of lo cal
market s as at Korovou and Navua and areas without formal
market s are now b e in g served by e ither o f f ic ial town (Waiyavo
an d Savus avu) or rural market s . Un t il the early 1 9 60 s , the
nature of market t rade can only be in ferred , 16 b ut it is
likely that the number of vendors at all market s was small ;
weekend as oppo sed t o weekday market s were mo re s igni f icant
than today , pe rmanent vendors were few and mo st ly Indian s ,
and Fij ian p art icipat ion was l imited to end-of-week pro ducer
vendors , not dis cotmt in g mo re common hawking and roads ide
sellin g . 16
Unt il the involvemen t of the NMA , market in g charges have
been more in s cale than in fo rm. Main f in d in gs of Kamekamica ' s
\JI
00
Tab le 2 . 3
-- --
Vendor attendance at ma rke t s
Market
Suva
Raiwaqa
Nausori
Korovou
Vaileka
Tavua
Ba
Lautoka
Nadi
S igatoka
Navua
Levuka
Waiyevo
Savus avu
Lab as a
Urban populat ion
( ' OOO , September 1 9 7 6 )
117 . 8
(n . a . ) C
12 . 8
0. 3
3. 8
2.1
9.2
28. 9
13. 0
3. 6
2.6
2.8
0. 1
2. 3
13. 0
Number of vendors
Mon . - Thur s .
daily
250
14
50
10
20
45
50
110
70
40
25
1
0
10
70
b
Fr i .
Sat .
450
14
70
20
40
70
90
200
100
70
80
20
10
10
90
650
14
300
30
40
100
300
400
150
100
100
20
35
30
180
a
Fri . - Sat . vendors
as %
week ' s t o t al
a
Vendor f i gures are approximate .
b
' Numb er of ven dors ' is derived from daily est imates of t o t al vendo rs .
c
Populat ion of Raiwaqa is included in that of Suva .
Source :
58
33
65
56
50
49
61
58
47
52
64
90
100
50
49
Bureau o f Stat is t ics (urb an pop ulat ion s ) and market survey s , January 1 9 7 6 .
Diff erent vendors
over week
To t a l % of whom are
perm. vendors
680
20
330
45
65
130
270
450
250
1 30
12 0
50
35
45
2 10
27
70
16
0
25
22
25
23
36
26
21
0
0
7
22
59
1 9 62 - 6 3 marke t surveys (Kamekami ca 1 9 66 ) we re that marke t s
were s uppl ied pr imarily from nearby , adj acen t areas ; middlemen
were more impo rt ant in s ome marke t s and fo r some pro duct s
than others ; and that the share o f t rade handled by rac ial
group s did no t co rrespon d with the ir represen t at ion amon g
all vendor s . 17 These characterist ics are s t ill identif iab le
but are more marked . Apart from the greater market in tegrat ion
of the economy , th e main change s ince the ear ly 1960s has
b een in specializat ion by vendors, which in c lude s Fij ian
vendors , producers and non-growin g suppl iers . Spe c ializat ion
in these fields was noted by Kamekamic a , but apparen t ly it
was on a much smaller s cale than today .
The s it uation described by Biggs (n . d . ) also differs
from the presen t more in s c ale and s ophis t i cat ion than in
basic market in g form. B ig gs s aw Suva and Lautoka as in cip ient
regional market s : they are un den iab ly so to day . Producer
vendo rs remain import an t in market t rade , but they accoun t
for con s i derab ly l es s than the 80 pe r cen t o f trade est imat ed
by B iggs . Gr eatest change h as o cc urred amon g non-producer
vendors . As ide from a con s i derable in crease in number , 18
their t rade has expanded in to root crops and mo s t o ther
vege t ables , rather than being con f ined almost exclu s ively
to impor t ed goods as Biggs repor ted . One of Biggs ' cen t ral
recommendat ion s to improve ef ficiency of p roduce market ing
was the creat ion o f a pro fess ional market in g clas s . Ind icat ions
from the numb er and role o f middlemen suggest this is being
achieved , though not with the degree of concen t rat ion Biggs
advo cated .
I t appears also tha t the numb er of rural assemb ler
wholesalers - or at least the ir impor tan ce in market supply has in creas ed , but info rmat ion is not availab le to permit
p recise evaluation of the ext en t of chang e .
Al though pro du ct ion remain s the main area o f gove rnmen t
con cern in limiting food impo rts , the s i gn if i cance of an
effect ive dist ribut ion sys t em is also acknowledged . The
con cern is , however , bo th recen t and sele c t ive . Individual
market ing ent rep reneurs who are either vendo rs or ass emb ler
wholesaiers an d even the estab l ished p ro duce market s have
not received st rong t an gib le suppor t . New rural and urb an
market s have b een built , b ut o therwise the government has
devoted its resources to estab l ishin g the NMA and orien t ing
rural produc t ion to the Autho rit y . Desp ite these l imitat ion s ,
th is involvement of the governmen t is a maj or change in food
market ing in Fij i .
60
Urban nroduce marke t s
Market s in F ij i
S in ce earlie s t Wes t e rn con tact , lo cal produce has been
sold in F ij i by hawke rs in are as where a non-farmin g popu
lation has be come estab l ished and lat er at In dian ' ba z aars ' ;
the creat ion of fo rmal market places is relat ively recent .
As ide from one in Suva , fo rmal ly admin is tered marke t s were
first e s t ab l is hed in the late 19 30 s ; none of the p resen t
market st ruct ures is much older than twenty y ears and a number
are considerably more re cent . Today there i s a pub l ic market
in each of F ij i ' s two c it ie s ( S uva and Laut oka ) , s ix t own s
(Nausori , Labas a , Nadi , Ba , S i gat oka and Levuka) and s ix
t ownships admin is tered by township b o ards or local rural
authorit ies (Vaileka , Korovou , Navua , S avusavu , Tavua and
Waiyevo ) . Th ere is also a second market in Suva at Raiwaqa .
All market s are admin is t ered b y local government b od ies .
At one level , market s in Fij i appear surprisin gly s imilar .
The b uildin g is l ikely to b e open-s ided and iron-ro o fe d ,
s i t uated in a fen ced-o ff compound that allows easy enforcemen t
o f market re gulation s . Goods are mainly sold from wooden o r
con c rete ben ches within the b uildin g , although the ground
out s i de (but s t il l within the compoun d ) may also b e marked
off as sel l ing areas . Apart from an o f f ice for the market
mas t er , a lo ckab l e room for s t orin g of produce and p erhap s a
sect ion exclus ively for s e ll in g fresh fish , there is lit t le
int e rnal con s t ruct ion . Mos t vendors sell lo cally- grown ,
unpro ces s ed food pro ducts that t hey set out on a sell in g area
fo r which t hey pay a daily fee rangin g from 2 5 o r 3 0 cen t s t o
about a dol lar , depen din g on type o f goo ds sold , locat ion in
market and the actual marke t . 19 Vendors who do not grow food
b uy their s t o cks at wholes ale pr ices from farmers , o r le s s
connnon ly from non-producer s , foun d on the edges o f t he
market ; pract ically all transact ion s within the market are
ret ail to urban-dwell in g consumers .
Weekday market hours are generally from 7 am t o 5pm.
Market s clo se at lpm on Saturday and do not open again un t il
Mond ay morn ing , altho ugh vendors may try t o s ell surplus
pro duce outs ide the market compound un t il dark . Food unsold
one day may be left on the sellin g t able un t il the next or ,
for a charge , locked in the s t o reroom. At mo st market s ,
s t alls must b e completely cleared fo r fumigat ion at least
on ce a mon th , on a Saturday after t radin g , unt il the following
61
Monday . Ot h erwise , produce can b e left in s t alls at the
own ers ' risk from day to day .
In a few market s s ome lo ck-up
shop s are available for hire by vendo rs . As pe rmanen t vendors
con t inuously s t ore p roduce within their s t all s , many market s
t ake on a more pe rmanen t appearan ce t han perhaps would be
in ferred f rom market re gulat ion s .
Three basic types of goods are o f fered for s ale ; prepared
food , tmpre pared foo d and non-fo o d . Ab out 9 0 per cen t o f
vendo rs sell only unprepared food ; unprepared f o o d s comb ined
with non-foods , which comprise mainly plas t ic shoppin g bags
are sold by mos t other
and sasa ( co conut r ib brooms ) ,
vendo rs . Apart from handicraft ven do rs in marke t s vis ited
by touris t s , all vendors s el l in g non-food items al so sell
foodstuf fs . Non-food sales are not import ant in the t o t al
con text o f market s ales . Around the market en t ran ces and
even at a few places ins ide , some people sell ready-to-eat
foods prepared by the vendo r an d his family .
Common snack
foods are Ind ian sweet s , peanut s , sl i ced p ineapple and water
melon , cooked co rn and cord ial drinks .
Compl et e meal s are
not sold . All s ales in market s are for cash . Prices o f
goods are rarely marked an d are generally non-nego t iab le .
Sales t echn ique s are pass ive : vendors d o not act ively pursue
sales .
A numb er o f o ther p ro duc t s are sold in addit ion to
vege t ables an d fruit . Commonly presen ted produc t s in clude
fresh and sea water foo ds like t urt le , crab , prawn , shell
fish , b e che-de-mer and s e aweed ; e ggs and l ive poul t ry , b ut
ve ry few other an imal pro duct s ; yaqona and lo cally-grown
rolled tob acco ; rice and spices .
Some import e d fruit such
as apples � grapes , plums and p ears and veget ables s uch as
lett uce , tomat oes , pot atoes , on ion s an d garl ic are sol d ;
man y spices an d some r ice an d yaqona are als o imported .
some sell on ly
Vendors sp ecialize in the t ype o f goo ds sold :
green veget ab l es and small amoun t s of f ruit wh ile others
deal in lo cal root veget ables . As fish an d s ea foods must
be s o ld in a s eparat e section o f the market , the ir ven dors
generally do not sell o ther p roduce .
Sellers deal in g exclus
ively in potat oes , onion s , s pices , tob acco an d yaqon a , l ike
tho se who sel l only e ggs , s t an d out as b e in g t radin g
spe cialis t s .
Market s a re the chief s ource o f fre sh fruit , ve ge t ab les
an d sea food fo r the maj ority of urb an dwellers ; home garden s
o r the consume r ' s own f ishin g act ivit ies are the only other
62
impo r t ant sour ce of supp ly . The consumer ' s race has con s id
erab le in fluen ce on the type of foo d purchased ; indeed ,
market s are characterized as much by the race of the consumer
as tha t of the vendor . 2 0
Much market attendance b y consumers is fairly casual in
int ent . Many people wander into the market t o look around ,
and perhaps have a snack, e specially a t lunch t ime � in the
af t ernoon aft e r s chool or work and on Saturdays . Market s ,
even when very crowded a s i s o f t en the case with the larger
one s , are int eres t in g an d s t imulat in g social cent res .
Vendors vary con s iderab ly b etween market s in number ,
rac ial comp o s it ion and permanen ce , that is whether they are
producers or non-pro ducers ; the relat ive s i gnifican ce o f
week-day and end-o f-week s ales als o var ie s ( Tab le 2 . 3 , F igs
11- 12 ) .
Suva marke t is by far the larges t with about 2 5 0
vendors present each day from Mond ay t o Thurs day an d over
600 on F riday and S aturday . At the eleven marke t s where
p ermanent vendors are mos t importan t , they comprise around
one-quarter o f all vendor s . There is a correlat ion b etween
market s ize , measured by the number of consumers or vendors ,
and the populat ion o f the cen t re in which the market is
s it uat ed . The five smalle s t market s , apart f rom Raiwaqa
because it is a suburb of Suva , are in the count ry ' s smalle s t
town s and have t h e lowest rat es of non-producer vendo r parti
In sp ite o f the d if feren ces in s iz e and vendor
cipat ion .
compos it ion , however , marke t s in F ij i have much in common
and in many ways i t is po s s ib le to t reat market s and market
vendors as one .
Market types
The f i f teen pub lic produce market s can b e d ivided into
s everal cata gories according t o various characteris t ics .
The vendo r ' s race and type o f p ro duce are two that are
examined b el ow . Others are the numb er of vendors and import
anc e of the end-o f-week marke t . 2 1
By the numb er o f vendor s , the marke t s fall int o f ive
s i z e cate go r ies . Gener al ly the rankin g of market s in terms
o f vendor numb e rs over Monday to Thurs day is main tained on
Fr iday and S aturday ( Table 2 . 3 ) . The market with the greatest
number o f vendo rs throughout the week is Suva market and as
th is market has twi ce as many vend ors pres ent on any day as
has the one at Lautoka , the next largest marke t , it is b es t
Race of vendor
0
VLevuka
Fi1ian
Indian
Chinese
CJ
�
r�� J
�
�
700
350
200
100
50
Number of
vendors
10
Fi gure 11
km
50
Ven d or numbers and racial compo s i t ion at pro duce marke t s
64
f'
\ \ ....
\
,,I
I
_1
I
l
l
I
I
1_ /
(
J
I
I
l,
/
/
/
/
,,. J
/
/
\
I
\
....
'
''
,, ""\
/
I
..._ I - ', - /
I
N �!.'f ASI R I
\
\
...
"'-,,,,.. - - ..... ..;:···
I
Number of vendors
ISO
Fipa n �
Permanent
100
60
20
0
_
I ndian
.:.::
Chinese
;·::. a
- - - - Province boundary
·
. . . . . . · · · · · Tikina boundary
Fi gure 12
Non
permanent
km
30
Ven dors at Suva market : attendance by vendors '
race , permanen cy , day of at tendance and res i
( Source : Fieldwork)
den t ial lo cat ion
65
regarded a s forming a s ingle category .
Laut oka market , wi th 110 week-day vendor s , is in a
second cate gory . A third size cat e gory comprises Labas a and
Nad i market s , each with ab out s eventy vendors during the
week , risin g to 1 50-180 on Sat urday . End-of-week market s
ar e mo re impor t ant in a fourth group compris in g Nausor i ,
Tavua � Ba , Sigatoka an d Navua . Ba and Nausori , with Saturday
market s about s ix t ime s great er than on Monday t o Thursday ,
have larger end-o f-week market s than Lab as a and Nad i , but
have a lower t r adin g level durin g the week . At all market s ,
apart from thos e in a f inal , f i fth group , abo ut on e-third
o f vendors sell on Sat urday and one-half on Friday and
Sat urday comb ined . The fifth gr oup comprises Raiwaqa ,
Korovou , Vaileka , Levuka , Savus avu and Waiyevo marke t s .
Here , there are no , or very few , sales on week days . At all
these market s s ave Raiwaqa where act ivity is negligible on
any day , end-o f-week sales are the main act ivity .
Two main types of marke t , the Local Produce Out let ( LPO)
and the Trad ing Centre Market ( TCM) , are iden t i f iab le by the
ext ent of their hinterlands . LPOs have res t ricted hin terlands
and are located in small cen t re s servicin g the limited deman ds
o f the s urroundin g rural populat ion s . Trade is handled
lar gely by producer vendors for whom the market is often a
prime s our ce of in come . Waiyevo , Levuka an d Korovou , and to
a lesser ext ent , Navua an d S avusavu , marke t s are LPOs .
In
contras t , the hin t erlands o f TCMs are exten s ive , even con
t aining other mark et s ( Fig . 1 3 ) . TCMs are no les s important
to p ro ducer vendors than other market s b ut non-producer
p ermanent vendors are the t r adin g core , accoun t in g for one
fi fth to one-third o f vendo rs .
Suva , Laut oka, Ba , Nadi ,
Naus ori , Lab as a and S i gatoka market s are TCMs . S uva and
Lautoka market s have extens ive hinterlands , but apart from
this and the ir l ar ge r t rade volumes , the s e market s are not
s ignifican t ly d i f feren t f rom other TCMs .
Tavua , Vaileka and pos-s ib ly Navua market s comp rise a
middle gro up b etween the TCMs and LPOs . These market s are
e s s en t ially out let s for lo cal producer vendors , but they also
have a smal l number o f permanent daily vendors .
I t may b e po ss ib le to char t an evo lut ionary progre s s ion
from Lo cal P roduce Out let to Trading Cent re Marke t , but in
do ing s o one must not lose s ight o f vital factors in marke t
format ion an d growth . The s o cio-economic character of the
66
··
·
�
·
·
. .··
·
····
Supply area.
named market
Supply area.
Suva market
Supply area.
La utoka market
0
Figure 13
10
km
50
Supply hin terlands of urb an p roduce marke t s
( Source : Fieldwork)
67
populat ion o f the hinterland and cen t re where the market is
located has a fundament al influen ce on market fo rm.
Similarly ,
marke t s i z e refle cts b o th demand of con sumers l iving in the
cen t re wh ere it is l o cat ed and , to some ext ent , the de gree
of the hinterlan d ' s invo lvement in cash agricult ure . Non
p roducer vendors and the population of the larger urban
centres are l argely Indian so it is l ikely tha t market s in
the lar ger towns wil l have a core o f perman en t Indian vendo rs .
It remains
On the other han d , all marke t s s tarted as LPOs .
to be seen whether the present LPOs , which are the smal les t
marke t s and tho se most dominated b y Fij ian vendors , will
be come TCMs as deman d increas es and whether the non-pro ducer
t rade en t aile d in this ext ens ion will b e t aken on by F ij ian
or , as in the pas t , Indian vendors .
The market vendors
General charact eris t i cs . Market vendors in Fij i are
not conspicuous ly differen t f rom the populat ion from which
they are drawn . Th ere is no dis t in ct o ccupat ional clas s o f
' market vendors ' although vendors d o share a number o f
connnon charact eris t ic s . There is con siderable range in th e
s c ale of vendor operat ion . Permanent and non-permanen t
vendo rs represent two dist inct forms of sellin g act ivit y .
Although a s ignifican t numb er of vendo rs are urban dwel l in g
and permanent , mo s t vendo rs come from rural areas , and live
near t he market at whi ch they s e ll . There are no ' mob ile '
t raders in th e sen se of people who s ys t emat i cally sell at
dif ferent market s . Vendors rarely sell at other than the ir
' re gular ' market : on ly 10 per cen t o f vendors covered in
the January 19 7 6 surveys c laimed that dur in g the previous
year they had sold at any market othe r than wh ere they we re
bein g int erviewed .
Almo s t al l ven do rs are sel f-employe d and wo rk alone .
Only one-third of the 5 p er cent o r so who are not s elf
employed are paid employees . Occas ional ly s t alls are operated
by village or women ' s club s , the earnings of wh ich are pooled
to a connnon cause . About one-fif th of vendors have h elp in
s ellin g . As s is t ance is generally l imited to one addit ional
On ly permanent
person , oft en a relat ive of the vendor .
vendo rs have paid as s i s t an ce in sellin g , but many permanent
vendors have no help at all , while non-pe rmanen t producer
vendors are l ikely to be helped by unpaid relat ives .
Male vendors are s l i ght ly more common than female ( 4 3 . 1
68
pe r cent a r e female ) . Thr ee- quarters o f vendo rs are married ;
one-hal f are hous ehold heads and another on e-third are wives
of househol d h eads . Almo s t all vendors have had some formal
educat ion but few have pro ceeded b eyon d primary s choo l .
Only 5 per cen t of vendors have not had any fo rmal educat ion ,
al tho ugh 19 p er cent have had less than one y ear . Ab out
one- third have complet e d pr imary s chool and 5 per cent have
had more than t en y ears of fo rmal educat ion .
Market vendo rs come from rural backgrounds ( Tabl e 2 . 4 ) .
S ixty per c en t of the h eads o f household , wh ere the head is
not a market vendor , have agricultural occupat ion s . Unskilled
labour and semi-skil led trades account for a further 14 per
cent . The fathers of vendors were more l ikely t o have had
rural o ccupat ions ( 7 7 per cen t ) than the ir vendor children .
As on ly 5 pe r cen t of vendo rs ' fathers we re permanent market
vendors the re is no evidence that market selling is a here
dit ary o c cupat ion , although this co ul d be at t r ibuted to the
fact tha t daily market s are a relat ively re cen t phenomen a .
The races o f Fij i are represen t ed amon g vendo rs in
roughly the same proport ion as in the t o t al populat ion :
Ind ians and Fij ians acconnt for 5 4 . 7 an d 4 3 . 1 per cent of
ven dors respect ively ; 1 . 1 per cent are Ch inese and 0 . 6 per
cent are ' Other Pacific Is landers ' ( Table 2 . 5 ) .
Ind ian
vendors are p redominan tly Hindu � On ly n ine o f 110 7 Indi an
vendors enumerat ed were Guj erati s , tradit ionally the commer
cially�oriented Indian group . There is no apparent regional
b ias in place of orig in of Fij ian vendors , who come from
prac t i cally all the tikina of Fij i , although ven dors f rom
Lau and Lomaivit i are more numerous at Suva than other market s .
While race and place of ori gin of vendors may show n o s igns
o f b ias , each race has d is t inct ive fo rms of involvemen t in
marke t in g .
Bo th ven dors and th eir families are h i ghly dependent
on the market fo r income . Fo r almo s t three-quar t ers ( 72 . 6
per cent ) o f vendo rs , market s ales are t he on ly income source .
Of ven dors who have o ther s ources o f income , farming is the
mo s t import an t for 7 1 . 7 per cent , including cane farmin g for
136 vendo rs ( 2 9 per cen t ) in the Wes tern Divis ion . The next
mo s t common s ource o f in come is nn skilled l ab our ( 8 . 2 per
cent ) . Ab out hal f the vendors ' familie s are t o t al ly depen dent
on market s ales for in come : market s ales are of minimal
impo rt an ce for only on e- t enth of famil ies . Among ven do r
families with o ther in come sources , a gri culture s cores low
( 39 . l per cent of 381 response s ) . Agri cult ure is in fact
69
Table 2 . 4
Occupat ion o f head o f vendo r ' s household
( i f not vendo r )
Occupat ion
Frequen cy
Pe r cent
491
58 . 0
18
2.1
509
60 . 1
8
0. 9
Skilled t rade
Semi- skilled t rade
Unskilled lab our
Pro fe s s ional
Semi-profess ional
Shopkeepe r , b us ines sman
Marke t vendor
Non- spe cific employment
21
64
53
16
19
11
58
25
2.5
7. 6
6. 3
1. 9
2.2
1.3
6.8
3. 0
Unemployed - any reason
63
7.4
Farmer or vi llager
Cane farmer
Agricult ural sub- total
Fisherman
Not availab l e
Tot al
S ource :
199
1 , 046
Market s urveys , January 19 7 6 .
m is s ing
1 00 . 0
70
Tab le 2 . 5
Race of market vendors
Race
Frequen cy
Percen t age
Fij ian
Rot uman
Othe r Pacif ic Is lander
866
8
5
43 . l
0. 4
0. 2
Sub-tot al
879
43. 7
Mo s lem
North Indian Hindu
South Indian Hindu
Guj erat i
Punj ab i
Unspe c i fied Indian
162
726
159
9
23
22
8. 1
36 . 2
7.9
0.4
1. 1
1. 1
1 , 101
54 . 8
23
4
1
2
1. 1
0.2
Sub-t ot al
Chinese
Part-European
Other
Not availab le
Tot al
Note :
Source :
-
2 , 010
o.o
mis s ing
100 . 0
Figures refer to differen t vendors , irrespec t ive o f
how many days they a r e a t marke t . If race was ass igned
on the basis o f vendor-day s , the Indian and Chinese
shares would b e larger . Fo r examp le , at Lab asa 7 9 . 7
p er c en t of dif feren t vendo rs are Indian , while 86
per cen t of vendor-days are Indian . At Ba , the on ly
o ther market where a coun t of vendor-days was made in
November 1 9 7 6 , Indians accoun ted for 7 0 . 9 per cen t of
vendors and 8 1 . 0 pe r cen t of vendor-day s .
Market surveys , January 19 7 6 .
71
prob ably mo re impo rtant than t h i s sugge s t s a s where a vendo r ' s
family has a farm, inp ut from memb ers o ther than the vendo r ,
espe cially wh ere he is household head , was prob ably not
listed as an addit ional source o f income . Unskilled lab our
and semi-skilled t rade s are the chie f other in come sources
for vendor families .
Mos t vendors live near the market at wh ich they sell .
Th e ave rage dis t ance be tween home an d market for all ven dors
is 16km (Tab le 2 . 6 ) . One-hal f o f the vendors live less than
llkm from the market at which they s ell an d three- quarters
live within 16km. Only 10 per cen t live mo re than 32km
away . The re i s cons id erab le variat ion in the distance t rav
elled acco rdin g t o th e day o f the week , reflectin g the greater
end-o f-week involvement o f p ro duce r-vendors an d con comit ant
hinterland exp ansion and cont ract ion . For ins tance , the
average d is tan ce t ravelled on Mon day and Tue s day is l Okm and
inc reases throughout the week t o b e come almo s t double on
Fri day and Sat urday .
The di stance t ravelled by permanen t non-producer vendors
remains relat ively con s t an t during the week but is les s than
one-half the market- t o-res iden ce distan ce covered by non
permanent producer vendo rs . Travel di stan ce of non-permanent
ven dors increases sharply on Wednes day and remain s high for
the remainder of the week . Dif ference in t ravel dist an ce
be tween producer and non-producer is great est at Laut oka
where p ro ducer vendo rs l ive on average abo ut 30km away from
the market comp are d to llkm for permanen t vendors . On the
whole , dif feren ces in dis t an ce t ravelled by produce r and non
pro duce r vendors are greater in the We stern Divis ion than
elsewhere .
Travel t ime and fare s paid refl ect the relat ively short
dis tance b etween vendors ' re siden ce and market , and fo r mo st
Sixt een per
vendo rs do not add greatly t o market in g co st s .
cen t o f vendors l ive w ithin ten minutes o f the market and
two-thirds wit hin half an hour . Only 9 per cent live more
than two hours away . Of the vendors who pay person al t ravel
fares , 81 pe r cent pay less than $1 and one-hal f of these
have fares un der 2 0 � ; only one in twelve p ays more than $2 .
The mo s t connnon means o f t ransport used by vendors to
go to marke t are buses and ' carriers ' - t rucks that col lect
p aying pas s en ger s ; to gether t hey are used by three-quart ers
of the vendo rs ( Tab le 2 . 7 ) . Boat and private veh i cles are
Tab le 2 . 6
Re s iden ce- to-market d i s t ance (km) of market vendors
All vendors
Vendor tyEe
Non
pro ducer
vendors
Pr oducer
vendors
All market s
15 . 8
19 . 8
Suva
Raiwaqa
Nauso ri
Korovou
Vaileka
Tavua
Ba
Lautoka
Nadi
S i gat oka
Navua
Levuka
Waiyevo
Savusavu
Lab a s a
17 . 2
21. 6
32 . 4
6.9
16 . 4
20 . 4
15 . 8
11 . 9
13 , 5
6,5
11 . 3
7,1
11 , 4
11 . 9
9,2
24 . 8
8.5
a
15 . l
b
n. a.
25 .4
20 . 3
13 . 5
30 . 1
9,7
17 . 5
17 , 2
16 , 0
19 , 8
n . a.
18 . 8
8.9
2.6
7.9
n . a.
4 .5
8.1
6.3
10 . 9
8 ,9
10 , 0
2 .3
8 .5
9.0
a
' - ' indicat e s cate go ry inapp ro p riat e .
b
' n . a . ' in dicates cat e go ry appropriate b ut data unava ilab l e .
Source :
Vendor race
-
Mar ke t surveys , January 19 7 6 .
Permanent
vendo rs
n.a.
9.0
2 .6
b
n.a.
n . a.
4 .8
7 .2
6.8
10 . 6
8.9
9 .7
4 .7
1 .6
8 .7
Pacific
i s lander
Indian
Other
22 . 7
11 . 1
4.2
10 . 7
2 .7
16 . 3
5.8
34 . 0
2 7 .4
17 . 7
50 . 7
18 . 7
18 , 5
17 . 5
7.1
27 ,7
23 .5
23 .2
14 . 3
4 .2
9 .5
12 . 9
6 .8
7 .9
9 .7
14 . 3
9,3
11 , 3
9 .0
20 .3
3 .2
10 . 8
3.4
6 .9
4 .8
6 .4
73
Tab le 2 . 7
Me an s o f vendor t ransEo rt to market
Foo t
All market s
6. 7
Bus
59 . 7
b
Car rier
Privat e
c
vehicle
16 . 8
6.7
2.0
a
Boat
Other
10 . 1
e
n . a.
1. 9
2.3
1. 7
11 . 6
73. 3
11 . 6
Raiwaqa
5.6
66. 7
27 . 8
Nausori
3. 0
70. 8
9.0
Korovou
6.7
84 . 4
6. 7
Vai leka
1. 8
80 . 7
14 . 0
3. 5
Tavua
5. 6
33. 9
14 . 5
2 .4
30 . 6
12 . 9
Ba
2.3
53.2
26 . 6
14 . 5
1. 2
1. 8
Lautoka
7.2
55 . 9
19 . 8
2 .9
2.4
9.4
Nadi
4.1
78. 4
5.3
11. 1
1.2
Si gat oka
5.6
66. 7
16 . 7
5.6
4.2
Navua
2.6
59 . 0
32 . 5
5.1
Suva
Levuka
73. 3
15 . 6
25 . 0
4.2
12 . 0
4.4
0.9
2.2
4.4
54 . 2
4.2
Waiyevo
12 . 5
Savus avu
16 . 3
18 . 6
Lab as a
13. 8
23. 0
32 . 2
2.9
21. 3
6.9
2.8
58. 2
20 . 2
3.2
11 . 7
6.6
12 . 3
70 . 5
7.2
8. 8
0. 5
0. 7
Produce r
vendo rs
Non -p roducer
vendors
65 . 1
a
Figure s are percent age s of vendo rs ' declared means of t ravel .
b
' Carrier ' inc ludes h ired t axis .
c
' Private veh i cle ' is non-commercial transport ( usually in veh icle
belonging t o ven dor ' s family ) .
d
' n . a . ' in dicates not availab le .
e
' - ' in dicat e s no t ran s port recorded in the cat egory .
Source :
Market surveys , January 1 9 7 6 .
d
74
other mean s o f t ransport whi l s t feet are an al t ernat ive for
ven do rs who are p rimarily pe rmanent . Buses are import ant
be caus e b us sys tems are well developed and pro ducers are
often ab le to t rans port the ir p ro duce without charge in the
o ut s ide comp artment s . Pro duce b rought on to carriers by
payin g pas s en gers is ch arged a nominal rate on the bas is o f
number o f b undles et c . Where several vendo rs from one area
are go in g t o marke t at the s ame t ime , e sp ecially if they
have a cons ide rab le amount of pro du ce and do no t live on a
dire ct b us rout e to the marke t , they are likely to u s e a
carrier . Apart from the ir flexib le rout es and s che dule s an d
the amol.lll t o f produce that can be carrie d , carrier s are also
preferred bec ause vendors are ab le t o go t o market on credit ,
the t ransport er co llect in g th e money either in the market
aft er a few s ales have b een made or on the return j ourn ey .
The cost of transport of produce is no t great . Almo s t
three-quarters ( 7 1 p er c en t ) of vendors who b r ing produce
to market do not pay t ransport charges in excess of p ersonal
fares . Of vendors who pay cartage fees , for 95 per cent
the charge is less than $ 1 and for almo s t two-thirds it is
lOc or les s . In addition , about one-quar ter o f vendors are
non-producers who buy at the market goods for resale and
so do no t pay directly for transpor t .
Permanent vendors ( s ee also Appendix 1 ) . Permanent
daily s ellers purchase s t o cks at the market from pro ducers
o r le s s connno nly f rom non-p ro ducer who lesale-assemb lers ;
imported produce i s bought f rom wholesalers in th e market
town . Lo cal pro duce is o ft en purchased from regular sour ces ,
often relative s , rather than a variety o f pro ducers and on
Some vendo rs who sell two
the basis of re gular ' o rder s ' .
o r three t imes a week also purchase food at the market for
res ale , but like irre gular vendo rs they pro duce much of wha t
they sell .
There are two b as ic types o f mark et vendors : the per
manent , non-pro ducers ( ' middlemen ' ) and the non-permanen t
producers who sell their o wn produce . The se two types of
ven dor have much in common .
Sel lin g metho ds are s imilar :
t ran s act ion s are in cash , b ar gain in g is un common as prices
are generally not n ego t iab le , and vendors use pas s ive s ale s
techniques .
In other res p ect s , however , the o p er at ion s o f
permanen t an d non-permanent vendo rs d iffer markedly .
Permanen t ven dors are dist inguished from other ven dors
by a range of charact erist ics , an obvious one b ein g race :
75
almo st a l l a r e Ind ian o r Chine s e , although there is a small
and app aren t ly in creas ing number of Fij ian permanent vendors
in the larger marke t s . Permanen t ven dors are more likely
than other ven do rs to be male , married and heads of house
hold . Mo re of ten they have non-agr icultural backgrounds
than do non-permanen t vendors an d have had more fo rmal
edu cat ion . Although the families of permanen t vendors are
mo re dependen t on market sales than are tho se of non-p ermanen t
vendors , only one- fifth of p e rmanen t vendors do not have an
In con t rast , 3 7 per cen t of
alt ernat ive in come sour ce .
weekly vendors and 27 per cen t of irregular vendors are
without alt ernat ive sour ces of income .
Permanen t vendor s live clo s er than o ther ven dors to
the market at which they sell , have shorter travel t ime s
and cons equen t ly spend le s s on fares :
89 per cen t of
permanent vendo rs live within twen ty minutes o f the market
compared to 50 p er cen t of o ther vendors . Thirteen per cen t
walk to marke t .
Contrary t o expe ctation s , however , p ermanen t
ven dors sell mo re frequen t ly than non-permanen t vendor s at
other market s . Permanent vendors also , mo re frequen t ly ,
have selling as s is t an ce ( 2 6 per cen t compared to 13 per cen t
of non-permanen t vendor s ) an d are more likely t o sell o ther
than tmp rep ared foods and a greater variety of produc t s than
o ther vendors , even in cas e s where the p e rmanen t vendors
show marked pro duct spec ializat ion . Mo s t p roducer vendors
sell no more than perhap s t hree differen t items wh ilst
permanent vendors frequen t ly offer ten or more .
The operat ion of permanen t vendors , par t icularly those
dealing in yaqona , rice , po tatoe s , on ion s and garlic - a
connn on comb inat ion of goods - is in some way s s imilar to
that of small shopkeepers . They purchase supplies at the
market an d o ccupy two or three con tiguous s t alls that are
rented on a mon thly basis . Often family members help in
the market . Many such vendors have b een s elling for five
y ears or longer from the s ame s talls .
It is not unusual
for a market s tall to be but one collIDlerc ial interest of a
permanent vendor : he may als o operate a gen eral retail
s t ore , import gro ceries and mixed goods , or assemb le and
forward pro duce o rder s .
Some permanent vendors have telephones in their s t alls ,
and in a few marke t s s ome ope rate fully- fledged impo r t ing and
expo rt ing bus inesses and even hold governmen t supply contract s .
76
S talls are well- s t o cked an d vendors may have addit ional s t o ck
stored at the ir homes . Most permanent ven dors sell p ro duce
by we ight , each havin g a set o f s cales in his s t all . Pri ces
of goods are marke d , an d r i ce and yaqona are pre-packed ,
usually in p aper b ags s t amped with the vendo r ' s name , in
popul ar purchase s izes . Pe rmanent vendo r s deal ing in p roduce
other than yaqon a , pot atoes , rice , an d as s o ciated goods rarely
op erat e on such a s cale or have as many comme rcial s ide
interes t s . Neverthele s s , the ir o perat ions d iffe r more in
s cale than fo rm from the larger-s cale vendo rs .
Non-permanent vendor s . Mo s t non-permanent p roducer
vendo rs are farme rs , so ' non-permanent ' and ' producer '
vendors are us ed synonymously . Mos t l ive close to the market
Some come to market more o r less re gu
at whi ch they sell .
larly on ce o r twice a week , us ual ly on Friday and S at urday ,
but many s e ll irregul arly and less frequen t ly . One-fifth
o f ven do rs des cribe their selling frequen cy as ' irre gular ' ;
the remainde r , after discount ing pe rmanent ven dors , sell one
to three t imes a week , usually at weekends . The frequency
of market vis i t s by non-permanen t vendo rs depends largely
on thei r havin g goods to sell , ano ther reason to vis it the
market t own o r a nee d fo r money an d no p re s s in g commitment s
at home . Mo s t sell irregularly , bringing the i r small sto cks
on b us e s or carrie rs . They s e ll the three or four di ffe ren t
p ro duct s b ro ught on one t rip in tmwe i ghed tm i t s f o r p rices
that are mult iples o f f ive cent s . Prices are rarely marked
but , as wi th pe rmanent vendo rs , goods are us ually wrapped
in newspap er upon sale .
Non-pe rmanen t produce r vendors rarely o ccupy more than
one selling s p ace and mo st s t ay in the market for only a day
at a t ime .
At Ba and Labas a , for inst an ce , the aver age
market s t ay of pro ducers durin g one week in Novemb er 1 9 7 6
was 1 . 3 day s ; fo r non-p roducers i t was 4 . 8 ( Ba ) and 5 . 4
(Lab asa) days . As they grow the p roduct s they s ell , produ ce r
vendo rs can part icipate in market in g with minimal inves tmen t
needing only s uffi cient t o pay fare s and market fees : n on
p ro du ce r vendors do not require much working cap it al , b ut
they do need to pur chase st ock and p ay fees up t o one month
in advance .
Non-pe rman ent ven dors usually plan t o s t ay in the market
for one o r two days at a t ime , depen din g on the amotmt o f
p roduce they have f o r sale , the dis t ance travelled , other
things to do in t own and availab il ity o f ret urn t rans port .
77
All t ry to complete t rad in g by mi d- S a t urday when marke t s
.
clo se as few wan t t o remain t o sell surp lus pro duce the
followin g Monday .
A numb er o f s t rat e gie s a re followed in deal in g wit h
tmsol d p ro duce .
I f it is highly perishab le - l ike leaf
ve get ab les and ripe tomat o es - prices are reduced to get rid
of the produce .
If the uns old pro duce is not highly p erish
able , prices are mo re st able . Most lo cal pro duce , however ,
has a very l imited po s t-harvest life . Pro ducer vendo rs know
from pas t experien ce the amount of pro duce they can expect
to move in one day , so that few mis cal cul at e great ly enough
to neces sit ate e ither ext ra days at mar�et o r sale s at prices
much below thos e expe ct ed . Unsold food is rarely taken home .
It is us ually given to friends o r relat ives who live in town ,
p robably the ones with whom the ven do r spend s the n ight
while marke t in g . Very few vendors act ually throw away
uns poilt food they cannot sell .
Permanen t vendors , generally , are not un der the s ame
pre s s ures to move produce as non-pe rmanent ven do rs . They
are not in a hurry t o sell s t o ck to cat ch t ran spo rt home and
many deal in less perishab le items l ike pot at oes an d yaqon a .
All vendors who s t o ck highly perish able it ems like l e a f ve ge
t ables an d tomatoes are faced with some ur gen cy in movin g
sto ck an d towards t h e end o f a day ' s trading there can be
sharp pri ce reduct ion s .
Weekly market p at tern s . The character o f market s chan ges
not i ceably in the course of a week in re spon s e to the involve
ment of p ro ducer and n on-producer vendo rs . There are at
least four di st inct t rend s . One is that in terms o f share
of t rade , permanent ven do rs be come pro gre s s ively l e s s
import an t during the week . At Ba and Labasa market s in
November 19 7 6 , for example , 6 4 and 82 p er cent of vendors from
Mon day to Thurs day were perman en t , compared to 52 p er cent
on Friday and 35 and 39 p er cent on Saturday . Fij ian vendo rs
become more numerous as the week progres ses , although the ir
share of the t o t al number of vendors may not inc re ase as
much as the number of small , independen t Indian farmers .
A third t rend is t ha t market hin terlands - as meas ured by
the dist ance t ravel led by vendo rs - expand durin g the week .
Thi s t rend is mo st marked in the Wes t ern Divis ion but o c curs
in al l market s . Finally , me asured by either the number of
vendors or th e amo tm t of pro du ce sold , Friday and S aturday
t radin g domin ate s the marke t s . Moreover , as many pro duct s
78
are handled b y p art icul ar races , the relat ive availab i l ity
of foo ds chan ges ove r the week .
P ro duc er vendors c an be from one of three b asic modes
o f pro duct ion which are d i st ingui shable in terms o f source
an d form o f employment . Th ese are vill age , small independent ,
or wage-labour employin g . The vill age farmin g sys tem , based
on unpaid family and community labour an d using commonly
owned vi ll age l an d , is con f ined to Fij ian s and is largely
s ub s is t ence .
Small indepen dent farmers work e ither leasehol d ,
which in cludes Fij ians on fo rmally- leased mataqali land , o r
freeho ld lan d with t h e h e l p o f f arnily labour and employed
hands as required s eas on ally . Apart f rom some Ch inese gin ger
an d dale farmers in Nait asiri , f armin g based on wage-labour
employment i s un common in vege t able pro duct ion fo r the local
market but do es repre s en t the mo s t ' comme rcial ' fo rm o f p ro
duct ion . As it has b een sugge s t ed that the mode of pro duct ion
af fec t s part i cipat ion in market in g ( see The Agricul tural
System in Chapter 1 ) , it is int e re s t ing to examine producer
vendors from th is perspect ive ( Tab les 2 . 8 and 2 . 9 ) .
At Ba and Lab as a market s , the only marke t s wh ere pro ducer
vendors were asked about t he i r mode of p ro duct ion , almost
two- thirds of Fij ian pro ducer ven do rs are vil lagers . Mo st
Fij ians who are independent farme rs are leas in g mata qa li land ,
although at Ba some have leasehold l an d on government-organ ized
land development s chemes .
Indian p roducer vendors are almo st
all small in depen den t farmers on leased lan d . Lar ge- s c ale
farmers employing wage lab our we re not en count ered sellin g
in th e market s . From a cquaintan ce with S uva market , however ,
it app ears t hat such farmers wholes ale their produce t o market
vendo rs rat h er than re t a il it themselve s .
If villagers were primarily end-o f-week , i rre gular
vendo rs , they would be mo re act ive durin g F riday and S at urday
t radin g . This was s o at Ba , where 2 9 p er cent o f Fij ian
vendors pre s ent from Mon day t o Thursday we re vil lagers , com
p ared to 84 p er cent on Friday and Sat urday . At Lab as a ,
however , t he p roport ion over the two perio ds was about equal
( 6 2 and 65 p er cen t ) . The sit uat ion at Labasa is prob ab ly
accounted fo r by the fact that the lon ger distan ces t ravel led
by village p ro ducers in the Labasa area en courage mid-week
sellin g .
Ret urns t o ven do rs
Ret urns to vendors are in fluen c ed by such a var iety o f
Tab le 2 . 8
Pro duc tion sys tems of p roducer-vendors at Ba and Labasa marke ts
a
Indep enden t farmer s
Vi l l agers
Fij ian on
mata qali
l ease b
Le s s ee on
develop .
s cheme
26 . 4
Other
leas e
holder
Freeho lder
Other
--- - -- - ----· ---· - · - - --- ---
.
Fij ian s :
Ba
( 106)
61 . 3
10 . 4
(65 )
63 . 1
24 . 6
2 .8
9.2
3.1
(156)
83 . 3
14 . 1
2.6
Labasa ( 1 39 )
89 . 9
4.3
5.8
Lab as a
Ind ian s :
Ba
a
Figur es in b racke t s are percent ages of valid cases .
b
Villager s farm mata qali. land but
through ind ividual , fo rmal l ea se
' fa rmer with wage-labour ' , the re
e specially o th er than vi llage rs ,
Source :
un like independent farme r s do no t have acce s s to land
arrangement s . A p roducer s t atus on the que s t ionnai r e was
we re no re spon s e s in thi s c a tego ry al though many farmer s ,
pe riodically employ sho r t-term labour .
Marke t su rveys , Ba and Labasa , Novemb e r 1 9 7 6 .
Tab le 2 . 9
Produc t ion system of Fij ian producer-vendors at Ba and Labasa marke t s
Independent farmers
Villagers
Leased
mataqal i
land
Les see on
develop .
s cheme
Othe r
lease
hold
52 . 6
7.9
Freeho ld
Other
Monday-Thursday
Ba
( 38)
28 . 9
7.9
Labasa ( 34 )
61 . 7
29 . 4
(64 )
84 . 4
12 . 5
Lab asa ( 3 1 )
64 . 5
19 . 4
2.6
8.8
Friday-S aturday
Ba
No te :
Source :
12 . 5
Figur es in bracket s are percentages of valid cases .
Marke t s urvey s , Ba and Labasa , November 19 7 6 .
9.7
6.5
81
factors th at e s t imat es o f t radin g performan ce are re adi ly
open to cont radi ct ion . Nonetheles s , by del ineat ing the chie f
variables affe c t in g returns an d by drawin g informat ion from
two stud ies con du cted at S uva market , it is pos s ib le to get
a general imp re s s ion of returns .
Produ ce r vendo rs . The -main dire c t co s t s faced by pro
ducer- vendo r s are t ran sport to and from market for t hemselve s
an d th eir produce , market fees and food co s t s wh ile at market .
Accommo dat ion is rarely a s i gn i f i can t co s t b ecause if vendors
s t ay at the market ove rn ight , they s leep either on foo�paths
around th e market or wi th relat ives .
To gain in fo rmat ion on the form and pro f it ab il ity o f
Fij ian producer involvemen t in market in g , a s t udy was con
duct e d at Suva marke t . Att ent ion was fo cused on the e ffe ct s
of re s iden ce dis t an ce on frequen cy o f p art icipat ion and
market in g ret urn s . 22 From each of th e three s tudy areas ,
re co rds were kept of three t o s even women vendors who vis ited
the market fo r Fri day and S aturday t rading more or l es s
re gul arly ove r two months . The s tudy areas are briefly
des c ribed in Tab le 2 . 10 .
Apart from two mal e small in dependent farmers (ga la la) , ,
the ven do rs were mar ried women . All re garded the market as
a goo d sou rce o f money an d indeed t hey , o r their husbands ,
had no o t her equally re liable o r re gul ar sour ce o f income .
Apart from the n ee d for money and availab il ity of p ro duce to
sell , a maj o r f actor in fluen cin g involvement in marke t in g
was the p resen ce o f grown-up children , espe cially daughters ,
who could look after t he family while the mo ther was at the
market . Thi s was part icularly impo rt ant in mo re distant
areas where the s e ller could be away for three o r four days
on one t rip . Women who we re unab le to vis it the market
be caus e of household respons ib il it ies , frequently gave small
amoun t s of produce to other women who would s ell it and
return all t h e in come to the owne r .
An impo rt an t mot ive for market p ar t icipat ion by the
s urveyed p ro ducer ven dors was that b as i c foo d s tuffs and fuel
s upplies were cheape r in the market t owns than in the i r
village s t o re s . For some vendor s , it appeared that market ing
was a means t o the ch ie f obj e ct ive : the low co s t purchas in g
o f nece s s i t ie s .
Ven dors have a reasonable idea of what they will receive
00
N
Table 2 . 10
Par ticipation and in come o f Fij ian producer-vendo rs at Suva marke t
( Ove r nine consecutive weeks in S ep temb er and Oc tober 1 9 7 6 )
Area
Nakoro tubu
b
Sawaka sa
c
Namara
a
Co s t s as % gro s s income
Vendors
surveyed
Ave rage
numb er of
vi sit s t o
market
Average
gro s s
income/
vifi t
7
3.0
40 . 9
29 . 0
19 . 6
29 . 0
6
4.8
38 . 3
23 . 3
8.2
17 . 4
4
6.0
17 . 5
11 . 8
1 7.o
36 . 7
Average
net income /
vi s i t
$
Tran sport
All c o s t s
a
Vendor vi llages in Nakoro tubu are 88 to 9 6 km from S uva marke t ,
req uiring 4 to 6 hours
of boat and t ruck ( 6 7 km) transpo r t . Boat and truck fares , b o th ways , are ab out $ 9 per
per son .
b
Sawakasa vendors l ive on a main road about 5 4 km no r th o f S uva . They t ravel by either bus
or carrie r ; the return fare is b e tween $ 2 . 20 and $ 6 depending on the amoun t o f produce
carried .
Average income is relat ively hi gh as 2 o f 6 vendo rs are ac t ive ga la la
( independen t farmers ) rather than villagers .
c
The four vi llages in Namara whence the vendors come are about
by a $ 1 b us ride o r fo r $ 2 in a carrier .
S ource :
Baines 19 76 .
4 0 km
from Suva , reached
83
for the ir pro duct s an d they t ake to market on ly enough to
gain the mon ey they require . Pro ducer - vendors are aware of
the con se quen c e s o f over- s upply on p r i ce s and are care ful
not to b rin g too much of a part i cular item . Expec ted ret urns
are furth er ins ured by b ringin g ab out four differen t p rodu ct s .
As an example , p ro du ct s b ro ught on one t rip by a typi cal
vendor from Nako ro tub u , the s t udy area most dis t an t from
Suva , comprised thirt een do z en co conut s , forty p awpaws , about
30lb of chi l l ie s , about 8 lb each of tumeric and wil d ginger
an d four l 5-2 0lb b asket s o f cas s ava . The vendo rs themselve s
sell all t h e pro duce they b r in g to market al tho ugh they are
frequen t ly approached by p erman ent ven do r s s e eking goo d s
fo r re s al e .
Th ere are in teres t in g di fferen ce s in returns to vendo r s '
between s t udy areas (Tab l e 2 . 10 ) . Ven dors from Nakorotubu ,
who re quire at least three full days to vis it Suva market ,
come the leas t frequen t ly b ut make the highes t gro s s and net
returns per t rip . The vendors l ivin g n eare s t to Suva have
the lowes t ret urn s and th e highe s t share of the gro s s ret urn s
accoun ted fo r by cos t s .
If n et returns are related to fre quency of vi s it , the
differen ce s in in come b etween area are no t as marked as
in fo rma t ion on s in gle vis i t s s ugge s t s .
Cal culated to an
annual rat e , n et ret urn s for vendor s from the three areas
are $409 , $503 and $ 64 8 . The highe s t fi gure i s for the vendor
s ampl e that in c ludes two act ive galala farme rs : v illage r
pro ducer-vendo r s i n t h e s ame area make sub st ant ial ly less .
If market returns are adj us t e d fo r frequen cy and co s t o f
vis it , it appe ars tha t rural Fij ian villagers have part i cul ar
and s imil ar re quirement s fo r cash that are l argely in dependent
of res ident ial lo c at ion an d that market involvement is
adj usted to meet thes e n ee d s .
Non-producer vendors . Marke t s ales are as important a
s ource of in come fo r non-p roducer vendo rs as for producer
vendors , b ut fo rms of par t i cipat ion an d returns differ s i gn i
fi cant ly . Non-producer vendor s p ur chas e goo ds at the market
from farme rs or a s s emb ler-wholesalers , many of whom are farmers
thems elve s .
Goods are pur chased by e ither we ight , for example ,
Fren ch bean s , or s t andard un it s such as s acks of e ggplan t ,
case s o f tomat oes , bundl e s o f Chin e s e cabb age , an d so on .
Pro duce is pur chased as required , b ut vendors t en d to purchas e
fruit and ve get ab le s o n three- to four- day cy c le s and at t empt
to sell mo st by market clo s in g on Sat urday .
84
Tab le 2 . 11
Markups from purchase to ret ail price
by non-p ro ducer-vendors at S uva market
Product
Percen t a ge mark-up
mean
s t andard devi·ation-�-
Numb er
cases
Eggplant
2 31 . 4
94. 6
12
Tomat oes
1 35 . 4
83 . 0
9
Pawpaw
14 7 . 2
84 . 3
3
Rouro u
12 0 . 1
82 . 3
8
Co conut
109 . 2
37. 8
3
Cucumber
102 . 6
67 .0
2
Chillies
97 . 2
64 . 1
6
Dhan ia
87. 2
68. 7
9
Mango
79 . 6
12 3 . 3
2
But t er beans
75 . 0
35 . 4
2
Cas s ava
74 . 5
5. 7
2
French b eans
73. 6
44 . 8
6
Engl ish cabb age
72 . 8
69 . 8
44
Radish
59 . 3
36 . 7
2
Bora beans
52 . 8
45 . 8
5
Amaranth
50. 0
o. o
2
Ke re la
45 . 9
29. 5
2
Chinese cabb age
21 . 8
42 . 6
7
Lon g bean s
12 . 5
17. 6
2
9.2
4.4
3
Rice
S o urce :
Survey s , Suva market , 7-11 Septembe r
19 7 6 .
85
Popular opinion holds tha t non-pro ducer vendors s et
exce s s ive markup s and generally ope rat e in a non- compet itive
fashion . An at t empt was made to monitor n on-pro ducer t rade .
It was found that at least amon g permanen t ven dors s el l in g
fruit an d veget ables in Suva marke t there is marked compet it ion
amon g vendo rs , with pr ice s refl ect ing supply and deman d con
dit ion s , and that whi lst s ome vendo rs make relat ively good
income s , many do no t . Like the producer-vendo rs , permanent
vendor s have s e t op inions on what the p r ice of any i t em
should b e . They have the purcha s e price as a s t art ing poin t
in set t in g prices . Howeve r , o n the whole they a r e real is
t ical ly flexib le in adj us t ing pri ce s to meet s upply an d demand
relat ivi t ie s .
Dat a col le cted in S uva market in Sept emb er 19 7 6 reve aled
that price markups on twenty products handled by non-p roducer
vendo rs ran ge d from over 200 p er cen t to under 10 per cent ,
the average b eing 82 . 9 per cent ( Tab le 2 . 11 ) . 2 3 Net in come
is con s i de rab ly le s s than thes e markup s . One ven dor , for
ins t an c e , made on ly 30 p er cen t over exp endit ure , excluding
market fees , from s ix days ' t rading with gro s s daily t urnovers
from $6 to $7 on Tues day and Wednes day to $20 to $22 on Fr iday
and Sat urday (Tab le 2 . 12 ) .
Daily n e t in come o f twen ty of the s urveye d ven do rs aver
ages $1 3 . 1 , which implies giving a s ix-day weekly rat e o f
$ 7 8 . 6 {Table 2 . 13 ) . There are marke d differen ces in t rad ing
pro fitab i lity by race of vendor . The ave rage n et daily in come
of Indian ven dors ( $ 16 . 1 ) is ove r doub le that of Fij ian
vendors ( $ 7 . 6 ) . At an annual rat e , average in come s are
$40 8 7 fo r all vendors , $502 3 for Indians and $2 3 7 1 for Fij ians ,
from whi ch an average o f $ 300 should b e deduc t ed to cover
s t all fees .
In come e xt r apolat ion s for marke t vendors should b e
t reat ed with caut ion b ecaus e o f t he ran ge o f po s s ib le in flu
en cing variab les such as income wh ich varies greatly with
s eason , s iz e of s t all and locat ion in market . Neverthele s s
they d o s ugge s t the general ran ge an d rac ial differen ce s in
market inc ome for permanent vendor s .
Such annual incomes ,
part icularly as they are gen erally un taxe d , are high for
s emi-skilled employment in Fij i .
Calculat ed on an hourly
b as is , ret urn s are not so attrac t ive . As sumin g vendors work
abo ut 60 hours per week and that each vendor wo rks alon e ,
n e t hourly in come o f Ind ian p e rmanent ven dors i s 2 7 cen t s
and of F ij ian permanen t vendors is 1 3 cen t s . Differences
b etween Indian and Fij ian incomes are partly due to Indians
86
Tab le 2 . 12
Trading act ivity o f a Fij ian and an Indian n on-producer
vendor at S uva market , 7-11 Septemb e r 1 9 7 6
Fij ian vendor
Product
Wat e rmelon
Man go
E ggplan t
Chinese
cabbage
Cucumb e r
Rourou
Banana
Tomatoes
Ch ill ies
Un it
Purchases
quan t ity cost ( $ )
s ingle
heap
heap
3
110
90
b un dle
s in gl e
b lID. dle
heap
' t in '
heap
24
103
24
n . a.
3
12
Total
Sales
($)
3 . 00
2 3 . 16
7 . 38
6 . 00
2 7 . 57
16 . 6 0
5 . 00
3 . 32
3 . 00
5 . 00
9 . 00
1 . 00
3 . 60
8 . 30
9 . 60
1 0 . 00
14 . 4 0
1 . 20
5 9 . 86
97 . 2 7
Un sold Net in come
quan t ity
($)
66
13
20
3 . 00
4 . 41
9 . 22
-1 . 4 0
4 . 98
6 . 60
5 . 00
5 . 40
0. 20
37 . 41
Ind ian vendor
Pur chas e s
quan t ity co s t ( $ )
S al e s
($)
Un sold Net income
($)
quan t ity
Pro duct
Un it
E ggp lan t
But ter b ean
Amaran th
Tomato
Okra
En glish
cabbage
Dhan ia
Chinese
cabbage
Gin ger
Rice
Ch illies
Be le
Coconut
French bean
Onion
Irish po t ato
Sultanas
heap
lb
bundle
lb
lb
20
22
12
12 5
16
0 . 84
1 . 10
0 . 60
10 . 00
2 . 20
2 . 80
2 . 22
1 . 80
18 . 7 5
3 . 85
6
5
1 . 96
1 . 12
1 . 20
8 . 75
1 . 65
lb
b un dle
90
24
6 . 91
1 . 06
1 2 . 00
1 . 60
15
8
5 . 09
0 . 54
bundle
lb
lb
lb
bundle
s ingle
lb
lb
lb
lb
30
5
300
10
14
3
20
so
50
1
4 . 75
0 . 30
36 . 6 6
1 . 25
n . a.
0 . 12
0 . 80
2 . 75
2 . 50
0 . 60
4 . 75
0 . 60
4 0 . 00
3 . 00
1 . 75
0 . 30
1 . 10
4 . 50
3 . 75
o. 70
7 2 . 44
103 . 47
T o t al
No te :
Source :
50
5
10
25
25
0 . 30
3 . 34
1 . 75
( ? ) 1 . 75
0 . 18
0 . 30
1. 75
1 . 25
0 . 10
31 . 03
Of the food un sold at close-o f - t rading on Sat urday , onl y mangoes ,
rice , pot ato e s , on ion s , English cabbage an d some cucumb e r were kept
to sell durin g the fol lowing week .
Survey s , Suva market , 7-11 Sept ember 19 7 6 .
Table 2 . 1 3
Ne t p ro f i t s of non-p roducer-vendors at Suva marke t
Vendors
Cases
Ne t daily pro f i t ( $ )
mean
s tandard
deviation
maximum
min imum
Weekly net
pro fit ( $ ) from
daily rate
Al l
20
13 . 1
12 . 7
42 . 0
1.6
78 . 6
Indian
13
16 . 1
14 . 2
42 . 0
3.1
96 . 6
Fij ian
7
7.6
7.0
19 . l
1.6
45 . 6
No te :
Source :
Data are fo r consecut ive days in the s ame week - in ten cas e s for 5 days , six cases
for 4 days and fo ur cases for 3 days . Pro fit s are ne t o f purchase co s t only ; o ther
chief fixed c o s t s are s tall fee s of $1 to $2 pe r day depending on amount of sel l ing
space o c c up ied .
S urveys , Suva marke t , 7-11 S eptembe r 19 76 .
88
having b e t t e r stall lo cat ions . Al s o important is th e fact
that each deals in differen t it ems , due as much to the In dian
vendors ' b e t t e r acces s to s upply and their ab ility to p urchas e
goods on credit from known supp liers , a s t o the con s e rvat i sm
of Fij ian vendors who deal mainly in locally-grown F ij ian
s t aples .
Pro duce s old
The dis t in ct season ality o f mos t lo cal foods i s re flected
in market act ivit y .
In the hotter and wet t er Jan uary-July
period p rac t i cally no lo cally- grown temperate climat e ve ge
t ab les are availab le . Eggplant , okra , o t a an d rourou are
the main green veget ables in s upply throughout the y ear .
In
the o f f season , the amount of t rade in seasonal vege t ab les
by permanen t vendors de crease s greatly as the ven dors do not
swi t ch b road product l ine s : tho s e deal ing in ve ge t ab l e s and
fruit s ell what is in s eason and do not change to non-s e ason al
yaqon a , rice , pot at o e s , et c . , or even to nat ive vege tables ,
during the ve get able o f f s eas on . The numb e r o f pro ducer
ven dors also declines in the o f f s e as on , part i cul arly among
Indian vendors who are mo re l ikely than Fij ians t o grow and
s ell t emperate ve get ab le s .
No twithst andin g s easonality of s upply , s ome gen eral
feature s of pro duce t rade can be del in eat ed . 2 4 The main
groups of food sold in al l marke t s ar e nat ive s t aples , nat ive
ve get ab les , Indian and int ro duced vegetables and fruit ,
excludin g impo rt ed fruit ( Tabl e 2 . 14 ) . 25 Th ese foo ds a ccoun t
fo r abo ut 9 0 p e r cent o f produce in al l marke t s . The balance
con s i s t s o f Indian s t aples - such as I rish potat oes , on ion s ,
garl ic , rice , pul ses and dry spices - imported f ruit , yaqona
and tobacco and oils .
Indian s t aples , import ed fruit , yaqona
and t obacco were not recorded at Levuka, Waiyevo or S avus avu
market s b ut we re pres ent in all oth er market s .
Th ere is con s i derab le range in th e relat ive importance
of dif feren t foodstuffs b e tween market s , refl ect in g the
cul ture o f the consumers and the product ion o f the h in t erland .
Nat ive s t aples and n at ive ve ge t ables , for in s t an ce , are poorly
represented in the We s t ern Divis ion , part i cuarly at Ba ,
Laut oka , Nadi and S i gat oka market s where they account for
les s than 10 per cen t o f pro duce .
In marke t s out s ide cane
p ro ducin g areas , an d e s pecially in the smaller towns where
the purchas in g populat ion is small and not as cult urally
diverse as elsewh ere , nat ive produce can acco un t for more
than two-thirds o f foods tuffs fo r s ale .
Table 2 . 14
Compo s it ion o f foodstuffs t raded b}': market
Nat ive
st apl es
Nat ive
ve ge t ables
Indian
s t aples
Indian
ve getables
In troduced
vege t ables
16 . 1
14 . 1
13.1
5.8
14 . 2
25 . 0
34 . 1
20. 0
3. 8
3.0
1.6
Suva
Nausori
Vaileka
Tavua
Ba
Lautoka
Na di
Sigat oka
Navua
Levuka
Waiyevo
S avusavu
Lab as a
b
10. 8
13. 6
17 . 8
15 . 9
8. 6
7.4
6.9
3. 5
12 . 7
86 . 6
65 . 6
29. 3
5.1
0. 1
1. 7
4.1
0. 8
0. 4
1.2
0.4
0. 3
1.0
2.8
0. 3
2.3
0. 3
0. 5
1.7
1.2
13. 6
5. 1
4 .4
4. 3
2.0
0. 1
4.6
29 . 2
37 . 9
34 . 5
8. 1
41 . 2
25 . 0
17. 6
22 . 7
29 . 5
1.0
9.5
13. 3
37 . 1
All
market s
11 . 4
1.1
2.5
17. 3
Fruit
a
Imported
f ruit
Yaqona ,
tob acc o
1 .9
3. 6
1. 6
8. 6
6.4
2.9
2.8
2.0
8.3
0.2
Tot al
0.1
0.2
0.2
0. 3
0.1
0.1
0.2
0. 1
53.2
5. 3
1. 7
3. 6
4.5
9.6
4.0
5.1
4.5
0.1
0. 2
0.4
7.7
1 00 . 0
6.9
37 . 3
29 . 0
19 . 8
48 . 9
27 . 5
33 . 9
34 . 6
43.0
52 . 6
6.6
21. 9
54 . 5
29 . 6
10 . 7
5.5
0. 6
0.1
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
1 00 . 0
1 00 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
18 . 6
42 . 5
2.2
4.3
0. 1
100 . 0
0.6
0.2
0. 1
0.2
0.1
0. 3
c
% s urveyed
Oils
1.1
food at mkt
a
Inadequate data are available for Korovou and Raiwaqa market s .
b
All foo d values we re converted to a s t andard un it ( lb s )
f rom e s t imates o f t he mean s iz e o f the sel l in g un it s
in which foods t uf f quan t it i e s were reco rde d .
In fo rmat ion was also ob tained on marine p roduct s (mo llus c s ,
crust acean s , b e che - de-me r , s e awee ds , dried and smoked f ish and t urt les ) , b ut as the amoun t s were re l at ively
small and b ecause o f diff iculty in conve rting them to s tandard we igh t s , the in format ion is not in clude d .
c
'-'
Source :
ind i cat e s no record o f p roduce in the relevan t catego ry .
Market s u rveys , January 19 7 6 .
90
Aroun d one-hal f o f foodstu f f s t raded are s o l d o n Friday
an d Saturday ( Tab le 2 . 15 ) . Except ion s to this s ales pat t e rn
o c cur only wh er e weekday s ales , espe cially Mon day t o Thurs day
s ales , are minimal , as at Levuka , Waiyevo and Korovou marke t s .
At all o ther market s , exclud in g Raiwaqa b ecause o f inadequate
dat a , ab out one-hal f o f the week ' s t rade occurs on Friday
and Sat urday . Va riat ion in the avail ab ilit y o f it ems over
the week is al so caus ed by d i fferen tial handl in g of p ro duce
according to t ype - producer , non-p ro duce r - and race o f
vendo r . Nat ive s t aples and native ve ge t ables , f o r in s t an ce ,
con s t itute a larger share o f market pro duce on Fr idays and
Saturdays than at other t imes .
Dat a on pro duce sold and the vendo r ' s race reveal two
impo rtan t feat ure s of market operat ion .
One is that the
share of t ra de handl ed b y vendo rs of one race may differ from
that race ' s repre sen tat ion among ven do r s ( Tables 2 . 16 , 2 . 1 7 ) .
Whilst 43 . 7 per cent o f vendo rs are Fij ian o r other Pac i f i c
Is landers , f o r example , they t rade only 2 1 . 2 p e r cen t o f t o t al
market produce ; Indians accoun t for 54 . 8 per cent o f vendors
and handle almo s t three- quart e rs of al l pro duce ; an d prac
t i cally all the b alan ce is with the 1 . 1 per cen t of vendo rs
who are Ch in es e . Share o f t rade by race varies by market ,
b ut ove rall Fij ian ven do r s handle con s i derably les s t han
their numb ers would s ugge s t .
Secon d , each race special iz e s t o s ome ext en t in the t ype
o f pro duct handled ( T able 2 . 1 8 ) . Between market s there are
differences in racial involvemen t in the t r ade of individual
it ems , but at the p roduct s group level , b ro ad p at t ern s o f
s p ec ial izat ion remain .
Fij ian vendo rs s ell mainly n at ive s t aple s ( 5 6 per cen t
o f Fij ian t rade ) , fruit ( 11 . 8 p er cen t ) , animal p ro duct s
( 11 . 9 p er cent ) , nat ive vege t ables ( 6 . 2 per cen t ) and yaqona
and t ob acco ( 6 . 2 p er cent ) . Trade in o ther fo o ds s uch as
In dian s t aples and ve get ables , int r o duced vegetables , imported
fruit and o ils , comprises les s than one-t enth of t o t al Fij ian
t rade , but a c co un t s for almo s t one-half of Indian market
Chin ese ven do rs s e ll mainly Indian s t ap le s , int ro duced
t rade .
veget ables and imp o r t e d frui t ; t ogether these p ro duc t s make
up ove r 80 pe r cen t o f Chinese t rade .
Trade in n at ive s t aples an d veget ab le s an� to a lesser
ext en t , fruit and an imal produ ct s is dominated b y Fij ians .
Indian ven do rs han dle a lar ge share o f the t rade o f In dian
s t aples an d vege t ables , yaqona and t obacco and o ils .
Chin ese
Tab le 2 . 15
------
Food t rade var iat ion by day in s elected marke t s
Suva
Naus ori
S i gat oka
a
Vai leka
Savus avu
Labasa
M-Th
F-S
M-Th
F-S
M-Th
F-S
M-Th
F-S
M-Th
F-S
All foo d s
57. 6
42 . 4
48 . 3
51. 7
59 . 5
40 . 5
56 . 4
43 . 6
42 . 3
57. 7
61 . 1
38 . 9
Nat ive s t aples
43 . 9
56 . 1
25 . 9
74. 1
57 . 1
42 . 9
40. 5
59 . 5
39 . 6
60 . 4
43 . 5
56 . 5
Native ve get ab les
30 . 6
69 . 4
13 . 6
86 . 4
11. 7
88 . 3
18. 6
81. 4
74. 4
25 . 6
82 . 3
17 . 7
98 . 0
2.0
40 . 0
60. 0
25 . 0
b
75 . 0
Indian s t ap les
Indian vege t ables
54 . 9
45 . 1
56 . 6
43. 4
61 . 5
38. 5
66 . 1
33 . 9
72 . 5
27 . 5
54 . 8
M-Th
F-S
20. 9
n . a.
79 . 1
c
n. a.
45 . 2
In tro duced veget ab l e s
55 . 1
44 . 9
47. 3
52 . 7
58 . 0
42 . 0
58. 4
41 . 6
33. 3
66 . 7
68. 5
31. 5
Fruit
60. 3
39 . 7
50. 0
50 . 0
60 . 0
40 . 0
56 . 4
43. 6
37 . 0
63 . 0
62 . 7
37. 3
Imported fruit
68. 0
32 . 0
n . a.
n . a.
95 . 9
4. 1
81 . 8
18 . 2
Yaqon a , t ob acco
67 . 4
32 . 6
42 . 0
58 . 0
57 . 0
43 . 0
65. 2
34 . 8
Oils
75 . 0
25 . 0
49 . 3
50 . 7
n . a.
n . a.
66 . 2
33 . 8
55 . 0
45 . 0
62 . o
38 . 0
75 . 7
24 . 3
65 . 9
34 . 1
a
Figures are pe rcent ages o f quan t it y o f food c at e gory recorded over week t hat were pre s en t on spec ified day s .
b
' - ' ind icates no pro duct recorded for the par t ic ul ar perio d .
c
' n . a . ' in dicat e s pro duct s old but further in f o rmat ion i s n o t available .
Sour ce :
Market s urvey s , January 19 7 6 .
92
Table 2 . 16
a
Share of t rade in main foods t u f f ca t�� _i!Il_d��rke!_
�� ·
��
Nat ive s t ap l e s
b
F
I
c
e
c
d
Indian s t aples_
c
F
F
c
Indian vegs
In t ro .
F
F
c
vegs
I
c
All marke t s
62 . 8 36 . 2
0. 8
6 8 . 6 30 . 9
0.4
1 . 1 94. 5
4.0
8 . 1 91 . 5
0.2
10 . 0 8 6 . 0
Suva
6 3 . 8 34 . 8
1.1
71 . 2
29 . 9
0.6
1 . 1 91 . 4
6. 8
9 . 8 89 . 6
0.4
1 2 . l 82 . 2
3.1
Naus o r i
46. 6 53. 2
0.2
83. 0 16 . 5
0.5
_f 1 00
9 . 2 89 . 1
1.7
8 . 8 91 . 2
Vaileka
7 6 . 4 24 . 6
75 . 0 25 . 0
0. 3 99 . 7
1 . 3 98. 7
Tavua
53. 7 46 . 3
74 . 4 2 5 . 6
0 . 2 99 . 8
34 . 0 6 4 . 5
1 7 . 7 82 . 3
Ba
40 . 9 59 . 1
14 . 4 85 . 6
1 . 5 98. 5
0 . 2 99 . 8
0 . 2 99 . 8
Lautoka
56. 3 43. 7
44 . 1 55 . 9
0 . 9 99 . 1
7 . 3 92 . 7
Nadi
35 . 9 62 . 6
S i gat oka
88 . 1 11 . 9
71 . 9 2 8 . 1
Navua
76 . 6 2 3 . 4
8 7 . 4 12 . 6
Waiyevo
9 0 . 0 10 . 0
100
n.f.s.
Savusavu
96 . 8
8 3 . 7 16 . 3
n. f. s.
Lab as a
76 . 2 2 1 . 5
1.5
3.2
2.3
100
57 . 7
1 . 0 99 . 0
100
99 . 4
39 . 7
Imp o rt e d f r u i t Yagon a ,
F
c
F
4 . 0 95 . 9
100
66 . 7 3 3 . 3
c
g
6.6 93.4
0. 1
1 1 . 6 88 . 1
7 . 0 93 . 0
7 . 7 92 . 3
16 . 0 84 . 0
2 3 . 6 76 . 4
72 . 1 2 7 . 9
50 . 0 5 0 . 0
0 . 2 99 . 8
0 . 7 99 . 3
All food
t obacco
c
F
0.3
100
2 4 . 4 75 . 6
0. 6
1.8
c
F
F
c
18. 2
4 . 2 95 . 6
1 . 6 98 . 4
21.2 73. 7
4.6
7 7 . 7 21 . 2
4 . 6 95 . 4
2 . 4 97 . 4
22 . 7 55 . 1 21 . 1
7 . 0 93. 0
2 9 . 3 70 . 6
All market s
23. 9
74 . 6
1. 3
0 . 6 81 . 2
Suva
2 6 . 4 71 . 5
2.0
1.1
Naus o r i
39 . 0 61 . 0
100
Vaileka
24 . 4
75 . 6
100
35 . 4 6 4 . 6
Tavua
42 . 3 5 7 . 7
100
1. 7 98. 3
Ba
1 3 . 5 86 . 5
100
100
100
10 . 3 8 9 . 7
100
100
1 7 . 3 82 . 7
0. 1
100
8 . 4 91 . 1
0. 5
Lautoka
21. 3 76. 3
2.4
100
Nadi
2 0 . 0 79 . 7
0. 3
89 . 5 1 0 . 5
100
6. 7 93. 3
S i gatoka
Navua
21. 4
78 . 6
Waiyevo
88 . 7 11 . 3
Savusavu
78 . 5 2 1 . 5
n. f. s .
100
2 . 0 98 . 0
6 . 2 93. 8
76.2 23. 8
n. f. s.
n. f. s .
84 . 1 1 5 . 9
1 . 9 98 . 1
Lab as a
100
n . f. s .
100
100
1 . 0 99 . 0
5 . 3 94 . 7
14 . 7 8 5 . 3
16 . 9 8 3 . 1
n .f .s.
5 7 . 6 42 . 3
n. f. s.
85 . 3 1 4 . 7
28 . 0 72 . 0
100
85 . 6 1 4 . 4
1 3 . 9 85 . 4
a
Korovou and Raiwaqa marke t s are excluded because o f incomplete dat a ; Levuka market i s
b
excluded b e cause data w e r e reco rded f o r Fij i an vendors only .
' F ' s t an d s f o r Fij ian and o t h er Paci f i c I s landers .
c
' I'
' C'
0. 1
46. 3 53. 7
0.6
s t an d s f o r Indian .
f
s t ands for Chinese vendo rs .
Where pe rcen tages
.
Figures are per centages of t o t al quan t it y recorded of each food group
a rgely part-European s ) .
do not sum t o 1 0 0 , the balance i s comp r ised o f ' o t he r ' vendo r s ( l
' - ' means not re co rded for the par t i cul ar ra c ial group .
g
'n. f . s . '
d
e
Source :
ind i c a t e s i tem was not
Market
surveys ,
reco rded .
January 1 9 7 6 .
93
Table 2 . 1 7
T rade in main produce l ines by race ( all market s )
Fij i h in Other
Indian C
an
ese
h inF ij � Indian C
Other
an
ese
Nat ive s t aples
70 . 1
dalo
96 . 6
dalo-n i-tana
95 . 0
cass ava
sweet potato 1 00 . 0
87 . 8
yams
65 . 5
b readf ruit
85 . 1
plant ain
coconut
53 . 3
Nat ive vegs
ota
rourou
be le
Indian s t aples
rice
j ackfrui t
pumpkin
Irish pot ato
onion
garl i c
carrot
dhal
pulses
spices ( dry )
In dian vegs
okra
eggplant
ginger
kerela
ch i l l ies
b eans (not Fr .
gourd
amaranth
coriander
t amarind
Int ro . vegs
tomato
Ch . cabbage
l et t uce
French beans
cucumber
a
b
29 . 1
0.5
3.4
5.0
12 . 2
34 . 5
44 . 4
2.3
2.3
87. 4
0. 7
11. 9
70. 7
82 . 8
29 . 1
17. 0
0.2
1. 3
89 . 5
7.1
2.0
95 . 5
0. 3
0. 3
88. 5
9.6
0.4
12 . 6
0.2
100 . 0
3. 9
1. 5
1.2
88 . 2
10 . 6
0.4
88 . 9
10 . 0
8. 5
57 . 8
33 . 7
0. 7
1 00 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
0.1
99 . 9
10. 1
89 . 7
0.2
9.1
34 . 2
83 . 8
7.1
65 . 8
15 . 9
83 . 8
) 2.5
93. 4
27 . 7
72 . 3
0.2
0.3
4.1
99 . 8
100 . 0
1.5
92 . 5
6.0
11. 7
62 . 3
26. 0
4.6
85 . 0
2.8
7.5
29 . 5
62 . 7
7.8
4.6
85 . 1
2.8
7.5
7. 7
83 . 0
8. 2
1.1
a
Fruit
pawpaw
banana
lemon
o range
ivi
wate rmelon
pineapple
48. 2
57. 8
1. 3
27.9
68. 9
2.8
34 . 1
41 . 9
7.8
92 . 9
7.1
2.9
97. 1
32 . 4
64 . 6
3.0
40 . 1
47. 5
Imported f ruit
apple
3.4
0. 3
pear
10 . 1
grapes
o range
Yaqon a ,
tob acco
t ob acco
yaqona
6.0
45 . 8
40 . 9
44 . 5
55 . 2
65 . 7
24 . 2
28. 7
71 . 3
1. 8
98. 2
6. 7
93 . 3
0.4
Oil s
3. 7
coconut oil
96. 3
ghee
98 . 4
1.6
' o il ' ( tm spec . )
1 00 . 0
Animal
p roduc t s
fowl s
fowl e ggs
mus s els
o ther s hel l f .
dried/
smoked fish
prawns
seaweed
sea cucumb er
landcrab s
other crabs
23. 5
76 . 5
28. 7
66 . 9
4.4
100 . 0
89 . 9
8.1
2.0
100 . 0
1 00 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
Only main foods are in cluded ; in mo s t cas es t h is is t aken as foods for
which dat a are avail ab l e fo r mo re than 1000 lbs . Numbers are percen t age
of each food handled by vend ors of ind icated races .
' - ' in dicates item not recorded .
Sour ce :
\.0
�
Tab le 2 . 18
Trade compo s it ion by race of vendor ( all marke t s )
Foo d gr oup
Nat ive s t ap l e s
Fij ian/
Pacific Islander
Ind ian
Chines e
Other
56 . 0
7.1
3. 1
7. 7
Nat ive veget ab les
6.2
0. 5
0. 5
0.4
Indian s t aple s
1. 1
25 . 7
35 . 1
25 . 9
Indian ve get ab les
3. 4
12 . 6
4.0
5.8
In t ro duced ve get ables
2.4
5.1
24 . 6
57.4
11 . 8
6.2
4.5
0. 6
Imported frui t
0. 5
1. 8
Yaqon a , t ob a c co
6.2
33 . 2
24 . 7
a
Edib l e o i l
0. 3
3.4
11 . 9
4.0
0. 2
0. 4
100 . 0
100 . 0
Fruit
An imal produ c t s
Other and unknown
To t al
a
'
- ' indicates i tems not recorded .
Source :
1. 5
3.5
0. 7
100 . 0
100 . 0
95
ven do rs do not domin at e any part icular food group but with
Indian vendors account fo r mo s t o f the t rade in in troduce d
ve ge t ab l e s and impor t e d fruit .
However , wh ilst ven do rs o f one race may domin ate t rade
o f a general pro duce cat e gory , resource acce s s and differen ces
in agricultural pro duct ion by race cause con s ide rab le vari
at ion in th e share of t rade in in dividual it ems . Fo r ins t an ce ,
while nat ive s t aples ar e largely in the hands of Fij ian s ,
Indian vendo rs account for at le as t 2 9 per cent of the dalo
and b readfruit an d nearly one-hal f o f co conut s trade d .
Similarly , Indian s han dl e almo s t one-third o f rourou t raded .
Fij ian and Indian part i c ipat ion in f ruit is roughly even .
The ir shares in pawpaw an d o ranges are ab out equal , but
Fij ian s acco un t fo r almo s t all ivi and Indians fo r lemon ,
wat ermelon an d p ineapple . The only an imal produc t s , fre sh
f ish exclude d , in wh i ch Indian s have an ythin g mo re than a
minimal share are fowl s an d fowl eggs .
In dian dominat ion o f In dian s t aples and ve get ab le s ,
imported fruit , y aqona and tob ac co , an d oils is b roken on ly
in a few pro duc t s .
Carro t s are the only foo d within the
first cate go ry whe re Ind ians do not ac count for at least 88
per cen t o f t rade . Kerela and gourd are the on ly maj o r
Indian ve ge t ables in whi ch non-Indian vendo rs have a s igni
f i c an t t rade .
In the cat e go ry o f in t ro duce d ve ge t ab le s ,
Chin ese t rade rs have a con s ide rab le b us in es s in let t uce and
tomato es , an d they also handle much o f the t rade in imported
fruit .
In dian ven dors virtually monopol i z e the t rade in
tobacco ( 9 8 . 2 p er cen t ) , yaqon a ( 9 3 . 3 per cen t ) and o il ( 9 6 . 3
to 100 per cen t , dependin g on variety ) .
Marke t s upply
Hin terlands . The re are three bas ic fo rms of market
hin t erl an d 1n Fij i .
One is an excl us ive hin t e rl an d where
the market is the cen tre of a dis cret e area and is the only
s i gn i f i cant co1Ill1e
1 rcial out let for the p ro du ce of the hinterlan d .
Levuka , Waiyevo , S avusavu and Lab asa market s have excl us ive
hint erlands . A se cond form is the h in t erl and wh ere p ro duce
sells primarily through the nearby out let b ut some is al so
taken by pro ducers to l arger regional marke t s . Korovou ,
Navua , Vail eka , Sigat oka , Nadi and Ba marke t s have hint erlan ds
of this nature . The third type i s the hin t erland which
comprises the area con t i guo us to the market , o ff-shore i slands
and smaller market s and the ir hint erlands .
Suva an d Laut oka
market s have this type o f hin terlan d ( Fi g . 1 3 ) .
96
Whether pro duce is sold a t lo cal o r regional market s
depends on a variety of factors , in cludin g the quant ity
availab le , expected demand at each market , whi ch i s rel ated
t o the day o f the week , and ease o f acces s . Tradin g at al l
market s reaches a peak on Fri day and S at urday an d on these
day s hint erlan ds expand as vendor s t ravel further to the
larger cent ral market s . Trade at the smaller l o cal marke t s
does not de crease on Friday an d Sat urday , b ut i s p roport ion
ately l e s s of the t o t al regional t rade t han that handled
from Monday t o Thursday .
In teract ion with market s is mos t in t ense in the cont iguous
z one and beyond th is in the area connected by road . Market
par t i c ipat ion declines rapidly . Th ere are areas on Vit i
Levu an d Vanua Levu , as we ll as much o f Lomaivit i and Lau ,
that , s ave for o ccas ional shipment s of high-value p ro duce
l ike yaqon a , are beyon d the range of the produce market s .
Even some areas with s emi-regular market involvement
have di fficul ty of acces s . Villager s from Ba for inst an ce
re gul arly s pen d seventy-two hours and even lon ge r on t rip s
to sell at Suva market s . The only o ff- shore islands with
re gular and con s t ant market act ivity are Beqa an d s ome of
the Yasawas .
Part icipat ion o f pro ducers in market in g is by no mean s
unifo rm wit h in market h in terlands . App aren t spat ial an omal ies
in part i cipat ion are readily app arent ( Fig . 1 4 ) . Moreove r ,
the rel at ion ship developed in e conomic lo cat ion theo ry between
p ro duct ion and d is t an ce f rom market cen tre is no t eas ily
i den t i fiable in dat a on marke t -res iden ce d is t an ce and cro p s
produced ( Tab le 2 . 19 ) . 2 6
Co rrelat ions between p ro du ce quant ity and the res iden ce
market dis t anc e of the p ro ducer are not definit ive ( Tab le 2 . 2 0 ) .
Mos t marked dire c t co rrelat ion s b etween dist an ce and quan t i�y
o c cur fo r yaqona an d t ob acco ( 0 . 2 7 1 ) and nat ive veget ables
Oil s show a tenden cy t o inverse co rrelat ion
( 0 . 181) .
( - 0 . 19 4 ) . Nat ive s t aple s , fo r wh ich a high inverse correlat ion
could be expected , s c ore 0 . 04 4 .
Co rrelat ion s fo r s ome indi
vidual i t ems within the b road product cat ego r ie s vary markedly
from the group figur e . Amon g nat ive s taples , fo r ins t an ce ,
corre lat ion fo r dalo i s negat ive ( -0 . 0 9 8 ) b ut i s po s it ive
( 0 . 14 9 ) fo r dry co conut s . Foo ds with a direct correlat ion
of more than 0 . 2 are okra , Chine se c abbage , orange and guava .
Curry leaf , l ime , s ugar cane , co con ut o il and ghee , all have
marked inve rse co rrelat ion s .
D
�
Native staples
Native vegetables
- Indian staples
§ Indian vegetables
- Introduced vegetables
D Native fruits
[>I
j:::: :::::::I
�
e
.
LO
��
IVITI
Imported fruits
Yaqona. Tobacco
Oils
- - - - Province boundary
· ·· · · · · · ··
Tikina boundary
Ci
numbers indicate per cent
of market food from area
2 .2
TAI L E V U
Bau
4.2
� l rn pocted
�
73
0.1
Moala
�� 8
(_Y0.
E OA
10
Figure 14
km
50
Origin o f food at Suva market
( Source :
Market surveys )
0
\()
Tab l e 2 . 1 9
-- - -�·----
Dis t ance (km) of ven,dors ' resi dence fr om_ !_lla rke t for se l�_c t �_!oduc t s sold by pro�ucer yendors
__
tJ
I'll
.i.J
(I)
..!G
.-! H
dalo
cas sava
b read f ruit
coconut
banana
ro urou
okra
e ggplan t
ch illies
Chines e cabbage
cucumb e r
p awpaw
lemon
orange
p in eappl e
co conut oil
land crab s
a
b
c
��
26. 9
23. 7
16 . 6
22 . 9
21. 3
23. 2
19 . 2
14 . 5
17 . 4
13. 2
14 . 0
15 . 3
19 . 3
22 . 5
18 . 5
10 . 3
45 . 9
Ctl
>
;:I
•14
H
0
I'll
;:I
Ctl
Ctl
�
(I)
.-!
•14
Ctl
Ctl
;:I
>
Ctl
U)
�
�
E-l
r:Q
23. 2
16 . 3
19 . 5
15 . 1
11. 6
16 . 1
14 . 2
35 . 3
2 9 .9
12 . 1
24. 5
7.6
32 . 5
14 . 3
9.2
19 . 8
65 . 5
29 . 0
21 . 4
50 . 2
27 . 4
32 . 8
7.7
11. 3
23. 2
17 . 7
15 . 8
14 . 7
6.9
12 . 9
11. 3
13 . 0
15 . 6
27 . 4
17 . 7
17 . 1
34 . 8
20. 0
28. 5
46 . 4
17 . 7
27 . 0
9.3
20 . 8
19 . 2
11. 6
22 . 2
16 . 6
4. 8
66 . 8
10 . 8
14 . 2
14 . 5
14 . 5
19 . 5
15 . 9
21. 3
13. 2
14. 7
26.2
Ctl
35 . 7
14 . 3
10 . 9
17 . 5
9.8
12 . 4
32 . 2
12 . 7
49 . 9
27 . 9
8. 5
Ctl
�
0
.i.J
;:I
c1j
....:I
82 . 8
52 . 0
25 . 8
42 . 2
17 . 5
24. 2
8.4
20. 4
18 . 4
16 . 9
14 . 2
17 . 1
39 . 4
67. 3
20 . 1
8. 2
51. 4
Ctl
�
0
.i.J
c1j
00
•14
Ctl
U)
c1j
;:I
>
Ctl
z
�>
14 . 5
5.3
49 . 1
14 . 5
27 .9
10. 6
10 . 3
19 . 5
17 . 5
17 . 9
14 . 3
12 . 2
16 . 1
10 . 0
12 . 2
10 . 1
22 . 5
16 . 7
13 . 2
16 . 7
16 . 9
22 . 7
18. 0
18 . 3
20 . 0
19 . 6
12 . 2
11 . 9
14 . 0
24 . 3
14 . 2
9.7
10 . 9
10 . 6
6.6
9.7
24. 2
12 . 9
16 . 1
19 . 6
13 . 7
11 . 9
22 . 4
3. 7
·14
"O
Ctl
g;
b
(I)
....:I
•14
§
;:I
>
Ctl
I'll
;:I
>
Ctl
(I)
>
Ctl
E-l
U)
25 . 1
21. 9
22 . 7
25. 1
20. 1
16 . 1
00
a
21. 7
12 . 1
15 . 0
20. 9
24 . 3
Ctl
I'll
Ctl
,..Cl
Ctl
....:I
26 . 4
15 . 0
16 . 7
12 . 9
14 . 7
11 . 4
14 . 2
14 . 5
13 . 5
12 . 9
12 . 4
16 . 1
16 . 1
13. 8
16. 4
16 . 1
Dat a calcu1at ed for all foods that have twen ty or more val id respon s e s ( t ravel dis tan ce o f p roduce r-vendo r s ) .
I
I
ind i cates p roduct not reco rded or recorded l e s s than twen ty t imes .
Raiwaqa and Korovou market s are excluded b ecaus e of inadequate return s .
-
Source :
Market survey s , Jan uary 1 9 7 7 .
99
Tab le 2 . 2 0
Correlat ion b etwe en quan t ity o f p roduce brought to market b�
Eroducers and Eroducers ' res iden t ial d is t ance f rom market a
Numb er
Correl .
marke t s
coe f f .
re corded
Numb er
Corre l .
marke t s
coef f .
r e corded
Nat ive s t aEles
dalo
cas s ava
0 . 04 4
13
-0 . 09 8
10
0. 237
10
In t ro duced
vegetab l es
-----
0 . 093
11
0 . 077
6
-0 . 05 1
8
0 . 029
13
b anana
-0 . 182
11
-0 . 32 1
8
0 . 117
11
tomat o
- 0 . 041
9
Ch . cabbage
p l an t ain
0 . 071
6
cucumb er
coconut
0 . 149
8
cooking b an an a
0 . 2 11
5
bread f ruit
Fruit
0 . 181
12
lime
rourou
0 . 168
11
lemon
b e le
0 . 052
7
Nat ive vege t ab les
Ind ian s t aEles
o . 32 5
7
orange
0 . 202
7
pawpaw
-0 . 013
9
0 . 505
4
V- app l e
- 0 . 047
4
ivi
-0 . 0 2 0
5
p ineap p l e
- 0 . 12 3
8
s ugar cane
-0 . 2 83
4
0 . 271
3
-0 . 1 9 4
7
- 0 . 008
12
- 0 . 07 7
7
0 . 022
12
0 . 484
5
eggplant
-0 . 0 3 6
11
amaran th
0 . 050
4
ke rela
0 . 009
5
chillies
0 . 062
10
' s pinach '
- 0 . 072
4
co conut o i l
-0 . 209
6
curry leaf
-0 . 491
3
ghee
-0 . 205
3
0 . 0 30
4
b eans
-0 . 018
10
gourd
0 . 025
4
pumpkin
Indian vegetab l e s
okra
roselle
guava
Yagona , t ob acco
Oils
a
Calculat ed for all producer- sold foods with res iden t ial dis t an ce data
availab le f o r twenty or mo re p roduce rs and with dat a available for
three or mo re o f p o s s ib le thir teen market s .
b
Raiwaqa and Korovou market s excluded b e c aus e of ins uf f icien t in format i on .
Source :
Marke t s urveys , January 1 9 7 6 .
100
There are a numb er of p o s s ible reas on s for the ab s ence
of s t rong correlat ion b etween d i s t an ce an d p roduct ion for
market .
One is that hinterlands are not s ufficien t ly expans ive
to en courage zonat ion o f p ro duct ion by d i s t ance from market .
Another is that while there is s pat ial dif feren t iat ion , it
is not a p ro duct of dis t an ce alon e : equally s i gnif icant are
the r ace of p roducers and set t lemen t p a t t erns by race .
Fij ian pro ducer- ven dors ( Tab le 2 . 6 ) t en d t o l ive further
from market than Ind ian or Chinese s e llers so i t is to be
expected that products as s o c iated with Fij ian growe rs come
from gre ater di s t an ces . The t rend ought to b e part i cularly
apparent in market s with hinterland s that exceed the immediate
con t iguous area . As lon g as product ion o f part icular products
remain s relat ed t o the race o f pro ducer , it is unl ikely that
the re will b e sign if i cant changes in co rrelat ion indice s .
Environmen tal requiremen t s o f pl ant s , pro duct perishab ility
an d price s t ructures that s upport high-cost t ran s fers are
o ther factors af f e ct ing the apparent lack of co rrelat ion ,
but thes e als o n ee d t o be s e en in the con t ext o f spat ial
feat ures of s e t t lemen t an d p rodu c t ion by race .
The influen ce
of thes e fac t o rs on supply d is t ance coul d p o s s ibly be deter
min ed by treat ing Ind ian and Fij ian products s eparat ely .
This has not been · d on e with o ur data .
Ver t ic al t rade . For many years t he p ro d uce t rade in
Fij i was hand le d almo st exclus ively by the p roducers them
selve s , even after formal market s had b e en e s t abl ished . S in ce
World War I I b o th non-pro duce r-vendors and p ro duce as s embler
whol es alers have b ecome in cre as ingly connno n . Two measures
o f the ext en t o f ver t i cal t rade within market s are available :
the numb er o f vendo rs who are non-pro du cers , and the degree
to whi ch trade in par t i cular it ems is handled by non-pro ducer
vendo rs .
Non-pro ducer-vendors account for a greate r share o f
t rade than the i r numb er alone would sugge s t . At all market s
except Savus avu , Levuka , and Navua , where almo s t all vendors
are p ro ducers , the one-quart er to one- third of vendors who
are non-pro ducers handle more than one-half the produce
t raded . At Vaileka , for in st an ce , the 25 per cen t of
differen t ven do rs p re sen t over one week who are n on-producers
handle 5 8 p er cent of p ro duce . Ano ther indicat ion o f the
dominan ce of n on-pro ducer permanent vendo rs is that in
Novemb er 19 7 6 in Ba marke� on a Sat urday when p ro ducer-vendor
at t endance i s at its highest fo r the week , the 35 per cen t
o f vendors who were non-producers o ccup ied 51 per cen t o f
the sellin g space s .
101
Some p ro duct s are mo re s ubj e ct to ve rti cal t ran s fer
than othe rs ( Tab les 2 . 2 1 , 2 . 2 2 ) . Apart from import ed fruit ,
Indian s t aples are the p ro duct over which non-p roducers have
mo st con t rol , only 1 . 1 pe r cent b eing sold by p ro ducers .
Yaqona an d t ob acco ( 9 6 . 5 p er cen t sold by non-pro ducers ) are
the lo cal produc t s in which there has been great e s t develop
men t of vert i cal t rade ; n at ive s t aple s ( 6 9 . 1 per cent with
pro ducers ) an d nat ive ve ge t ab l es ( 7 5 . 1 per cen t ) are least
involved in vert ical trade . Between one-quart e r and on e
hal f the t rade o f other product cate go r i es is with non
producers . There is cons ide rable range in vert ical t rade
developmen t among ind ividual foo d s compris ing the bro ad
p ro duct group s .
An impor t an t cause o f t h e d i fferent ial developmen t o f
ve rt i cal t rade is the p erishab il ity o f p ro duct s . For inst an ce
while 30 . 9 per cent o f n at ive s t aples are handled by non
pro ducer s , almo st doub l e this p roport ion o f the lon g-las t ing
co conut is s ol d by n on-producer vendor s . Other factors con
t r ib ut in g t o the difference are the race o f p ro ducers and
acces s o f races t o resources . Produc t s grown l argely by
Fij ians are less involved in vert i c al t rans ac t ion s than
Ind ian- grown i tems . Thi s o ccurs with all p ro duce but is mos t
marked wit h s eafood ,- excludin g f ish . The perishab il ity o f
t h e p ro du ct an d Fij ian cont ro l over the product ive environment
resul t s in there b ein g pract i cally no development o f vert i cal
t rade in non- f ish seafoo d . 2 7
Pro duc er- t rade i s chiefly in nat ive s t aples and ve ge t ables
and fruit ( T ab le 2 . 2 3 ) . In the smal l er Fij ian dominat ed
market s these are the only produc t s s old by p ro duce rs . Where
Indian p ro ducer- vendors are numerous , as at Ba market , int ro
duced ve get ab le s an d Indian vegetab l e s ac coun t for a l arger
share of producer-sold foo d . Almo s t 60 p er cen t of pro ducer
s old foo d is n at ive s t aples or nat ive ve ge t ables and f ruit
and the b alan ce largely comprises o ther veget abl e s . Th e
t rade o f non-producer ven dors is con cen t rated in introduced
an d Indian vegetables and Indian s t ap le s , whi ch t o gether
account for a l i t t l e mo re than one-hal f o f non-producer t rade .
The balance is fruit and yaqona and t obac co . Between market s
there is a wi de r an ge in the compo s it ion of n on-pro ducer t rade ,
b ut the gen eral pattern of the overall t rade comp o s it ion
found in all market s comb in ed is iden t if iable in each .
Special i z e d t rade involvement in ind ividual produ ct s by
non-producers and b y race has s ign i f i can t rami fi cat ion s .
I-'
0
N
Tab le 2 . 2 1
ProEor tion o f food sold by Eroducer
Nat ive
Native
s taples vege tables
All marke t s
Suva
Nausori
Vaileka
Tavua
Ba
Lautoka
Na di
S igatoka
Navua
Levuka
Waiyevo
Savusavu
Laba sa
a
b
c
Indian
In t ro duced
Indian
s taple s ve ge tables vege tables
a
. b
F ru1t
Yaqona ,
tobacco
Oil s
33 . 2
69 . 1
75 . 1
1.1
43 . 9
24 . 4
31 . 6
3.5
65 . 4
81 . 7
83. 4
48 . 4
16 . 7
64 . 6
13 . 4
83 . 8
97.4
100 . 0
100 . 0
70 . 9
79 . 0
78 . 0
94 . 0
98. 2
85 . 1
75 . 0
88 . 6
21 . 5
84 . 4
94 . 9
100 . 0
100 . 0
83 . 7
100 . 0
1.2
15 . 5
7.7
0.2
1.8
1.4
0.5
23. 8
43. 9
11 . 8
54 . 7
13 . 8
37.4
5.8
8.0
18 . 0
100 . 0
100 . 0
3. 3
11 . 4
34 . 3
49 . 2
23 . 3
3.9
55 . 7
43 . 5
4.9
40 . 8
23 . 6
100 . 0
100 . 0
66 . 7
2.4
26 . 9
47 . 8
57 . 8
41 . 8
22 . 5
32 . 8
5 .3
16 . 5
23 . 4
100 . 0
100 . 0
64 . 9
12 . 8
4.0
10 . 7
0. 7
5.7
77.6
5.5
c
29 . 7
32 . 5
0.1
41 . 3
79 . 2
47 . 8
26 . 7
50 . 5
Figure s are p e rcenta ges of indicated produc t s sold by producers of the foods tuf f s at each
marke t .
' Imported frui t ' i s exc l uded because none i s sold by producer .
' -
' ind i ca t e s no sales recorded .
S ource :
Market survey s , January 19 76 .
103
Tab le 2 . 2 2
Producer-vendor part i c ip a t ion in sales of d i ff erent foods
(all marke t s )
Nat ive s t aples
dalo
dalo-n i- tan a
cass ava
sweet potato
yam ( al l var i e t ie s )
bread fruit
p lant ain
co conut
Nat ive ve ge t ab le s
ota
rourou
be le
potato
onion
garl i c
rice
p umpkin
dhal
pul s e s
spices (drie d )
j ackfruit
Indian vege t ab les
okra
eggplan t
gin ger
kerela
ch illies
b eans ( all varie t ies
except Fren ch )
gourd
t amarind
amaran th
coriander
Source :
78. 4
98 . 8
70 . 5
97. 6
100 . 0
77. 5
91. 0
46 . 3
75 . 1
93. 9
77 . 0
61. 4
Indian s t aples
No te :
69 . l
1. 1
0
0
0
2.2
16 . 3
0.4
12 . 6
3.5
20. 6
43. 9
26. 6
58. 1
12 . 1
81 . 3
63. 2
38 . 2
22 . 1
18 . 8
67. 3
26 . 3
In t roduced veget ab les
let t uce
toma t o
French b ean s
Chine s e cabbage
cucumber
Fruit
pawpaw
b an ana
lemon
orange
ivi
wat e r melon
p ineapple
Imp o rted f ruit
Yaqona and tobacco
y aqona
t obacco
Oil
co conut o i l
salad and soya o il
' o il ' ( un s p e c . )
ghee
24. 4
9.9
11 . 1
6. 1
51. 6
35 . 4
31 . 6
46 . 2
13 . 7
25 . 8
20 . 9
74 . 5
34 . 9
52 . 8
0
3.5
2 .7
5.9
33. 2
48 . 0
0
3. 7
15 . 9
An imal p roduct s
fowls
fowl e gg s
land crab s
o t her crab s
mus s e l s
o t her shell f i sh
dried f ish
prawn
seaweed
sea cucumb er
100 . 0
40 . 3
1 00 . 0
97 . 7
1 00 . 0
1 00 . 0
91 . 9
100 . 0
1 00 . 0
100 . 0
F i gures are pe rcen t age of sales o f e ach food handled by p ro ducer
vendo rs .
I-'
0
�
Tab le 2 . 2 3
Compo s it io� o f Eroducer and non-Eroducer trade
C/J
.µ
al
�
,....
r-1 ro
I::
Producer t rade
Nat ive s t aples
Nat ive vege t ables
Indian s t ap le s
Indian ve get ab le s
In tro duced veget ab les
Frui t
Yaqona , tob acco
Oils
�
•r-1
ro
>
;j
C/)
,....
0
C/J
;j
ro
z
ro
�
al
r-1
•r-1
ro
�
ro
;j
:>
ro
E::::!
g:;i
ro
38. 7
10 . 5
23. 6
2.2
6. 6
1.1
10 . 5
8.1
29 . 8
2.4
12 . 0
0. 4
61 . 8
25 . 8
37 . 4
29 . 1
5.3
5.1
12 . 6
8. 8
3. 0
44 . 3
15 . 0
28. 3
2.0
49 . 5
16 . 2
13. 6
1.0
12 . 6
21. 1
4.9
7.2
43. 6
0.2
9.9
0.4
6.3
46 . 2
8. 1
27 . 1
22 . 7
2.7
0.2
22 . 9
18 . 0
32 . 9
0. 5
0. 1
22 . 6
2.5
0.2
23.2
18 . 0
32 . 7
0.5
0.1
23.0
2.9
0. 6
34 . 0
14 . 1
25 . 5
4.7
0.2
7.5
30 . 5
14 . 2
35 . 7
2.3
5.0
0.1
4.9
0. 3
6.4
30 . 5
14 . 2
36 . 2
2.3
4. 8
0.1
ro
�
0
.µ
;j
ro
...J
13 . 2
2.9
0.1
25 . 0
29 . 7
28. 8
0.4
ro
�
0
.µ
ro
bO
•r-1
U)
·r-1
't:I
ro
z
19 . 4
a
ro
;j
:>
ro
z
14 . 6
1.0
38 . 5
2.9
19 . 4
30. 6
33 . 3
9.0
40 . 7
34 . 7
16 . 5
2.9
38. 5
0.7
7.8
0. 3
5.0
16 . 2
34 . 3
34 . 1
0. 8
b
ro
�
;j
:>
al
H
0
:>
al
>..
·r-1
ro
::s:
;j
>
ro
C/J
;j
:>
ro
U)
ro
C/J
ro
,.0
ro
H
35 . 4
4.2
32 . 4
2.7
60 . 4
33. 5
1.1
27 . 7
2.1
0.5
0. 5
21.2
1.2
35 . 8
4.3
59 . 5
30 . 3
90 . 9
64 . 9
9.1
10 . 8
2.7
21. 6
Non-Eroducer trade
Nat ive s t aples
N at ive veget ab le s
Indian s taple s
Indian veget ab les
In troduced veget ab les
F ruit
Impo rted f ruit
Yaqon a , tob ac co
Oils
4.0
0.2
3.6
4.4
0.2
6.9
25. 4
23. 3
35 . 7
0.4
3. 7
2.3
2 .4
26.2
14 . 9
44 . 8
0.4
10. 4
Dat a for Korovou and Raiwaqa market s are incomplet e and are t here fo re e xclude d .
producer and non-p roducer t rade in market that i s in indicated produce .
'
- ' indic a t es no uni t s recorded in the p arti cular cat egory .
b
Source :
a
48. 5
5.5
39 . 4
0. 8
28. 9
10 . 6
6.2
0. 1
Data are percen t age o f to tal
105
Any action or policy aff e ct ing the ma rke t involvemen t o f a
par t i cular r ace , or of p roducer or n on-producer ven dors ,
will n o t have uniform con sequen c e s for product s sold . Move s
t o l imit n on-producer involvemen t in market t rade , f o r in st an ce ,
would affect mo s t adver sely Ind ian vendor s and their produc t s .
Mark�t tr anspo rt
Vendors in F ij i have always travelled t o market mainly
by foot , bus or at s ome cen t re s , b oat . Where vendors are
p rimarily pro ducers selling small quan t it ies of pro duce that
they periodi cally brin g to market , these mean s of t ran sport
may be s at is f actory . But with increas ing trade vo lume , mo re
spe cial i z e d agr iculture and t he ve r t i cal development of t rade ,
var ious new methods of tran sport are becomin g popular .
There have been a n umb e r of changes in market t ran sport .
One has b een the ext en s i on o f ' carrier ' 2 8 s ervices to areas
Carriers
acce s s ible by road but inadequat e ly serve d by bus .
n o t only f i ll gap s in b us s chedule s , but they have the
add it ional advan t age o f b e in g ab le to doub le as goods vehicles
and transport large quan t it ies of produce . Another form o f
t ranspor t / supply chan ge has b een where as s emb l er-who lesaler s
use vehi cles t o collect produce purchas ed in rural areas .
They al s o p ick up goods from intermediate as s embly poin t s ,
whi ch may inc lude warehous e s of whole salers who deal in the
import ed good s ret ailed in marke t s . A third change is that
s ome produc e r s us e their own vehicles t o b r in g their pro duce
to market s . None o f these ' n ew ' means of t ran s por t n e ce s sar ily
involve in creased specializat ion in market transpor t . But
they do s ugge s t the evolut ion o f s up p ly sys t ems more appro
priate to chan ging producer / con sumer demands . A review o f
non-b us t ran sport o f vendors and p ro ducers t o market s put s
this importan t mean s of market s upply in to perspe ct ive .
While at the maj or market s as s embler-whole saler s perform
a very important role in market s upply , t ran sport t o market
is o therwise n o t s p e c ial ized . Non-b us vehicle tran sport is
largely in the hands of farmers or ind ividual s who have t rucks
used for general transport . The d i st an ce t ravelled by these
veh icles is s omet imes great , j us t as the amoun t o f pro duce
carried can b e remarkab le - l ike s ix t onne s of co conut s
bro ught t o Ba market by four producers from the Ra coas t .
But non -b us t r ansport should be s een more as a conven ien t
sub s t it ut e for t radit ional t r an s po rt than an ind icat ion of
t ransport o r s upp ly spe cializat ion .
106
Non-b us tran sport was mon it ored over one week at Suva ,
Nausori , Navua , Ba and Lab as a market s c 2 9 The s urveys con f irmed
that the ' t radit ional ' modes of t ransport remain b as i c in
the supply o f market s .
S tock requiremen t s of non-producer
vendors are handled by a small numb e r of spe cial ized as s emb ler
who lesalers operat in g the i r own vehicles ; the one- fifth o f
producer vendors who travel b y carrier s d o s o not b ecause
of great er market spec ializ at ion b ut b e caus e of greater
convenience . 30
Almo s t all non-b us veh icles b r in gin g people an d p ro duce
t o market are made in Jap an . Mos t wei gh b etween one an d two
tonne s ; few we i gh more t han four . Two- th irds are ' carriers ' .
Pract i cally al l are own ed by ind ividuals - rather than b y
companies , government o rgan izat ion s or Fij ian group s s uch a s
village club s - and lar gely by Indian s ; on ly 1 0 p e r c en t
to 2 2 per cent ( Suva) are owned by Fij i an s . The
( Labasa)
owner or a clo s e relat ive usually drive s ; very few drivers
are paid employee s .
The maj ority of vehicles made on ly one
t r ip t o market during t h e survey week ( Tab le 2 . 2 4 ) . Veh icl e s
a r e mos t connnon ly hire d by an ind ividual o r a group o f pro
ducers ( Tab le 2 . 2 5 ) : relat ively few collect people an d goods
alon g a rout e . The numb e r of people brin ging pro duce on
' carriers ' average s two to three , b ut ran ge s up t o five o r
s i x . Pas s en gers without pro duce are s omet imes carried .
Mos t veh i cl e s are b as e d in rural areas at their owner ' s hous e ;
those based in towns us ually ope rat e out o f the market .
The market s covered in the t r ansport s urvey h ave s imilar
p roport ion s of vendors who are non-producers ( Table 2 . 3) �
b ut the freq uen cy with whi ch vehicles are used t o t ransport
n on-growers ' pro duce sugges t s two differen t forms o f non
p ro ducer s upply . In on e , s upp l i es are b rought to market by
growers thems elves who wholesale al l o r part o f their p ro duce
to non-pro ducer vend or s . Thi s is connnon at Navua and Lab as a .
At Navua no cas e s wer e r e co rded of t ran sport b r in ging purchase d
p roduce and at Lab a s a on ly 7 p e r cen t of mon itored t r ip s were
with purch as ed p roduce .
The other form o f non-p ro ducer supply involve s purchase
of p ro du c e in rural areas ;
there is prac t i cally n o horiz on t al
movemen t o f p roduce b etween market s .
Rural as s emb le r-whole
s al er involvemen t is mo s t common at Ba where 37 per cent of
j ourneys were o f p eople with p roduce t hey had purchas e d .
Suva an d Nausori are· more . l ike Lab as a than Ba in respect of
food t ransport b y non- growers . At Suva , 14 p er cen t o f
j ourneys were with non-grower food an d a t Nausori , 12 p er
107
Tab le 2 . 2 4
s elected charact e r i s t ics a
Vehicles t r an spo rt in g p roduce to market :
Ownership form
Market
Suva
(198)
Government
In d ividual
Company
80 . 8
9.1
7.1
N aus o r i ( 4 5 )
84 . 4
4.4
11 . 4
Ba
(57 )
80 . 7
15 . 8
1.8
L ab as a
(21)
100 . 0
Fij ian group
3. 0
1. 8
Race o f owner
Market
Suva
( 102 )
In d ian
Fij ian
67 . 6
21. 6
Naus o ri ( 35 )
82 . 9
17 . 6
Ba
(5 7 )
84 . 2
14 . 0
Lab as a
(21)
90 . 5
9.5
Chine se
10 . 8
1.8
N umb e r o f j o urne�s during week
Marke t
Suva
1
2
3
4
3. 4
59 . 6
22 . 7
7.9
Nausori ( 4 6 )
84 . 8
13. 0
2.2
Ba
(57)
66 . 7
24. 6
5.3
Lab as a
(21)
85 . 7
14 . 3
a
(203)
>4 j ourneys
6.4
1.8
Figure s are percen tages of val id cases ( in b racke t s ) at each marke t .
Source :
Market t ransport s urveys , Jtme and Novemb er 1 9 7 6 .
Table 2 . 2 5
Type of j o urney ma de by p eople b ringing food
t o marke t in non-bus vehicular t ranspo r t
Journey type
Vehicle hired
Vehicle coll ec t s people /produce
Vehicle use d by owne r , o ther
Note :
Source :
Marke t
S uva
Nausori
Navua
Ba
Lab as a
61 . 7
46 . 0
17 . 2
28. 9
13 . 7
3.5
26 . 5
48 . 2
4.8
51 . 7
34 . 8
27.5
34 . 6
67 .3
34 . 4
Figures are percentages o f all t rip s mon it ored at each market .
Marke t t rans por t surveys , June and November 1 9 7 6 .
109
cent .
In fo rmat ion f rom Suva give s an imp r e s s ion o f wh ere
fo od is purchas e d . O f fi fty- four t rips involvin g purchased
go ods , three- quart ers we re o f pro duce bo ught from growe rs
on farms ; hal f the remainder we re with produce purchased at
o the r market s , and the b alan c e comprised goo ds f rom impo rters ,
s uch as p o t at oe s , on ion s , fruit , et c . , and rice mill s .
The l en gth and t imin g o f j o urneys reveals in tere s t ing
market in g pat t e rn s .
The aver age dis t an ce travelled is not
gre at , rangin g from 2 4km at Nausori t o 4 2 km at Labasa ( Tab le
2 . 2 6 ) . Th e l on ge s t j ourneys are made by Fij ian-owned vehicl e s
( average 37km) . Trip s by Ch inese-owned vehi cles , reco rded
at S uva and Naus or i , averaged 1 3krn and by Indian vehicle s ,
30km. Thes e t rip dis t ances are sub s t an t i ally greater than
tho se made by all vendors of each race .
Th ere i s a t en den cy at all marke t s , though less so at
Lab as a , fo r the longest t r ip s t o t ake place on Monday and
Tues day and t owards the end o f the week . Mid-week and Sat urday
t rips are relat ively s hort . On Mon day and Tuesday , pro duce
is brought by growers or non-growers to s ell to non-p ro ducer
vendo r s t o fo rm the b as i s o f the i r weekly s t o cks . The
Thurs day-Friday j o urneys are l argely of producer vendo rs
cornin g fo r the peak end-o f-week t rade . Journ eys made by
growers , and t rips in ind ividually-owned veh i cle s , are mo s t
connnon f rom Thurs day to S aturday , when about 7 0 p e r cent o f
all the s e t r ip s were made .
In t h e Cent r al Divis ion market s ,
ove r three-quart ers of j ourneys are completed by llam, with
more t rucks arr iv ing b efore 6am ( 10 per cen t ) than aft e r 3prn
( 8 per cen t ) .
Time o f arrival did not change marke dly by
day e xcept fo r .Saturday when all inward j ourneys were complet ed
by llarn , s in ce there is limi t ed t rading on S at urday afternoon .
The fewe s t j ourneys t o all market s we re made mid-week ,
espe c ial ly on Wedn e s days .
Race and market in g
The r a c e o f producers i s a s ign if i can t variable in marke t
operat ion s . This can b e deduce d from the d i s cuss ion o f
market ven do r s , the pro duce they s e l l an d th eir fin an c ial
ret urn s .
It is use ful to examine further some of t h e racial
differen ce s in marke t involvement and some implication s o f
t he s e di fferen ce s f o r t h e market sys t em .
Market s are readily cla s s ified b y t h e race of vendors .
On ly at Suva , Nausori an d Vaileka are Ind ian and Fij ian
vendors pre s en t in approximately equal propo rt ion to the ir
Table 2 . 2 6
Dis tan ce ( km) of j ourneys made by t rucks an d ' carr iers '
t ran spo rting pro duce t o s elec ted marke t s
Suva
a
Naus o ri
Navua
24 .1 (68)
2 7 . 2 (4)
2 7 . 2 ( 82 )
42 . 8 ( 2 4 )
Ba
Lab as a
All days
35 . 6 ( 35 0 )
Mon day
36 . 7
( 42 )
86 . 1
(4)
25 . 7 (1)
48 . 1
(8)
12 . 9
(4)
Tue s day
35 . 9
( 4 8)
22 .5
(4)
4 . 8 (1)
25 . 4
(6)
43 . 1
(4)
Wednesday
33 . 6
( 3 2)
11 . 3
(1)
112 . 7 ( 1 )
15 . 8
(2)
29 . 8
(2)
Thurs day
37 .2
( 71)
15 . 0 ( 1 6 )
69 . 2
(6)
Friday
36 . 2
( 9 8)
19 . 5 ( 32)
39 . 6 (22 )
27 .5
(5)
Saturday
27 .0
( 5 8)
21 .2 (27)
1 9 . 8 ( 2 8)
63 . 3
(3)
h
24 . 1 (1)
a
Figur es in b racke t s are number of valid cas es from which mean j ourney di s t ance i s calculated .
b
' - ' indi cates no record in relevan t ca tegory . Boat trips are no t re co rded . The mean
dis tance of the 24 monitored boat j ourneys at Navua ( 1 on Monday , 8 on Thurs day , 14 on
Friday and 1 on Saturday ) was 2 3 km ; and at Labas a , the mean dis tance o f 5 recorded boat
t rip s on Saturday was 66 km .
S o urce :
Market transp or t s urveys , June and Novemb er 1 9 7 6 .
1 11
repre s en t at ion amon g vendors nat ional ly ( Fi g . 11) . At Ba ,
Nadi , Lautoka and L ab as a , ven dors are predomin an tly Ind ian :
Raiwaqa , Tavua , Levuka , Navua an d S avusavu marke t s have
great er Fij ian par t ic ipat ion . Ven dors are mo s t rac ially
Ch in e s e are mo st numerous
diverse at the l arge r marke t s .
at Suva ; a few are pre s en t at Nausori , Nadi , Labasa an d
Laut oka . They do no t s e l l in o ther market s . However , it
should be n o t e d tha t if ins t ead of looking at racial invo lve
men t in t erms of individual ven dors , the numb er of ' ven dor
days ' by race over one week i s examined , the p ict ure of
racial involvement chan ge s marke dly . At Lab as a , for in st an ce ,
86 per cen t of vendo rs presen t in on e week are Indian s ,
31
comp ared with appro ximat e ly 5 9 per cen t of dif feren t vendo rs .
Personal charact e rist ics of vendors vary b etween race s .
Th ere are no s ign if i can t differences by race in vendo r age
or marital s t atus but there are in the repre s en t at ion o f t he
s exes . Fij ian vendo rs are p redominan tly f emal e ( 6 5 per cen t )
Ind ian ven dors have
wh i l s t In d ians are male ( 7 3 p e r cen t ) .
had l e s s fo rmal educat ion than Fij ian s : one-third have h ad
one y ear or l e s s fo rmal educat ion compared t o one-tenth of
F ij ians . As s ugge s t e d by t he o c cupat ion of their father s ,
Fij i an ven do r s come from mo re rural b ackgro und s than In dian s .
Nearly 9 0 p er cent o f the fath ers o f F ij ian vendors had
agricul t ural o ccupat ion s comp ared to 7 0 p er cent of Indian
vendo rs .
Few ven dors ' fathe rs thems elves were des crib e d as
ven do rs , al though many of each race would have sold at t ime s
in the marke t . However , mo re Indian s than Fij ian s come from
famil ies where the father was a market vendor ( 7 compared to
2 per cen t ) . Amon g s t Indian s , the few Guj erat i and Punj ab i
vendor s are mo st l ikely t o b e from commercial non-agricult ural
b ackgrounds . 32 The f at he r s of Chine s e vendors we re equally
in agriculture and market sellin g ( 4 0 per cen t each ) , shop
ke epin g b eing th e o ther import an t o c cupat ion .
Whilst the re is l it t le differen ce b etween race s in the
proport ion o f vendors who are s e l f-employed , there is in the
use o f as s is t an ce in sellin g .
For ins t an ce , 5 7 p e r cen t o f
Chinese vendors have help in sellin g , compared with 2 2 per
cen t of Indian s and 13 per cent o f Fij i an s .
Ch in e s e vendors
are mo s t depen den t on th e market as a s ource o f income , ove r
9 0 pe r c en t cl aiming all f amily income is derived from marke t
s ale s . The corre spon ding f i gure s for F ij ian s and In dian s
a r e 7 3 an d 6 9 p er cent re s p e ct ively : for b oth , agricul t ure
is the chief other income source . Th ese differen ces in
as s i s t anc e an d in come depen den cy rat e s reflect differen t ial
112
invo lvemen t of race s i n marke t ing as perman en t or non
p erman en t vendors . The Ch in es e are mo s t likely of all vend ors
to b e permanen t : 2 2 per c en t are non-perman en t produc er
In con t r ast , about one-half o f Indian vendo r s and
s e ll ers .
Involve
14 per cent of F ij ian vendo r s are permanen t vendo rs .
ment in non-producer sales is reflected in the t ype o f produc t
Few Ind i an or Fij ian vendo rs ( 15 and 1 7 p er cen t
sold .
re spect ively) sell anythin g b ut unprep ared foodstuff s , but
almo s t two- thirds o f Chin e s e vendors sell o ther good s .
Fij ian vendors , l iving an average of 2 3km from the market
at wh ich they s e l l , live furthe s t from market and in more
Indian vendo rs live llkm
is ola ted area s than other vendor s .
away and Ch in e s e 4km . Th ere are con s id e rab le d ifferen ce s
b etween marke t s in t h e d is t an c e t ravelled by vendo r s b ut
overal l the racial relat ivit ies o f dis t an c e t ravelled are
The ave rage d i s t ance for F ij i an s ran ges f rom
ma in t a ined .
2 . 5km for the f ew vend ors at Raiwaqa to 5 0km in Laut oka .
Th e range for Ind ian s is 3 . Skm ( Savus avu) t o 2 0km (Waiyevo ) .
Travel d i s tan c e variat ion is refle cted in method s o f t ran sport .
Indians use bus e s or privat e veh icles , such as t axi s , mor e
than Fij ian s , who travel more in b o at s and ' carriers ' , thus
sugge s t in g the relat ive remo t en e s s from market of the areas
in which Fij ian s l ive .
Vendo rs of each race have characteris t ic forms of market
involvemen t . For in stance , Ind ian p ro ducer vendors are
mainly men , deal large ly in in t roduc ed vege t ab le s and come
from areas n ear enough to market s fo r day t r ip s to be pos s ib l e .
F ij ian p roducer vendors are mo re l ikely t o b e women , deal
in nat ive veget ab le s and s t aple s , live con s iderable d i s t an c e s
from market an d spend a t least one n i ght at market .
It is
al s o l ikely t ha t market s ales are a relat ively mo re importan t
source o f in come for F ij ian than fo r Indian producer ven dors .
Fij ian vendors are j us t as delib erate in the ir involvement
in market s al e s as Indian s , although few have t he conmitment
to pe rmanen t or int en sive market act ivity charac t e r is t ic o f
The s emi-regular , episod i c , market in g
many Indi an vendo r s .
involvement o f F ij ians is an e s t ab l ished mode o f part ic ipat ion as is the dominance of women an d empha s i s on ' n a t ive ' pro duce
S imilarly , the deeper involvement , broader
( Calvert 18 7 0 : 82 ) .
ran ge of act ivity and s eemingly great e r in it iat ive of Indian
vendors are long-e s t ab lished t rait s . An impo rtan t t rend in
Fij ian part ic ipa t i on , however , is the developmen t o f n on
t rad it ional f orms o f involvemen t , e s pe c ially in a n on-pro duce r
p ermanent vendor capacity .
11 3
Fij ian exp ansion in t o n ew market ro les is not easy .
Cult ural ob s t acles to F ij ian involvement in connne rc ial exchange
b o th re s t ri ct ent ry to permanen t market ac t ivity and moul d
the pattern o f involvement among the small numb er o f Fij ian
non-pro ducer vendo r s . Asked why th ere were n o t many Fij ian
permanen t vendo rs at Suva market on e of the few replied : 3 3
I think mos t Fij ian s are ashamed to do this kind o f
j ob . When they see me selling , Fij ian relat ive s
have very mixed feelings .
S ome are happy t o see me
do in g such a busine s s while others are surprised at
my co urage and determinat ion in t aking s uch a cours e .
I used to t ell my f r iends and relat ive s that sellin g
in the market is n o t only interes t ing b u t i s a l s o an
import an t and worthwh ile o ccupat ion for Wlempl oyed
F ij ian housewives and for Fij ians in general .
Sellin g
in the market is mo s t pro f itab le money-wise a s I
have b een provin g . More Fij ian s should take the
in it iat ive t o s e l l in the market as it is indeed a
rewarding way of s at is fying o ur f inan c ial needs .
It
should al s o be a good an d useful st epp ing s t one to
the wo rld of busines s .
Another felt that there were few perman ent Fij ian vendors
b ec ause
mo s t of us F ij ians could no t see the value of sell ing
in the market b ec aus e mo st of us have not done this
kin d o f j ob , t o s ell in order to earn mon ey . Als o ,
Some
s ellin g i s a new act ivity o f F ij ian cul t ure .
people therefore are n o t prepared to connn i t them
s elves to do ing i t .
To a lot o f F ij ian s it is a
shameful kind o f j ob .
Some Fij i<1Ils als o s t ill feel
that only the men have t o earn mon ey for the family
and all women have to do is look after the home and
children .
I think that we women can cont ribute a
lot towards the rtnln in g o f o ur f amily , the educat ion
o f our children and so on if we do such j ob s as
sellin g in the market t o earn the money that is
be coming in creas in gly valuab le to us t o day .
Other ob s t acles t o involvement o f Fij ians in market ing
are s t ruct ural . Th e supply o f many it ems handled by Indian
permanen t vendo rs is ' t ied up ' w ith in formal supply and credit
arrangement s b etween producers or assembler-wholesalers an d
vendo rs .
It is diff icult for F ij ian s t o gain regular access
1 14
to these produc t s . On the o th er hand , as f ew o ther p ermanent
vendors deal in na t ive ve getab les and fruit , Fij ians have
had l it t le dif ficulty in e s t ab l i sh ing supplies of these
product s . 34 In moving in t o perman en t selling of roo t crops
and nat ive ve get ab les , F ij ians have con cen t rated on produc t s
that were previous ly large ly ignored . Becaus e o f this , they
have had l it t le d i ff iculty in gain in g a foo thold and in many
c as e s they have received con s i derable advi ce and a s s i s t an ce
from o ther ven dor s .
It remains t o b e s een if such goo dwill
wi ll con t inue if F ij ians attemp t to t rade in goods at p re s en t
largely handled b y Indians , an d vice versa .
While the at t i t ud inal , mot ivat ional and s t ruc t ural
impedimen t s to F ij ian en try are con s iderab le , F ij ian permanen t
vendo rs invar iably s t r e s s the eas e of their act ual en t ry and
the advan t ages of market selling over othe r o ccupat ion s .
Apart from b e ing ab le t o o ccupy a vacant n i che , a chi ef re ason
for the ease of en t ry is that s ome t radi t ion al ob s t acles to
succes s ful Fij ian e conomic ent erprise are not presen t in the
market .
The marke t is a p ub l i c commercial aren a where all t rans
act ions are in cash .
The demand s , o f family and other rel a
t ives , which can deb i l it at e Fij ian s t o res are l argely avo ided :
even when relat ive s do come t o market , the pub l i c / cash
character of t r an sact ion s makes it easy to de flect or l e s s en
the ir expectat ions and demands . As pro duce mus t be purchas ed
daily , l o s s es are readily apparen t and bu s in e s s can c aase
without s ignif icant deb t s being accumulated . Even more advan t
ageous is the fac t_ that marke t s are cen t res of commerce . Through
compet it ion for suppl i es and c us t ome rs , Fij ian vendors are
ab le t o learn much more ab o ut the fun c t ion in g of commerce
t han would be po s s ible operat in g a typi cal isolated Fij ian
gen eral shop . Wh ere shopkeeping t en ds t o rein fo rce the
commer c ial is olat ion o f Fij ians , s el l ing in the market ,
e special ly b ut not on ly as permanent non-pro ducer vendo r s ,
draws them int o the ma instream o f commercial act ivity . As
well as b e in g a p ro fit ab le end in i t s e l f , market s el l in g i s
prob ab ly the mo s t effec t ive t rain in g in connne rcial act ivity
curren t ly availab le to F ij ian s - an d it is at no d ire ct cost
to t he part i c ipan t s , the public or the gove rnment .
The Nat ional Market in g Author ity
The Nat ional Marke t ing Authority was e s t ab l ished by the
115
Marke t ing Act o f 1 8 March 19 7 1 ' t o make t h e b es t po s s ib l e
arrangemen t s t o facilit ate an d develop in t e rnal an d export
markets for the p roduct s of Fij i ' .
Spe c i f ic obj ect ive s
de f ined by the Author ity ' s first board in cluded provis ion
o f a guaranteed market f o r p ar t i cul ar product s , maint en ance
of supplies to urb an market s - the p r i c ing of wh ich would
help dampen in flat ion ary t ren ds - clo se l iaison and co-o rdin
at ion with rur al developmen t , agr icultural ext ens ion an d
e s t ab l ished market ing agen c ies , and gen eral marke t res earch
for lo cal produce . 3 5 The NMA was not meant t o b e pro fit
Trading
making b ut was expec t e d t o b reak even in t radin g .
figure s for 1 9 7 1- 7 5 are presen t ed in Tab le 2 . 2 7 .
The NMA op erat es as a pro duce wholesaler and ret ailer ,
b uyirii. g in b o th rural areas and at i t s urb an depot s .
Sales
with in Fij i are almo st all ret ai l . Ext ernal s ales are
primarily who l es ale con s ignmen t trans act ion s to New Zealand .
Pur chas e s are made in res pon s e to perceived demand . Ext en s ion
s t af f o f the Departmen t o f Agr iculture supply in format ion
on produce avai l ab il ity and co-ordinate harvest ing wit h vis i t s
b y NMA purchase t e ams . Payment is on a farm- gate , c ash b as is .
Unsol i c it ed p roduce may b e t aken to NMA depo t s , b ut unless
the item is in sho rt s upply , such pro duce i s rarely accept e d .
The NMA does n o t make cont ract s with pro ducer s altho ugh a
few f arme rs re ce ive favourab le t reatment if they have e stab
l ished a reput at ion fo r rel iab le del ivery o f suppl ies ; the se
people are ab le to s ell the Autho rity a large proport ion o f
the ir pro duce .
Suppl iers are p redomin an t ly producer s but
produce is als o accep t e d from middl emen . Over all , the NMA
handles only a small part o f what f armers could sell .
Mos t pro duce and seafood handled by the NMA e ither goes
to gove rnment supply con tract s and o rders f rom in st itut ion al
and large- s cale purchasers l ike ho t e ls , o r is expo rted . Ret ail
facilit ies are main tained at NMA depo t s and in s ome market s ,
b ut very lit tle o f its t rade is d ire ct to con s umers . The
NMA has b e come in cre as in gly involved in s ales of ve ge t ab l e s ,
mainly dalo , and fruit . Expo rts we re n egl i gib le un t il 1 9 7 4
b ut in 19 7 5 comprised more than on e-third o f s ales .
NMA h eadquarters are in the Suva suburb o f Vatuwaqa wh ere
an 11 , 000 s q . ft . warehouse / o f f i ce was opened in January
19 7 4 . At Vatuwaqa there are s ix f i f t een-ton capacity coolers
for p ro duce s t o rage . Two- thi rds of the forty to fifty
employees are casual wo rkers en gaged in receiving and p repar in g
produce for s ale . A s e con d warehous e with f reezer facilit ie s
has re cen tly been b uilt at Laut oka , the cent re o f We s t e rn
118
Tab le 2 . 2 8
Ori gin of NMA p ur chases by divis ion and p rovince
Cent ral Divis ion
Nai t as iri
Rewa
Tailevu
Se rua-Namo s i
S uva market
1971
19 72
19 7 5
1976
0. 6
7.0
4. 3
0. 4
1.1
1. 2
42 . 3
31 . 2
2.2
5.4
0. 9
2.6
48 . 1
29 . 0
3.4
4. 7
1.0
10 . 0
0.6
44. 2
Wes t e rn Divis ion
Ba
Nadro ga and Navo s a
Ra
0. 3
43 . 9
18 . 7
5.0
0. 9
24. 6
19 . 2
10 . 1
5.3
3. 8
Northe rn Divi s ion
Cakaudrove
Macuat a
Bua
67 . 3
67 . 3
28. 0
27. 7
0. 3
15 . 9
11. 1
4. 8
11 . 7
6. 8
4. 9
Eas tern Divi s ion
Kadavu
Lomaivit i
Lau
Ro tuma
32 . 0
0. 8
31 . 2
20 . 7
9.0
5.0
4. 7
2.0
17 . 2
10 . 7
1.7
4. 4
0. 4
20. 8
10 . 7
3. 3
4.2
2.6
Not e :
Source :
F i gures are per cen tage o f t o t al pur chases for each
year .
Pur chase Analys is , 19 72-19 7 6 , NMA .
There have al s o been changes in the type o f produce
purchas ed ( Table 2 . 2 9 ) . A main fact or behind governmen t
involvemen t in marke t ing in t he l at e 1 9 60s was con cern over
mi ddl eman involvement in vaqona marketin g . One mot ive fo r
estab l i shing the NMA was to a t t emp t to counter p erceived
pro f i t eering by middlmen . Consequently , in the f i r s t years
on NMA ac t ivi ty , yaqona comprised a large share of trade :
in 19 7 1 it account ed for 9 4 . 3 per cent of purchas es . Once
119
Table 2 . 2 9
P ro duc t compo s it ion of NMA purchas es , 1 9 71-76
Product
Root veget ab l e s
dalo
cas s ava
sweet potato
yam
dalo-n i- tan a
Irish po t ato ( o ' s e as )
Irish p o t at o ( l o cal )
sub - t o t al
1971
1972
19 7 3
1 9 74
1975
1976
3.2
32 . 0
0. 8
1.0
34 . 3
4.4
2.0
0. 3
0. 2
3.6
37. 6
2.5
1. 7
1.1
0.4
60 . 3
42 . 6
27 . 6
3.5
3.6
1.6
1.2
7.6
22 . 6
4. 3
76 . 6
67. 7
44 . 8
43 . 3
60 . 3
94 . 3
18. 6
9.2
3.0
7.1
4.3
3. 7
0. 5
0. 6
4.8
1.0
2.6
0. 3
2.4
1.1
0.2
Oth er f ruit and vege t ab l e s
banana
watermelon
cit rus
coconut
tomato
cucumber
e ggplant
pumpkin
cabbage
let t uce
rice
other f ruit , ve get ab les
peanut
4.0
Animal pro duct s
meat , e ggs
fish
Note :
Source :
1.7
1.2
0.6
1.0
0. 1
1. 5
0. 3
10 . 5
4.2
18. 6
0. 3
21. 8
16. 4
21. 5
10 . 7
0. 7
0.1
2.9
32 . 2
0.9
27 . 0
24 . 7
1. 3
s ub - t o t al
Non- foods
voivo i (pandanus lea f )
1. 3
1.4
1.0
0. 6
0. 9
1. 3
1.3
Fi gures are p ercen t ages o f t o t al purcha ses in e ach y ear .
NMA, Purchase Analy s is ( 19 71 , 1 9 72 , 1 9 7 5 , 1 9 7 6 ) , Annual Report
( 1 9 7 3 ) an d Commodity Tradin g Re s ul t s ( 1 9 7 4 ) .
12 0
the Authority became b et t er e s t ab l ished , however , yaqona
lo s t much of its domin an ce and t r ade emphas is shift e d t o dalo .
In 19 7 6 , 60 . 3 p er cen t o f NMA purchases was dalo . Another
maj o r chan ge in coIIlllo
l dity t radin g o c curred with the 1 9 74
t akeover from the Fishe rie s Department o f t rade in f ish and
o ther mar ine p ro du ct s : these product s comprised one-quarter
o f al l NMA purchases in 1 9 7 6 .
Involvemen t with dal o and f i sh
has result ed in the t rade in other vege t ab l e s and f ruit
f al l in g from abo ut 20 per cent of purch as e s in 1 9 7 3- 7 5 to 10
per cen t in 19 7 6 .
.. Over the period fo r wh ich t rade re sult s are available
( 1 9 7 1 - 75 , Tab le 2 . 2 7 ) , the NMA be came in cre as in gly depen dent
on gove rnment gran t s . One reas on for this has b een the with
drawal of un charged governmen t servi ces - s t af f and facil it ie s as the Authority b ecame b e t t e r e s t ab l ished , but a maj or
reason is the ri sin g cost o f admin i s t rat ion and market in g .
Admin is t rat ive co s t s o f $ 3 8 , 2 0 0 ( 11 . 5 per cent o f t o t al s ale s )
in the first ful l year o f operat ion ro s e t o $ 3 7 0 , 7 00 ( 4 0 . 9
per cen t ) by 1 9 7 5 . A large part of the in creased cost s can
be at t rib uted to involvemen t in export t rade , especial ly as
mos t overseas sales are airfreight ed .
Price markup s and pro fit margin s in pro duce marke t ing ,
as well as in other areas o f commerce , a re a con t en t ious
i s s ue in Fij i and , as noted abo ve , were a factor leadin g t o
the e s t ab l i shmen t o f the NMA
Act ual markups on pro duce
applied by the NMA are not available , b ut an idea o f t h e
ran ge o f t h e s e comes from dat a o n gro s s t radin g margin s and
al s o from act ual markups on marine product s .
.
Gro s s margins , that is , sale p rice l e s s purchase price ,
on ove r f i fty pro duc t s in 1 9 7 4 ranged f rom 3 7 . 9 p er cent
profit on cas s ava t o 12 7 . 7 per cen t los ses on mangoes . Gro s s
pro f it a s a percent age o f s al e s f o r all it ems was 2 8 . 7 p er
cent , includin g pro f it s of 31 . 6 per cent on roo t crops an d
36 . 4 per cent o n o ther vege t ables ; lo s ses were 1 6 p e r cen t
and 32 . 9 p er cen t o n f ruit an d marine product s . As for
marine p roduct s , the ave rage ret ail markup in November 1 9 74
was 61 per cen t an d ranged b etween 3 3 per cen t ( lob s t e r ) and
100 per cent ( clams ) .
The markup on fish was b e twe en 35 per
cen t ( Grade 1 ) an d 90 per cent ( Grade 4 ) .
CoIIlllo
l dity t rad ing in 1 9 75 , at least in the Suva NMA
b ranch , was more succe s s ful than in 19 7 4 . Overal l gro s s
t radin g pro f i t was 5 6 p e r cen t ; lo sses we re recorded f o r only
one coIIllllo dit y , cabb age . Gross margins on other produc t s
12 1
ran ged from 7 . 1 per cent ( yaqona) t o 9 0 per cent (b re ad fruit ) .
Dalo had a 5 1 . 2 per cen t gro s s mar gin .
Dat a on was t age due
to spo ilage are no t availab le .
As was t age is o f t en con s id
erable , it is l ikely that mo s t produce markup s are con s iderably
great er than the gro s s margin s . How NMA markup s compare with
in d ividual t raders ( s ee Tab le 2 . 11 ) is unknown ; the dat a
quo t e d here , however , sugge s t that they are un l ikely t o be
sub s t an t ial ly less even though all NMA co s t s are not recovered
through sale s .
Fin an c i al resul t s are not nece s s arily a val id ind i cation
of the NMA' s s ucces s . As e s t abli shed , the Autho rity had a
variety of obj ect ives , ran gin g from main t ain in g a s t eady flow
of reas onab ly priced , high qual ity p ro duce to market , t o
cre at in g a marke t in g in f ras t ructure wh ere none was pre sent
( see footnot e 3 5 ) . Leavin g aside the qu est ion o f f inan cial
pe rformance , t he feelin g that it has no t b een a great succe ss
i s quite widespread amon g pro ducers an d con sumers acquain t ed
with the NMA.
The NMA has suffered f rom un realis t ic expectat ion s f rom
many s i des .
It is d i f f i cult to det ermine the actual nat ure
of thes e , but among t he mo st connnon were that the NMA woul d
provide a gua ranteed out le t fo r mo s t , i f not al l , lo cal
produce - part icularly p ro duce grown at the in s t igat ion o f
agricult ural ext en s ion o f f i cers - would ' save t h e consume r '
by drivin g t he ' paras it ic middl emen ' from the marke t sy st em
an d woul d b ecome t he chief int e rnal market ing mechan ism .
Few o f t h e o ff i cial obj ec t ives (which are somewhat dif
feren t t o thes e popul ar assump t ion s) have been achieved .
There is no �uaran t eed market for spec i f ied p rimary p roduce
at p redet ermined prices fo r different pro duc t ion zones ' , an d
' a s t eady flow o f reasonably priced , high qual ity p ro duce t o
[ in t e rn al pub l i c ] market s ' has n o t b een main tained , so a
con t ribut ion ' t o comb a t in fl at ion by d ampen ing upward sp iral s
in p roduce p r i ces ' is dub ious . 3 6 The Authority has provided
market s in some areas previous ly without acce s s to connne rc ial
out let s , b ut co-ord inat ion with rural development agen cies ,
ext ens ion services and o the r marke t in g b o d ies an d o r gan iz at ions
has b een weak , even though the Authorit y relies heavily on
such b odies fo r s up ply acces s .
Three ch ief f ac t ors con t r ib ut e t o the limited ach ievemen t s
b y the NMA .
Only one - the servi ce o f areas with difficult
market access - is t he p ro duct o f o f f icially- s t ated pol icy ,
but all have a f un damen t al influen ce on NMA operat ion s .
122
The commi tment to s erve regions with limi ted alternat ive
commercial outlet s , wh ich is a maj or pol icy p o s i t ion ( F ij i ,
Cen t ral Plann ing Of f ic e 19 7 5 : 6 7 ) , has resul t ed in prior ity
b e ing given to Kadavu , Lomaivit i , Cakaudrove and the Lau
is land s of Totoya , Matuku and Moala . As pro duce and t ran s port
be come available , the NMA arr an ges purchases , buys on the
b each and tran spor t s produce to Suva in ves s e l-s pace it hires
Comparab le ef f ort is not spent on pur
at commercial rate s .
chases from o ther areas . Farmers around Suva may b e act ively
pur sued for p ro duce , espec ial ly dalo , when supp lies are shor t ,
but o therwis e it is felt tha t p roducers on Vit i Levu especially non-Fij ian producers - have market out l e t s that
they can u t i l iz e on the ir own in it iat ive .
The provi s ion of market acce s s for producers in i solated
areas is de s irab le in an equity sense , but it does highlight
two key is sue s in the NMA ' s act ivit ies . One is the incom
p at ib il ity of the Author ity ' s obj ect ives of s erving both
producer and con sumer .
If retail p rices ar e b ased direct ly
on produc t ion and t ran sport co s t s , con sumers are prob ab ly
mos t ch eaply supplied from nearby , acce s s ib le areas . The
s e cond i s the way in wh ich the Author ity is used to support
an d promo t e connn ercial production by F ij ian farmers .
F ij ian s are the chief suppliers of produce t o the NMA
(Tab le 2 . 30 ) . Fifty- f ive per cent o f pur chas e s made by the
Suva NMA b r an ch over s ix alternat e mon ths in 19 7 6 was from
Fij ians ; Ind ian growers cont ributed 32 . 7 per cen t and Chin ese
9 . 5 per cen t . Pur chas es of dalo are even more dominat ed by
F ij ians - Ind ian and Chine se growers together con t r ib ut e
on ly one-third o f d alo purchased b y the NMA.
Some F ij ian
dominan ce is t o be expected as dalo is the .main food c rop
grown by F ij i an s , but there is ext en s ive Indian and Ch inese
dalo farming in Nait as iri Provin ce that could meet a large
p art of NMA requiremen t s .
Lobb ies represent ing the lar gely Ind ian p roducers in
areas near Suva , such as the Cen t ral Farmers ' As s o c iat ion o f
Tailevu and Naitas ir i , f ind ready ground for crit ic ism in
the apparent spat ial and r ac i al b ias o f purchase or igin .
Recen t ly , an incre as ing amoun t o f produce has in fac t b e en
purchased from areas near Suva , b ut this has o c curred b e caus e
o f a failure to obt a in predict ab le supp lies from more remote
areas rather than b ecaus e of delib erat e po licy reorien t at ion .
Event ually a dec is ion will have t o be made whether the mo re
fl exib le and cheap er , b ut largely non-Fij ian , s ources o f d alo
near Suva are t o be en couraged at the expense of islan d ( F ij ian )
source s .
12 3
Tab le 2 . 30
NMA purchas es by race of seller
Seller
Produce
b
a
Dalo
In dian
32 . 7
25. 6
Fij ian , Ro t uman
43. 8
43 . 4
Ch inese
9.5
8. 4
Other
1.8
Race not known
1. 1
NMA, Agri cul t ural Department
11 . l
c
0. 4
d
22 . 2
a
Figures are percentages of p roduce ( inc lud in g dalo ) and
dalo purchases (by value ) made at the Suva NMA depot
from sellers o f the ind icat ed race . Ra ce is der ived
from name of seller .
b
' All produce ' dat a are based on purchase reco rds of
s ix alternate months in 19 7 6 .
c
' Dalo ' dat a are from all dalo purchas es made be tween
Decemb er 19 7 5 and November 19 7 6 .
d
Pro duce under ' NMA, Agricul t ural Department ' is
purchased from growers by agri cul ture field o f f i cers
or NMA pur chase o f ficers ; mos t of the pro duce is grown
by Fij ian s .
S ource :
Purchase Jo urnal , December 19 7 5 to Novemb er 19 7 6 ,
NMA, Suva .
12 4
A s e cond factor con t r ibutin g to the NMA ' s weak showin g
is its thin ly dis guised host ility to in termediarie s , o ther
S eemingly no chan ce is
than i t s el f , in the produce t rade .
mi ssed to blame the ' middlemen ' for a wide variety o f ill s .
Representatives o f a farmers ' lobby seeking greater NMA
purchase ac t ivity in the Central Divis ion , for in s t an ce ,
found themselves being a s s ured by the NMA repres en t at ive
that mi ddlemen , not the NMA , were the cause o f their d i f f i
cult ies and that farmers ough t to j o in with the Authority
against the middleman . 3 7 An t agon ism t owards middlemen is
i ron i c as the NMA is it s e l f the largest produce in termediary
organ izat ion in Fij i .
Un rel i ab le deliveries and in con s is t ent s t andards
re gardin g the quality of produce are among the mo s t pres s ing
Th es e are t o be expected when
prob lems facing the Authority .
the NMA deals with an almo st inf in ite number o f small- s cale
producers who ar e irregularly involved in market ing .
As s emble r-wholesalers in d ire ct con t act with producers could
do useful work by a s semb l ing produc e , enfo rcin g qual ity
s t and ards , and s upervi s ing del ivery s chedul e s suitable to
the NMA. The middl eman is es s ent ial ly a commercial b e in g ,
l ikely to appreciate the neces s it y o f main tain ing qual ity
and pun ctual i ty . Moreover , it i s eas ier an d mo re e ff i c ient
to operate a bus iness through a f inite numb e r o f reco gnized
mi ddlemen than thro ugh a mult ipl i c ity o f pro ducers .
A third f act or behind th e unfavourable imp res s ion
created by the NMA is the Authority ' s organ iz at ion . The
adminis trat ion appears to many p ro ducers as in flexib le ,
insuffic iently field-oriented an d arb it rary . Too much was
at tempted before a s o l id foun dat ion of either policy o r
In flexib ility i s apparent in
practice was e s t ab li shed .
att itudes t o in termediaries and in pricin g pract ices . Few
p roducers dis pute that p rices mus t ult imat ely b e based on
market cond ition s rathe r than p roduct ion cos t s , b ut many
re gard NMA prices as unrefl e ct ive of market realit ies .
Complaint s are not so much tha t NMA prices are con s is t en t ly
lowe r than tho se o f fere d by the few other bulk purchasers or which c an be ob t a ined in markets - b ut that they do not
In al l
re flect marke L trend s . Dalo is a case in point .
market s , the price o f dal o almo st doubles towards the end
of each y ear , reflect ing lower product ion in the p receding
drier mon ths and great er seasonal demand . Prices paid by
the NMA, however , remain virt ual ly lfil changed throughout the
S imilar price inflexib il ity is apparent
y ear (Tab l e 2 . 31 ) .
in pri ces paid for o t her it ems . Moreover , it is lIDlikely
Tab le 2 . 31
NMA dal o bu�ing Erices , 19 7 6
Pro duc t i on area
Nait as iri '
Tailevu
B a (Bucalevu)
Mot o riki
Karo , Gau
Kadavu
Moala
Rotuma
Taveun i
a
Buying price ( cent s per lb )
a
Jan .
Mar .
May
July
Sep .
Nov .
7.6
6. 3
6. 3
6.3
6.0
6. 7
6.3
6. 3
6. 7
6.7
7.0
6. 5
5.0
7. 0
6.0
5.0
6. 3
6. 3
6. 0
5. 5
6. 3
6.0
6. 0
5.0
6. 3
6.0
5. 5
6.0
6.0
6.0
6. 3
6. 0
6.0
7.0
6.0
6.0
6.0
Purchase locat ion
Vat uwaqa Depot
"
II
"
"
"
II
Is land loading po in t
II
II
"
JI
"
II
"
"
"
"
"
"
In mos t locat ion s on ly one price was paid over a par t icular month . Where more than one
pr ice was paid in one mon th , the mo s t frequent is recorded ; the range is rarely mo re than
1 cen t . Price variat ion - in respon se to produce quality , general dalo price levels and
urgen cy of NMA' s needs - within one mon th is mo s t common in Nai tasiri . Ab sen ce of pr ice
in format ion mean s no purchases were recorded for that mon th .
Source :
Purchase Journal , 19 7 6 , NMA , Suva .
12 6
that pr i ce differen t ials between in to-depot and farm- gate
prices adequat ely reflect t ransfer cos t s ; is land supp l iers
are sub s id iz ed .
Organ i z at ion al shor t comin gs are apparent in a mo st
crit ical area - con t act with p roducers . The NMA has virtually
no f ield s t af f ; o f f icers o f the Dep artmen t of Agricult ure
act as market in telli gen ce sources for both producers and
the NMA. Even with thi s ass ist ance , relat ion ships with
supp li er s have invariab ly s oured b ecause of a b re akdown in
' commi tmen t s ' by either the p roducer o r the NMA.
Even t s in Kadavu in 1 9 7 5-7 6 are not un typ ical o f supplier
In Feb ruary 1 9 7 5 , an NMA buyin g agen t was
NMA relat ion s .
s en t from Suva to the Nabukalevu Dis t rict to pur chase twen ty
tonnes - of dalo that was · suppo s ed to have b een grown an d har
ve s t ed specifically for t he NMA
The agen t managed to co llect
on ly 9-1/2 tonne s , the farmers t el l ing him ' they no lon ger
have faith o r t rus t the repre sen t at ive s o f the Agricul t ural
Department due to a lot o f f al s e an d mis leading informat ion ' .
Within a y ear , event s had come ful l circl e . An NMA agen t
early in 19 7 6 f otnld hims elf ob liged to purcha s e thirty-eight
tonnes o f dalo brought t o the ship , rather than the arranged
twen ty t onnes . The respon s e of the NMA was t o announ ce that
in fu ture it would pur chas e only the agreed-upon quota o f
dalo ; if i t was oversupplied , purchas e s from Kadavu would
be suspen ded . 3 8
.
The NMA never h a s p rovided a ' guaran t eed market f o r
specif ied pr imary pro duce ' b u t i t has dealt with a w i d e ran ge
of it ems , the p ro f i t ab il it y of which is not un iform and in
many cases doub t ful : highly perishab le leaf ve get ables an d
fruit are a case in p o in t . Be cause it s prices are low and
i t s decision s t o purchase a pp arent ly capricious , repor t ed
as b eing sub j ect to pres sure from growers an d variab le in
s t andard s of qual ity , the NMA has come to be regarded as a
b uyer of produ ce that cannot b e sold elsewhere . This has
resulted in the NMA f indin g it di f f i cul t to e s t ab l i sh maj o r
dome s t ic. outlets and has not en couraged producers t o special ize
in pro duct ion or pay atten t ion to gradin g . All in all , the
NMA has not b een recogn iz ed as an e ff e ct ive o r . e f f i c ien t
marketing organiz at ion .
Th ere is no do ub t that the NMA has had a profound
in f luen ce on the market ing o f p roduce from mor e remote region s
and has inj e c t ed con s iderab le amotm ts o f money into rural
areas . The Authority has not , however , been as success ful
12 7
in o the r ways .
Instead of b ecoming in tegrated in to an d
in creas ing the effic ien cy of the exi s t in g market in g system,
the NMA has created a parallel organ iz at ion . Th is was an
inevit ab le out come given that a s i gnifican t mot ive in e s t ab
lishing the Authority was to ' drive out ' the middl emen .
Involvemen t in mar ket ing was n o t t o be co-ordinated with the
system that had b een developed over s even ty y ears , but to
replace the s y st em . Att emp t s t o est ab l ish a foothold in the
pub l ic marke t ing sys t em at b o th the retail or whol es ale
levels failed . P ro trac t ed conf l i c t with the es tab lished
sys t em was avo ided b ecause the cons iderab le f inancial , s taffing
and power res our ces of the NMA could be channelled in to a
large ly uno c cup ied fun ct ion � the movement o f produce from
is olated area s fo r in ternal con t ract pur chasers and for expo rt .
Thi s choice of act ion enab led the NMA to gain some
expert i s e in p ro duce t rading , b ut it is potent ially dangerous .
Expo rt market s for produce are not a guarant eed out let .
If
export marke t s be come closed t o pro duce from Fij i , NMA oper
at ions wil l b e dis locat e d . The Author ity will then have t o
recorrnnence es tab lishing int ernal out let s . A profitab le
short-t erm s o lution was follll d t o the problem o f oversupply
of p roduce , but only at the co s t o f avo iding the crit ical
i s s ue of develo p in g viab le links b etween producers ( in p ar
t i cular isolated producers ) and in ternal marke t s .
Con clus ion
The b as i c s t ructure o f the produce dist ribut ion sys t em
an d the nature and ext ent of part icipat ion in it by d if feren t
racial groups require no more elaborat ion . To con clude dis
cus s ion of the p ro duce dis t r ib ut ion sys t em , however , a numb er
o f i s sue s der ivin g f rom the above analys i s should b e not ed .
One is tha t whi le p ro duce market s have a relat ively
cen tral role in e conomic and even popular s o c ial and poli
t i cal life in Fij i , they are not well underst ood . Many of
the f ault s at t rib ut ed t o t hem
s uch as b e in g dirty , crowded ,
con gested an d con trib ut in g t o congest ion - are not inherent
to market s but arise b e caus e the market s were e s t ab l ished in
a s up p ly an d deman d environmen t quit e different to that o f
today . Market s were creat ed t o provide pro ducers with an
out let for their produce an d the con s umers o f the then
relat ively smal l t owns with a s ource o f fresh pro duce . Con
fl ict s between producer and non-producer vendo rs , food and
non- food vendors and vendors and market admin i s t rators are
-
12 8
all sympt oms of the in creas in g disharmony between the funct ion
o f market des ign and con t emporary real it y . Given the in
creas es in d emand an d numbers of produ cer s , it is an ind i cat ion
of the res i l ien ce and s trength of the fundament al con cep t o f
pro duce market s that they cont inue to meet the needs o f b o th
producers and consume rs r elat ively efficient ly . The succe s s
i s even more surprising in light o f t h e t rend for market s t o
take on a third funct ion - to a c t as a maj o r s ource o f revenue
for lo cal coun cil s .
It was in tended that marke t s woul d p ay their way , but
the s urplus o f revenue over receipt s a t s ome market s is we ll
in exces s of j us t if iab l e res erves for cap i t al improvement s .
Even aft e r allowing for the urb an-dwell in g p ermanent vendors ,
it woul d appe ar that rural producers are b e in g t axed t o s upport
It mus t be decided wheth er fees shoul d
urb an s e rvices .
s ub sidiz e urb an populat ion o r cover only re current expen s e s .
Market fees a re an e f ficient form o f revenue collect ion ,
derive d mainly from rural popul at ion s ; i f they are to b e
t reated a s a tax , the s urplus should be inves t e d in p roj ect s
benef ici al t o pro ducers who sell in urb an market s .
Improved
and sub s idiz ed t ran sport s e rvices and sub s idies on farm input s
would be appropriat e are as for investment . Th e fact that no
market admin i s t rat ion has sub s t an t ial vendor - an d no p ro ducer
vendor - p ar t i c ipat ion does noth in g to counter the feelin g
o f pro ducer -vendors that they a r e b e in g t axed for services
they ne ither want nor us e . 39
A s e con d i ssue is tha t while a number of courses have
b een s ugge s t ed to res olve Fij i ' s perceived int ern al pro duce
market prob lems , fo r example , high p ri ces and irre gular s upply ,
the b as ic p rob lem o f get t ing produce int o the market sys tem
is rarely a cknowle dged . The amoun t o f produce ent er in g
commerc ial exchange is condit ioned b y p ro ducer s ' in come
So lon g as these are either s o
expectat ion s and needs .
l imit ed o r s o high that t hey cannot be met b y marke t in g ,
' guaran t eed p rices ' or other popular remedies s uch as
ro tat ion of p roduct ion z ones , provis ion of s t orage in rural
and urb an areas and produc t grading , wi ll no t result in
increased or mo re reliab le supplies . Many farmers have
estab l ished a level of involvement in ma rk e t in g tha t , wh i l s t
s l ight an d even irregul ar , is adequat e t o meet their finan cial
requi remen t s .
The p resent urb an market s are a sat i s f ac tory
marke t ing channel for s uch a connne rcial sub s is t ence producer
as long as they can ab sorb the p ro duce he wan t s , or need s ,
to s el l . He s tands t o b ene fit from a nat ional market ing b o dy
only if it c an dispose o f pro duce he is un able to s ell thro ugh
12 9
urb an marke t s an d at a price n o t s i gn ifi can t ly lowe r than
lo cal ret ail pr ices .
Given this product ion environmen t , the volume o f pro duce
en tering commer c ial trade can be in creased in two way s . Firs t ,
p roducers previously out o f marke t contac t can be in t egrated
in to the s y s t em . However , their poten t ial involvemen t is
l imited becaus e of the sub s is t en ce- connn e rcial nature o f pro
duct ion o f many and their limited f inan cial need s . An al ter
nat ive i s to t ap t he p roduc t ion of commercial farmers who
use mechan i z ed p ro duc t ion methods and wage labour . Given
full encouragemen t , the s e farmers can contribu te s ign if i c an tly
and reliably t o intern al demands . This pol icy may be d is
tas t eful in the Fij ian con t ext b ecaus e the farmers who are
pre s ently conc erned are mainly non-Fij ians and the ir involve
ment in the market sy s t em to the limit of their p roduc t ive
capab ility could l imit involvement of Fij ians as well as
o ther s ub sis t en ce-commercial producers .
A f inal i ssue is t ha t of the ' middleman ' . Produce
market in g , as indeed is much of the commerce in Fij i , is
b eset by an ant i-middleman at t it ude . Typ ical o f this at t itude
is the respon s e of a sen ior MAFF o f f icer to a reques t to
prohib it the s ale of imported food in Ba market :
' A very
p ro gre s s ive i dea !
If it comes t o pass I feel cert ain it
woul d even t ually drive out those middlemen who for so lon g
being [ s ic ] t h e cause o f in flat ion and al s o hindran ce to the
market in g of lo cal ly grown produ ce ' . 40
An t i-middlemen po s t ur e s are en coun tered among producers ,
consumers and , as we have s een , government o f f i cials .
In
part , the at t itudes are due to un awarene s s of the role and
fun ct ion of t he int e rmediaries and are compounded by un real
is t i c impres s ion s of their net margins and the fact that
middlemen t end to be racially s pecialized . Whatever their
ori gin , howeve r , ant i-mi ddlemen at t it udes have a con s iderable
ne gat ive impact on the p ro duce dis t ribut ion sys t em . At the
b ro adest l evel , they have resul t ed in the government ' s role
i n marke t ing b e in g s e en , by the government it s e l f and o the rs ,
p r imarily in t e rms o f con fron t at ion and compet it ion with the
e s t ab l ished ' middleman-domin at e d ' market sys t em rather than
bein g o f a s s i s t ance t o an d imp rovemen t o f a p roven sy s t em.
The presen t an d po t ent ial con tribut ion o f int e rmediaries
to pro duce ma rket ing in Fij i is s ignif ican t . Given the
mult it ude of p r o ducers , the isolat ion and dis t ance from
market s o f impor t an t product ion area� the d is inclinat ion of
1 30
many producers to retail produce and the l evel and cons is t en cy
en cy of demand , it is incon ce ivab le that the market in g sy s t em
could f un ct ion without int erme diaries . Many presen t p rob lems
in the supply and quality o f p ro duce coul d b e overcome by
encouragin g t h e developmen t o f p ro duce assemb ler-who lesalers
an d t r an s po r t er s .
Pro fe s s ional market vendo rs , that is ,
' mid dlemen ' , con t rib ut e s ign ificantly to improvin g supply
and price flexib ility of p roduce , as well as b e in g a vehicle
t hrough which qual ity cont ro l s can be en forced . Apart from
as s emb l in g and gradin g pro duce and s t ab i l iz in g supply , middl e
men pe rfo rm another fun c t i on : market selling and other fo rms
o f int e rmedi ary act ivity are s ources of employment and ef fe c
t ive mean s o f conunerc ial t rain in g .
Th ere is , o f co urse , a role in th e market sys t em for
small-s cale producer ven dors . The l imited po s t -harvest life
o f mo s t pro duct s dis courage s mul t iple t rade l inks . Moreover ,
p ro duce ret ailin g by pro ducers is an effective me ans o f
s upplyin g immediat e cash needs .
The dependen c e o f an e f f i c ient
pro duce dist r ibut ion sys t em on both in termediaries and pro
du cer -vendors i s b eyond d i sput e .
How can Fij i ' s pro duce d i s t r ibut ion sy st em meet the o f t en
con fl i c t in g int eres t s o f p ro ducer and consumer mo re e f f i c ient ly
wh ilst at the s ame t ime bein g used to promo t e great er F ij ian
involvement in commerce ?
One way is to recogn i z e that the two main componen t s
of the internal pro duce market in g sys t em , the urban produce
market s and the N at ional Market ing Authority , are int e gral
parts of one s ys t em . Each has a p art i cular and diffe rent
role . E ither to support o r dis courage one part resul t s in
disequil ib rium in the t o t al sy stem . At ten t ion n e e d s to be
given t o the total marke t in g sy stem and t o de f in ing t he com
plemen t ary fun ct i on s of i t s p art s . Thi s coul d be done by
e s t ab lishing a p roduce marke t in g b o ar d as an in depen dent
arb iter to oversee the broad concerns of internal marke t in g
i n both t h e p ub l i c and private sectors . Membership of the
b oard should include representat ives o f the Department o f
Agri cult ure , the Nat ional Market in g Authority , urb an market
admin i s t rat ion s , p e rmanen t and non-perman en t market vendo rs ,
pro duce as s emb ler-wholesal e rs , commer cial and commerc ial
sub s is t en ce pro ducers and consumers .
A s e con d way is t o acknowledge the crit ical role o f urb an
pro duce marke t s in th e marke t in g sys t em .
Specif ically , this
131
coul d be done by :
(a)
put t in g market s un der the overs ight o f a nat ional
b o dy , such as a pro duce marke t ing b o ard (mentioned
above , es tab l ishing a minimum re inve s tmen t rate
for marke t revenue and including producer and non
pro duce r vendors on market administ rat ions ;
(b )
p roviding facil it ie s that would as s ist the act i
vit ie s of intermed i arie s , s uch as tran sport loading
an d unlo adin g facilit ie s and areas ad i acent to
markets where retailers could purchase goods wholesale ;
( c)
develo p ing facilit ie s that en courage producer
ven dor ret ail part ic ip at ion : b a s i c amen it ies are
the provis ion o f sufficien t s el l in g space , sleepin g ,
toilet and b a thing facil i ties and acces s ib l e
b us and ' carrier ' unloading areas .
Because o f th e cent ral role the Nat ional Marke t ing
Author ity has in the gove rnmen t ' s s cheme o f produce marke t ing
and b ecause o f it s potent ial in real it y , it s ach ievement s
and appropriat e funct ion s should b e real ist ically reviewed .
In part icula r , con s iderat ion should be given to : plann in g
compens at o ry act ion again s t po s s ible dislo cat ions o f export
market s , encouragin g rural a s s emb lers to t ake over many supply
funct ion s and to en fo rce qual ity s t andards , deve lopin g field
s t af f and a f ield or ien t at ion , improvin g relat ion s with pro
ducers an d the ext ens ion s taff of the De partment of Agricul t ure
and fo cus ing t r ade act ivity on a small number of pro f i t able
l in es .
A fourth p o s s ible ac t ion i s for the pub l ic , including
the government , to recon s ider the role of int ermed iaries in
produce market in g . Moreover , in addit ion to ful f ill ing
presen t ro l es , in terme diar ies sho uld be encouraged to t ake
on other pro duct ive fun c t ion s .
In p art i cular , they shoul d
be en couraged t o b ecome further invo lve d in the purchase and
as s emb ly o f p ro duce in rural areas and it s sub sequent t ran s
port and to a c t as agen t s fo r con s ignment s o f pro du ce from
isolat ed areas .
Finally , it sho ul d be re cogn iz ed that , mo re t han any
other fiel d , market s o ffer a proven avenue for Fij ian invo lve
ment and advan ce in commerce . As a pub lic t radin g place ,
t radit ion ally based on cash sales an d requiring daily
acco un t in g of income to en ab l e pur chase of goo ds to sell the
1 32
next day , urb an produce marke t s are an environment that
ove rcome some of t he key problems facin g Fij ian s in commerce .
Fij ian non-p roducer act ivity sho ul d be en co uraged by making
Fij ians aware o f the pro f i t ab il ity o f marke t s elling an d
it s advant age s over o ther oc cupat ions and common fo rms o f
Fij ian connne r cial act ivit y . Minimal capit al investmen t
wo uld b e requi red ; the ch ief concern might well b e t o en s ure
adequate s tal l space fo r Fij ian s . As well as en couragin g
Fij ian s to become produce ret ailer s , they shoul d al s o be s t imu
lated to act as con s i gnmen t agent s for produce f rom isolated
areas and as rural as s emb le r-wholes alers , both f un ct ion s at
p resent bein g open to easy ent ry as they are relat ively
unoccupied .
Chap t er 3
THE PROCE SSED FOODS DISTRIBU TION SYSTEM
Following the analysis o f the produce dist ribut ion
sys tem in the previous chap t er , at t ent ion is now fo cused on
the o ther main p ar t o f Fij i ' s food distribut ion sys tem, that
of proce s s ed food s . I The broad s t r uc t ure of the p roce s s ed
foods dist ribut ion sy s t em is examined - as is the analy s is
of the produce sys t em - with p ar t i cular at t ent ion bein g
g iven t o the invo lvemen t and influence o f goveTilment and
dif ferent race s . The analys is is s t ructured around the role
of part i cipant s such a s inden t agen t s , import ers , wholesalers ,
retailers and cus t omers . Thi s approach i s no t altogether
satis factory for two r easons . F1r s t , al though these
func t ions are dis t inguished by p ar t ic ip ant s , they are no t
so dis t inct in reali ty . S econd , the approach fo cus e s on the
d i s t r ibut ion syst em as it operates in F ij i . Ext ernal link
ages s ignificantly inf luen ce supp ly sour ces and e f f icien cy
and , above all , p r i ces . However , analy s is of ext ernal
connect ion s i s logis t ically difficult an d sust ained inves t i
gat ion is d is c ouraged by corporate s t ructure s . The following
analys i s of the pro ce s s ed foods d i s t rib ut ion syst em in Fij i
should be s e en with in th ese const rain t s .
Local con s iderat ions
As with p roduce , the d i s t ribut ion of proces sed foodstuf f s
( for conven ien ce , the t erm ' groceries ' will b e us ed ) in Fij i
is af fected b y factors that are t o s ome ext ent peculiar to
the Domin ion .
One such fact o r i s the influence o f the race ,
cul ture and r e ligion of the t r ader and cus tomer on the
dis t ribut ion sys t em .
This in fluen ce i s par t i cularly appar en t
at the r e t a i l level .
Whilst a large p art of the s t o ck of ret ail grocery
s tores is common ly consumed foods , actual s t o ck compo s it ion
var ies in relat ion to the ethnicity and rel igion of c lien tele .
The chief food s to cks of shops serving In dians are r ice ,
sharp s , dha l , ghee , cookin g o i l , s p ices , p ot atoes , on ion s ,
133
134
garlic and canned corned beef or mut t on .
Shops with a
Fij ian clien te l e s to ck r i ce , on ion s and corn e d b ee f , but
s e l l flour rathe r than sharp s , have great er s to cks o f cann e d
mackerel and dripp in g than Ind ian s t ores and rarely carry
o il , potatoe s , gar l ic , s p ices ( apart from pre-mixed curry
powder , whi ch is not used by Ind ian s ) , dhal , ghe e or corned
mut t on . The religious b el i e f s o f s t o rekeepers may also b e
reflect e d in s t o ck compos it i on : one Mos l em st orekeeper
ceas ed s t ockin g yeas t when h e learn t it was us ed to manu
Cat t le product s ,
fact ure ' home-b r ew ' rather than for b aking .
pork ( and in deed all meat s ) , t e a and coffe e are f ood s
p o t en t i ally af f e ct ed by re ligious t ab oo s .
Ano ther fac tor somewhat p e cul iar to the gro cery t rade
in Fij i i s the marke d s pat ial charact er i s t i c s of the
pro ce s s e d foods d i s t ribut ion sys t em . The chi e f reason for
this is that , e sp e cial ly out s id e urb an cen t re s , areas of
Ind ian an d Fij ian s e t t lement ar e largely d i s c re t e . Mo s t
rural shops c at er to a clien t e l e o f one or other race .
Mor eover , as all shops in F ij ian villages are owned and
op erat e d by Fij ians of that vil lage - or by a co-op erat ive
s o c i et y s t ore - and Ind ian s t ores are chi ef ly located in
Ind ian areas , race is even more a factor in rural t rading
than s e t t lement patt ern s alone sugge s t . Only o c cas ion ally
i s the rac ial exclus iven e s s of rural outlet s b reached by a
s trategically l o cated Chin e s e shop s erving a predominant ly
Fij ian c l ien t ele, o r an Ind ian shop with F ij ian and Ind ian
cus t om .
S e t t l emen t in urb an areas is mor e in t egrat ed than in
rural areas , and con sequen t ly the s t ock o f urb an shop s owned
by a s t oreke ep e r of a part icul ar race is frequent ly b roader
than in rural areas . However , the re are virtually no F ij ian
shops in urb an areas ; t rade o f F ij ian sho p s is b o th almo s t
exclus ively with Fij ian s an d in a l imit e d ran ge o f it ems
sold largely to Fij ian s .
A third factor affect in g t h e proce s s ed food t rade in
F ij i is l imit ed and s easonal demand f o r gro cery i t ems .
Demand is low b ecaus e o f l imit e d d is p o s ab le in come s , e sp e cially
in rural areas , and b ecaus e rural res iden t s , as well as
even some urban re s iden t s , produce a large p art o f the ir
food requirement s . Home product ion is mo st marked among
Fij ian s .
Indians do grow s ome veget able s , but with s t ap le
foods of r i ce an d dhal , even in rural areas they depend on
pur chase d foo d mo re than Fij ian s . Demand f o r mo st store
Salt , f lo ur , b aking-powder
purchase d foo d s t uff s is elas t i c .
1 35
and perhap s t ea and canned macke rel are ' n eces s it ies ' , but
con sump t ion o f other p ro duct s like canned milk and corned
b ee f , dry b i s cuit s an d ( fo r Fij ian s at leas t ) rice is dis
cret ionary .
There is a t endency in urb an areas for the dis
cre t i onary it ems ( and bread) to b ec ome nece s s it ie s and even
for p roduce t o be pur cha s ed , although home gardens are an
important food s ource for many urb an familie s .
In b o th rural and urb an areas , demand for con sumer
items , inc luding foo d , reache s a peak j us t b efore Chr is tmas ,
but equally important i s the seasonality as s o c iated with
agr icultural act ivit ies . The p eriod b etween January an d
March is generally charact eriz ed by low con sumer demand
levels .
It i s us ed the refo re for resto ckin g by who lesalers
and ret a ilers alike . Many smaller isolated rural s t ores
are practi cally moribund during off-peak t rading per iods .
A f inal f actor af fe c t ing the p roces s ed food trade is
the limited formal connne rc ial t raining of traders which
con tr ibut es t o an under- cap it al i z ed , pragma t i c approach t o
the bus ine s s . Few par t icipan t s in the p ro c e s s ed food t rade ,
especially in the lo cally-owned s e c t or , have had any formal
bus iness t rain ing . Level s of formal educat ion of retailer s ,
wholesaler s an d importers alike , are low . Bus ines s prac t i ces
are very much a product o f experience .
Some local traders
have con s iderab le in it iat ive , but with neither the t rain ing
nor experience equal to that of expat riate firms t mo st are
dis advan t aged in relat ion to thes e f irms : it i s no t
surpri s in g that , n ot wi th s t an ding the energy and ini t iat ive
of local me rchant s , overseas firms are the mo s t impo r t ant
s ource o f innovat ion in the grocery t rade , especially in
re t ail ac t ivit ies .
The p ro ce s s ed food t rade in Fij i has two b as ic forms
of o rgan izat ion .
In one , bus ines s is heavily cap it alized
and overseas-owne d and orient ed . Labo ur is employed under
un ion or wages coun cil s award syst ems and is not drawn from
the owner s ' or management ' s fami l ie s .
' Modern ' or ' Western '
prin ciples o f b us ines s , such as co s t accoun t in g , s t o ck
con t ro l an d formal credit policies , are employed ; management
is in clo s e l iaison with the overs eas owners , and is
highly trained and skilled , impersonal and ' di s tant ' from
employees ; inve s tment in plant and s tock is cons iderab le but
so is t urnover ; relat ions with governmen t are sys tematiz e d ;
t axes are fo rmally applied an d , mos t basically , the mo t ivat ion
of bus iness is f in an c ial profit .
136
In the other form of organ i z at ion , lab our is in t en s ive ,
family-b ased an d info rmally emp loyed and rewarded .
Skill s
are largely t radit ional o r s elf-taught , wo rking cap i t al an d
inve stment minimal and cash f low o ft en sl ight an d errat i c .
Bus ine s s t r an s act ions are l argely o ral an d met ho d s are
empirical ; inventory con t rol and f ormal co s t in g pro cedures
are not pract ised . Links with admin is t rat ive s t ructures are
so tenuo us that in come t axes are rarely paid , o r reque sted .
Operat ion al goals are as much local or family s ervice ,
s o cial prest ige and employment o f family memb ers as they are
p ro f i t -making .
_
A s imilar dichotomized commercial o rgan iz at ion has been
reco gnized in o ther develo p ing count r ie s . The different
p ar t s of the sys tem have been terme d , among o t her things ,
' upper ' and ' lower ' cir cuit s ( San t o s 19 7 3 ; McGee 1 9 7 3 ) ,
' fo rmal ' an d ' informal ' s e ctors ( 110 19 72 ) and ' firm- cen t red '
and ' b az aar ' e conomies ( Geertz 1 9 6 3 ) .
Charact eris t i c s of each
of the forms of organiza tion as they apply to Fij i are l i s ted
in Tab le 3 . 1 .
While bus iness es operat ing wi th e i ther o f the two
bas ic operat ional forms are recogntzab l e in Fij i , many fall
b etween the ext reme s and have characterist ics o f each .
However , although as s ignmen t o f businesses t o a part i cular
cat e go ry - or the middle ground b etween them - is in part
arb it rary , an d the re l at ionship b etween the fo rms not fully
un ders t oo d , the con cep t doe s con tr ib ut e t o an under s t and in g
o f busine s s operat ions in Fij i . One such examp le i s that
the b ro ad int ermediat e ' c ir cuit ' sugge s t s that expand in g
l owe r circuit busines s e s have dif fic ul t y in ent erin g the
upper ci rcuit , or that upp er c ircuit bus ines ses are expandin g
int o t h e lower circuit . From the analy s is t h a t follows , i t
appears in fact that the intermediat e z one marks t he l imit
of exp an s ion for fami ly-operat ed b us ine s ses .
A s econd in st an ce o f the ut ilit y o f the con cept is it s
emphas is on the common features o f import e d and locally
p ro ce s s e d food dis t ribut ion on the one hand an d of the agri
c ult ural product ion-market in g sys t em on the o ther : the three
circui t s of connne rcial organ i z at ion have obvious correlat ion s
wi th the sub s i s t en ce / s ub s i s t en ce-commerc ia l / connne rcial
con t inuum of agricul tural product ion an d market ing wh ich was
di scus s ed in Chap ter 2 .
In the sub sequen t analys is o f t he p ro c e s s ed food d i s t ri
but ion sys t em , n either the un ique f ac t ors affect in g the sys t em
137
Tab le 3 . 1
Forms o f conunerc ial or gan izat ion
Charac t e r i s t i c s
Lower c ircuit
Upper circuit
En try
Dif f i cult , usually overseas .
Easy.
Technology
Cap it al int ens ive , import ed .
Labour in tens ive .
Cap i t al
Ext ernal , ab undan t ; f rom
banks and o ther ins t i t ut ion s .
S carce , lo cal ; personal ,
n on - in s t itut ional sources .
F ixed c o s t s
Con s i de r ab le .
Ne g ligible .
Government con t a c t
Easy access to government
agen c ies and aid ; con s ider
ab le regulat ion .
Negl i gible regulat ion or
a c c e s s to governmen t .
Ski lls
Special i z e d ; f rom fo rmal
t ra in in g ( in c l . overseas ) .
Non-s p e c ial i z e d ; f rom non
fo rmal local sources .
Wo rk f o r ce
N on - f amily ; regular ; main ly
full t ime ; award rat e s ;
re cruited by adve r t i s emen t ;
f ormally h i re d .
Family ; irregular and part
t ime unp aid help ; wages irre
gular and non-award , incl . pay
ment in kind ; no advert is in g .
Hours
S t r i c t s chedule .
Irr e gular .
Or gan izat ion and
ownership
Bu reauc rat i c ; regis tered
compan ies ; h i gh degree o ' seas
ownership .
Family .
Bus ine s s methods
E s t ab l ished wri t t en p roced
ures ; regular aud i t s an d
s t o ck c on t rol .
Emp ir i cal ; oral ; lit tle s t o ck
mon it o r ing .
Mo t ive
Primarily p ro f it .
S e rvice ( in c l . employmen t ) ;
so cial p re s t ige ; pro fit .
Inventories
Ext ens ive ran ge , h i gh value .
Limit ed , low value .
Source o f s t o ck
Direct import and lo cal
suppl i er s ; access to b ulk
purchase d i s coun t s .
Local importers and wholesalers ;
in manufacturin g , reuse .
Prices
Fixed .
Fixed , but room for nego t i a t ion .
Credit p o l i cy
Forma l ; l i t t l e to ind ividuals , In fo rmal ; important for
impo r tant f or b ig cus t ome r s .
individual cus tomers .
Customer relat ion s
Formal , di s t ant , ind ire c t .
Sales t e chniques
Aggress ive , media adve r t i s ing , Pass ive , no adve r t i s in g .
draw- it ems and s ale s .
Market s
In t e rn al and ext e rn al ; aided
by t ar i f f s , quo t as , l icence s .
In t e rn al , i rr e gular , uncon
t rolled .
Customers
Ins t itut ions ( in cl . supply
con t rac t s ) ; upper and middle
class ind ividuals .
Mainly poorer ind ividuals .
Links with comme r
c ial o r gan i z at ion s
Ext ens ive ( e . g . Chamb ers of
Conunerce memb ership)
None .
Locat ion
Primari ly urban .
Urban an d rural .
External l inks
S t ron g .
Negl igib l e .
Vert i cal development Ext en s ive , part icularly with
overs eas i� t er� � t s .
Turnover
S ource :
Can be con s iderab le .
Direct , in formal , soc ial
relat ion ships .
Minimal , domes t i c .
Generally limit e d ; low ret urn s
relative to t ime inve s t ed .
!LO ( 1 9 7 2 : 6 ) and McGee ( 19 7 3 : 7 ) , adap t ed for Fij i .
138
in F ij i nor the con cept of upp er an d lowe r t rade circuit s
They are rais ed he re , however , t o give
are dominant themes .
greater meaning t o o ur analy s is .
Government inf l uen ce
The governmen t has a largely pas s ive influence on Fij i ' s
pro ces s ed food d i s t ribut ion s y st em . Apart f rom a general
regulatory f un ct ion whi ch affects all p art ic ipan t s to much
the s ame ext ent - as , s ay , policies on import ing , b us iness
l icences and employment con dit ion s - government involvement
in the grocery t r ade is l imit ed to a small number o f sharply
def in ed f iel d s where pol icy is directed to specific end s .
The Prices an d Incomes Board , Department o f Co-operat ive s
an d the Fij i an Bus ines s Oppo rtunity an d Man agement Advisory
Service are the chi e f b o dies with specif ic involvement in
The Minis t ry o f Connne rce , Indus t ries an d Co
connne rce .
o perat ive s has lit t le inf luence on or int erest in connn e rce ,
apart from i t s involvement in the es t ab l ishmen t o f import
s ub s t it ut ion indus t ries and the co-operat ive movemen t an d
i t s general con cern in con sumer prot ect ion and f o re i gn
p ar t i c ip at ion in the economy . 2 The main areas o f governmen t
in fluence on th e pro ces s e d f o o d d is t ribut ion sys t em are
examined below .
Foo ds t u f f import s
The government policy of en couragin g s el f - s uf f i c iency
in food s up p l ie s has specific p ract ical con s equen ces f o r
Infl uence on t h e nature and
int ernal and ext e rnal t rade .
leve l o f foodstuff import s is exercised through b o th impo rt
dut ie s and t he i s sue o f import l i cen ces for p ar t icular
Impo rt l ic ences are used to prot ect n ewly
commodit ies .
e s t ab l ishe d food pro ce s s in g indust r ie s . At present they are
required for t e a , wheat and wheat flour impo rt s . Lic en ce s
a r e granted only wh ere demand canno t be met by local p ro duct ion .
For ins t an ce , early in 197 7 when the Dominion ' s on e flour
mill ceased p ro duct ion fo r a short t ime t o expand facilit ies ,
import licences for s pe cif ic amoun t s o f flour were granted
t o some b ake rs and wholesale rs . On ce t he newly- e s t abl ished
industries current ly pro t e cted by import l icen ces have gained
a foothold in the l ocal market , it is l ikely t ha t lo cal
p ro duct ion wi ll be p rot e cted by import dut ies alon e .
Import dut i es are used t o rai s e revenue and to en courage
local food product ion . Bas ic foods that are not p ro duced
139
lo cally o r where lo cal p roduc t i on ac coun t s for on ly a very
small share o f deman d , are e ithe r admit ted free ( for example ,
s o l id milk , ghee , s p i ces , t ea , wheat flo ur , cereals , o il
s eeds and edib le oils , margarine , live animals and canned
n on-luxury f i sh ) or with 5 per cen t duty ( fo r example , all
meat , uncanned f i sh , un cann ed veget ab l es an d fruit , fresh
milk an d c ream, chee se , curd , cocoa and non-wheat f lour ) .
Foods for which there is some local produc t i on or man ufac ture
and which are p ro te c t ed f rom import compe t it ion have 30-40
per c ent tariff rat e s : eggs , honey , peanut s , sugar and
mol as ses , f owls and ducks , bread , b i scui t s and cake s are
foods so pro t ec t ed .
Rates for non- loc ally produced ' luxury '
foods such as p as t a product s , j ams , j ellies , soup s , s auces ,
cho colates and sugar c onfect ionery range be tween 15 and 40
per cen t .
It is prob able that import dut ies will con t inue t o
support reason ab le a t t empt s t o e s t ab l ish l o c a l food pro ce s s ing
or p ro duc t ion , and in deed are a flexib le and effective mean s
of support . Apart f rom import dut ies an d l icences required
for the few prot ected it ems , there is minimal restrict ion
of en t ry int o the import ing t rade .
In addit ion to suppo rt through import t ariff and l icence
s t ructures , local food p ro ce s s ing is as s i sted in o ther
s pe ci f i c ways .
Indus tries that result in impo rt -sub s t itut ion
and use con s iderable local labour and l o cal raw mat erial s
are part i cularly favoured . Limit at ion s may b e placed on
impo rt s of compet i t ive pro du ct s ; in addit ion tax and inves tment
in cent ives , guaran teed market s through government supply
preferen ce s an d monopoly product ion right s for specified
p er iods may b e o f fered . New indust ries estab l ishe d un der
s uch condit ions to dat e have been chiefly of non-food product s .
Amon g foo ds t uf fs , on ly t ea packing an d flour milling have
had sub s t ant ial dire ct governmen t al support : s ome others ,
e . g . , b i s cuit manufac t ure , are suppo rted indirec t ly
through t ariff st ruct ures while o thers , such as meat cann in g ,
receive no apparen t d ir e ct s uppo rt .
Bus ines s l i cen ce an d employmen t regulat ion s
Bus iness licen ce and employment regulat ion s are another
in fluence on the processed food distribut ion syst em .
An y busin e s s act ivity in Fij i is l iab le to an annual
l icen ce fee p ayable to a city or t own council , t ownship
140
board o r the cent ral goveniment , dependin g on the locat ion
of bus ine s s . Fees for ret ail shops are in the ran ge $ 2 0$ 80pa and fo r wholesale-ret ail e s t ab l ishmen t s , $ 75 - $ 300 .
Licence fees within one area o f j urisdict ion are un i fo rm for
a part icul ar funct ion : rate s vary in response t o the assumed
p ro s per ity of areas of j urisdict ion .
Such l i cens in g is not
to be confused with regist rat ion of a company under the
Compan ies Ordinan ce , which is un common amon g part i cipan t s
in gro cery dis t rib ut ion .
The cos t o f re t ail l i cen ces does not appear t o dis courage
en t ry in t o re t ail in g . Moreover , met ho ds o f pol i c in g are
suf f i c ien t ly s l ack to enable small periodic reta il ers ,
espec ially those o perat in g from their home s in rural an d
per i-urban areas , to avo id payin g l i cence fees .
In con t ra st ,
the differen t ial b etween retail and whole s ale-ret ail l icen ce
fees - there is n o ' wholesal e ' c at e gory - i s a dis incen t ive
for mer chant s with small , an d s ome not-so-small , wholesale
b us ines ses t o purchase the appro p riate l icence .
A con sider ab le body of le gisl at ion deals with the re gu
lat ion o f employment but much of this has l it t le prac t ical
e f fe ct fo r many of the businesses involved in the gro cery
t rade in Fij i , either b ecause it app l ies only t o businesses
in urb an areas or t o wage-employee s .
The making o f l e gis
l at ion c ont in gent upon wage-employmen t , an d in s ome cases
t own-lo cat ion , emphas izes the dichotomy in b u s in e s s o rgan
i z at ion b e tween family an d non-family b us ine ss e s . Under
the Shop ( Regulat ion of Hours and Employmen t ) Ordinan ce and
the Wages Coun cils Ordinan ce , for in st ance , condit ion s o f
employmen t and wage rat es are s et for the wholes ale an d
ret ail t rade .
Such regulat ions , howeve r , only apply t o
employment ' fo r hire o r reward ' , whi ch excludes employment
in mos t fami ly-busine s se s , an d in gaz e t t e d cit ies , t owns and
t own sh ip s .
Othe r legislat ion o f p o t en t i al s i gnificance to
whol e s ale and ret ail t rade employee s , s uch as that gove rn in g
wo rkmen ' s compen s at ion and the Fij i Nat ional Provident F1lll d ,
i s al s o o f l i t t l e consequence as it applies only t o wage
employmen t . Even b as ic employment l e gislat ion l ike t he
Employmen t Ordin an ce and Factories Ordin an ce has only an
indirect relevan ce t o the maj ority o f re t ail and who l e s ale
wo rk er s .
In t own s the hours of op erat ion for bus in e s s may
be l imited by l o cal goveniment , but beyond this the in fluence
o f goveniment re gul at ion is hardly fel t by b us inesses without
wage l abour .
14 1
Dep art ment of Co-op erat ive s
Within the governmen t , the Departmen t of Co-op erat ive s
of the Min i s t ry o f Connne rce , In dus t ry an d Co-operat ives has
the mo st s us t ained con cern in the ret ail and wholesal e t rade .
Apart from b e in g import an t b ecaus e they rep resent the mo st
d irect involvement o f the government in commerce , co-operat ives
are s ign i f ican t as they are seen as the chie f o f f i c ial mean s
o f invo lving Fij ians in connne r ce .
Co- operat ive s o c iet ies have operated in Fij i un der the
Co-operat ive S o cie t ies Ordinance s in ce 19 4 7 , havin g b een
e s t ab li shed an d maintained as the s pearhead o f Fij ian e conomi c
advance . 3 In 1 9 74 , t h e mos t re cent y ear fo r whi ch t radin g
res ul t s are availab l e , there were 1 0 9 5 societ ies wit h approx
imat ely 35 , 000 memb ers , mo s t of whom were Fij ian . E i ght out
of t en co-operat ive s o c iet ie s are consumer or con sumer
marke t in g s o c ie t ies that operat e a s t ore sell in g gro ceries
and b a s i c con s umer goo ds . Turnover o f the stores in 1 9 7 4
was $ 8 . 7 6 million and o f market ing act ivit ie s (mainly copra ) ,
$ 3 . 2 4 million . 4 In addit ion , there are some 1 60 thrift an d
credit s o ciet ies and s ix farmer s ' input supply and market in g
societies . The re currin g budge t of the Departmen t o f Co
operative s in 19 7 7 was $ 606 , 000 .
The ret ail-whole sale fa cil it i es o f the Department o f
Co-operat ives comprise a three-t ier s t ruct ure . Primary
so ciet y s t ores are theo ret i cal ly s upplied by a numb er o f
regional wholesale associat ion s that in t urn draw s upplies
exclus ively from the apex o rgan i z at ion , the Suva-b ased Fij i
Co-operat ive As soc iat ion Lt d .
There are s ome twenty re gional wholesale as s o c iat ion s
(Tab le 3 . 2 ) . Although it is not ant icipat e d that the number
o f wholesale association s will increase s ign i f icant ly , s ome
o f tho se in the islands will be developed int o cen tral loading
po in t s with b as i c port and warehouse facilit ie s to s t imul ate
two-way t rade .
The Fij i Co-op erat ive As so c iat ion is b eing
en co ura ged an d as s is t e d t o exp an d and improve s ervi ces t o
con sumer s o ciet ie s . Whe reas primary s o ciet ies are ent irely
s elf-support in g , re gional as sociat ion s receive government
gran t s t o help mee t b o th cap i t al , e . g . , s t orage facil it ies ,
and recurrin g expenses , in cludin g management cost s . For the
period 19 7 6- 80 , $ 9 35 , 000 has b een reserved for these ends .
All so c i et ie s re ceive , without charge , con s iderable adminis
t ra t ive as s is t an ce , includ in g audit in g o f t radin g re cords
......
Tab le 3 . 2
..i::-.
N
Trade ac t ivity o f regional co-operat ive who le sale asso ciat ion s
As s o ciat ion
Who lesale t r adins
Ave rage
Gross profit Net pro fit
mon thly
as % s ales as % sales
sales ( $ )
All t r ading act ivit ies
Average
Gro s s prof it Ne t p r o f it Membe r
mon t hly
as % sales as % sal e s s o c i e t ies
sales ( $ )
Accoun t
period
We s t ern Divi s ion
Ba
Nadro ga/Navo s a
Vat ul ele
Ra
11 , 406
5 , 9 14
3, 7 1 7
5 , 083
8.0
8. 3
5.0
3.9
3. 1
1.2
0. 0
0. 0
n . a.
n.a.
8, 671
6 , 60 0
n.a.
n.a.
12 . 3
11 . 9
n . a.
n.a.
o. o
1. 5
72
68
n . a.
36
1 / 6 / 7 4- 3 1 / 3 / 7 5
16/2 / 75-31/12 / 75
1 7 / 8 / 7 5- 1 3 / 8 / 7 6
1 / 9 / 7 4 - 3 0 / 9 / 75
Cen tral Divis ion
Wainimala
Cen t r al Fij ian
Navua Valley
5 , 941
10 , 9 1 7
440
-1. 6
4.0
9.8
-7 . 2
-5 . 2
-1 6 . 5
5 , 964
11 , 1 8 6
n . a.
-1 . 2
6.3
n . a.
-8 . 4
-8 . 8
n. a.
n . a.
n . a.
n . a.
1 / 9 / 7 5 - 3 0 / 11 / 7 6
1 / 8 / 75-3 1 / 7 / 7 6
1 1 / 7 6-10 / 7 7
Eas t e rn Divis ion
Ovalau-Mo t uriki
Koro
Gau
Kadavu
Lakeb a
Vanua Balevu
Cicia
11 , 703
8 , 52 1
10 , 001
8 , 969
12 , 9 2 0
6 , 34 8
2 , 748
5.9
5.7
9.6
8.8
13 . 2
10 . 4
o. o
1. 4
2.1
6. 3
6.2
8. 1
4.6
- 30 . 8
12 , 19 9
n.a.
10 , 1 9 6
n.a.
n.a.
6 , 869
7 , 88 6
6.5
n.a.
11 . 3
n . a.
n . a.
17 . 2
36 . 2
1. 7
n . a.
4. 3
n . a.
n . a.
3.2
11 . 3
n . a.
n . a.
16
57
n.a.
n . a.
n .a.
197 5 - 7 6 ?
3 1 / 5 / 76-1 3 / 1 / 7 7
13/3/ 75-31/ 5 / 76
7 / 6 / 75-30/4 / 76
1 / 9 / 7 4 -31 / 8 / 7 5
2 3/ 1 / 76-25 / 1 / 7 7
l /6 / 75 - 3 1 / 5 / 7 6
Northern Divi sion
Bua
Dogo t uki
n . a.
2 , 04 7
4.7
9. 1
1. 3
5.5
n . a.
12 , 2 9 4
6.4
9.1
2.4
6. 7
n.a.
n . a.
19 7 5 - 7 6 ?
1 /2 / 7 7- 3 0 / 4 / 7 7
Note :
Source :
Dat a not availab le for Macuat a , Cakaudrove , Beqa and Moal a As sociat ions .
Departmen t of Co-op erat ive s , Suva .
143
and business t rain ing class es f o r so ciety personn el a t the
Departmen t o f Co-operative s ' t rain in g centre near S�va .
In add i t ion to the advice , train in g an d audit facilit ies
noted above , co-operat ive so ciet ies have further advan tages
They have , fo r
over o ther ret ail and wholesale o ut let s .
in s t an ce , a f ive-y ear t ax holiday from the dat e of regis
trat ion , and af t e r that t ime only their reserve s arc l iable
to t axat ion . Bonus paymen t s to memb ers are liab le to t axat ion
as part of the memb er ' s per sonal in come , but b ecause the
income of memb ers is o f t en b elow the min imum rate for in come
tax , the payment s are usually untaxed . Each year , 25 per
cent of a s o c iety ' s net p ro f it mus t b e put in a res erve
account which is designed as a source of funds for cap i tal
imp rovemen t s for the s o ciety .
In general p rac t ice , howeve r ,
maximum allowab le bonuses , i . e . , 75 p er cen t of n et p ro f it s )
are dis t r ibut ed and there is litt le sub s equen t developmen t
of cap it al as s et s .
Con s umer co-ope rat ive societ ies are estab lished b o th
t o p rovide a locally-con t rolled con s t an t s ource of consumer
goods in a commun ity and t o be a commercial t rain ing ground
for Fij ian s . Howeve r , f ew develop beyond this service funct ion
to b ecome more dynamic trading ventures . Addit ionally ,
the minimum cap i tal generated by the s o c ieties makes develop
ment cont ingent upon cons iderab l e f inancial input s , even for
recur rin g co s t s , from the Depar tment o f Co-operatives . The
consumer and con sumer-market in g so ciet ie s have gene rally
succeede d in s a t isfy in g the l imi t ed local demand for basic
consumer go ods , but have not b een so succe s s f ul in the ir
role as a spearhead o f Fij ian economic advance .
Prices and In comes Board
Government policy relat ing t o foodstuff d i s t ribut ion ,
which inc lud e s locally pro duced , non-pro ces sed foo d , is in
p ar t aimed at reducing the numb er of int ermediaries between
lo cal or overseas producer an d consumer . Two mechan i sms
op erate to thi s end : min imum admin i s t rat ive restrictions
on importin g , and price controls set an d enf orced by the
Prices and Incomes Boar d . The P IB of the Ministry o f F inance
has b ecome an importan t mean s o f governmen t in tervent ion in
the s t ruc ture o f t he grocery t rade in F ij i . The f ir s t
mechanism is examined in the sect ion ' Impo r t ing ' b elow an d
t h e P IB ' s p r i ce con tro l s h ere .
144
On the twe lve essen t ial commodit ies under price con t rol
( the control s do not app ly to p roduct s manufactured within
Fij i ) , the re is a three- stage level of allowab le price markup
( Tab le 3 . 3 ) .
Import and wholesale markups on food are in
the range o f 1- 5 per cen t o f landed and in to-st ore c o s t ;
retail markups are in general from 10 to 12 p er cen t . No
t rader can claim who lesale an d ret ail markup s on the s ame
item . The t y p e o f mark up taken depends on the type o f
sale : a s de f ined in the Coun t er-In flat ion Act 19 7 3 , ' whole
s ale ' is sale fo r the purpose o f resale or use in t rade o r
bus iness and ' ret ail ' i s s ale t o a c on sumer . As in tended ,
the permis s ible wholesale markup doe s no t leave room for a
se cond who les aler . The impo rt percen tage can be charged by
an importer whe ther the goo ds are sold retail or wholesale .
The P IB is rmequivo cal
markup s t ruc t ure :
ab out the in t en t ion o f this
The purpo s e of this provis ion [ allowab le markup s
for imported it ems ] is to allow on ly a nominal
markup t o any secondary whole saler who handl es
the goo ds onc e they have b een imported into Fij i ,
and t o allow an in creased ret ail markup t o a
re tailer who has hims elf imp o rt e d the goods .
Ret ailers in rural areas w ill need t o arran ge
their b uyin g direct from whol e s aler/ importers in
o rder to preven t the ir in t o- s tore cos t s b e ing
infl ated by more than one wholesale markup . The
co-operat ive movement is obvious ly provided with
a t remen dous incent ive t o prove its wor th in
channelin g goo ds t o outlying co-operat ives at
the lowes t po s s ible p r ices ( P IB n . d . : 2 6 ) .
The PIB ' s in ten t ion to eliminate s econ dary whole s alers , who
are known locally as ' re-wholes alers ' , has b e en succe s s ful .
Only where there is l imited wholes aler acces s t o product s
s uch a s sugar an d some canned mackerel are i t ems regularly
re-wholes aled b etween impo rter or lo cal manufac t urer and
con sumer .
Wh il e p r i ce c on t ro l s have ach ieved t h e obj e c t ive o f
limit in g re-whole s al in g , the re has not b een equal succ e s s
with a s e cond obj e c t ive - to coun ter apparent monopo list ic
condit ions in t rade ( Fij i , Cent ral Plann ing Off ice 19 7 5 : 1 6 3 ) .
In fact , one cons equence o f the price markup s t ructure has
b e en to s t ren gthen the po s i t ion o f larger import ers and
wholesalers . Many small er wholesalers have ceased dealin g
145
Tab le 3 . 3
Impo rt , whol es ale and ret ail markups on price
con trolled it ems ( under Order of 1 April 19 7 5 )
Import
markup ( % )
Bread
Whole s ale
markup ( % )
Ret ail
markup ( % )
Nil
Nil
11
But ter
3
2
7
Edib le o il s
5
2
12
Japanese mackerel
5
2.5
12
Other fish
5
2
12
N il
5
10
4
1
5
20
1
11
Margar ine
5
2
13
Corned b eef and mut t on
3
2
10
Baby milk
5
2
13
Other milk
5
2
10
Rice ( imported b rown )
Nil
5
10
Rice ( imported white )
4
1
5
Nil
5
10
4
1
5
Nil
4
10
3
2
10
Flour ( local )
Flour ( imp o rt e d )
Light ing kero sene
Sharps ( local )
Sharp s ( imported )
Tea ( local )
Tea ( imported )
No te :
S ource :
Percen t age markups are on the in to-store co st of
goods for importer , who lesaler an d retailer .
Prices and In come s Board , n . d . : 2 7 .
146
in commoditie s under pr ice con t rol , par t i cular ly heavier and
bulkier it ems l ike flour , sharp s an d r i ce as they claim the
allowab le markup do es not cover t ran sport , s t o rage and
handlin g cos t s .
The who les alers con t inuin g to deal in thes e
it ems are generally l ar ger op erato rs , who claim they handle
th ese part icular goods on ly as a service to cus t omers and
to en sure pat ronage o f o ther wholesale l in e s .
In sum , pr ice
markup s t ructures have sho rtened the d i s t r ibu t ion chain , bu t
at the c o s t o f inc reased specializ ation and fewe r outlet s .
Banking and managemen t services
The Fij i Developmen t Bank ( FDB ) and the Fij ian Bus iness
Opportunity and Managemen t Advisory Service run prog rams to
he lp Fij ians in connne rce . FDB was e s t ab l i shed in 19 6 6 as a
governmen t-owned f in an c in g ins t itut ion .
The obj e c t ive was
to promo t e the Dominion ' s e conomic developmen t by providin g
f in an cial ass i s t an ce to en terprises operat in g in Fij i . Loans
we re to be provided to as s i s t the exp an s ion o r mo dern izat ion
of p roj e c t s in agricul ture , f ishery , manufacturing and pro
ces s ing indus t r ies , t ransport and communicat ion , t our ism ,
min ing and con s t ruct ion indus t r ies . The ro l e o f agricult ure
was emphas ized in the e s t abl ishing o rdinance . On 31 June
19 7 6 , $ 9 . 2 mill ion in loans was out s tanding , of which sl ightly
more than $2 5 0 , 000 was in connne rce .
The Bank did not lend for activities in commerce un t il
May 1 9 7 5 , when the Commerc ial and Indust rial Loan s t o Fij ians
Scheme was s t arted ' to give tho se o f Fij ian race a b e tter
oppo rtun ity o f acqu iring a share in Fij i ' s commerc ial sector '
through the p rovis ion of ' medium and long-term loan s fo r any
us eful purp o s e ' , inc ludin g the provis ion of working cap it al
on ' special t erms ' ( Fij i Development Bank n . d . : 1) . To June
19 7 6 , $ 9 9 7 , 0 0 0 in 1 3 0 loans had b een len t un der the s cheme ,
although many of the loans we re in t ransport and indu s t rial
f i elds that may have b een approved w i thout the s cheme .
Interes t rates and repayment s chedules under the sclfeme are
more favourab le and at t it udes to security requiremen t s more
flexib le than for o ther FDB loan s . Fields to b en efit from
the s cheme are t ran sport ( t rucks , taxis , boat s ) , shops an d
exi s t ing manufac turin g compan ie s . Actual inve s tmen t in shops
has comprised a very small share o f inve stment . Mo reover , as
the bank admi t s , adequate advice and supervis ion o f borrowers
has not b een available ( F ij i Developmen t Bank 1 9 7 6 : 8 ) ; thus
the succe s s of the s cheme is unknown .
The Fij ian Bus in e s s Opportun i ty and Managemen t Advisory
Service works clos ely wi th the Deve lopmen t Bank ' s Connne rcial
and In dus t rial Loans to Fij ians S cheme .
It is a un it e s t ab
lished in 19 7 5 wi th in the Min is t ry o f Fij ian Af fairs to as s ist
Fij ian en t ry in t o comme rce an d indust ry . Fij ian connne rcial
invo lvemen t is en c our aged in three way s :
(a)
iden t ifying oppo r t un it ie s for Fij ian inves tmen t in
indus t ry and connn e rce and , wh ere prac t i cab le ,
en suring Fij ian involvemen t in t rain ing and manage
men t in the f ield of inves tmen t ;
(b )
o f fe ring as s i s tan ce in the form of lo cat in g loan s
sources , undertaking marke t research and compilin g
accoun t s and bus ine s s records ;
(c)
providing bas ic bus iness t rain ing .
The Adviso ry Service conduc t s preliminary evaluation s
o f l o an applicat ion s t o the FDB under the Commercial and
Indus t rial Lo an s t o Fij ian s Scheme , in addi t ion to o ther
proj e c t s it b ecomes aware of independen tly . A F ij ian loan
p ropo s al needs support from the Servi ce to b e con s i dered by
the bank for a loan . Achievemen t s of the Advis ory Service
have b een l imited and p i ecemeal . The reason s for short
comin gs appear to b e a lack o f s uitable p ersonnel to iden t ify
and wo rk with poten t ial en t r ep reneur s an d to organize
effe c t ive t ra in ing courses . 5
Bo th the Fij i Developmen t Bank and the Fij ian Bus iness
Oppo rtunity an d Management Advis o ry Service have had s li ght
effect on commerce an d negligib le con s equences for the
in creas ed invo lvemen t o f Fij ian s in the grocery t rade . Th ere
are no p ro grams that specif ically encourage or ass ist the
en try of o the r race s int o commerce .
Foods tuff impo r t in g into Fij i is charact erized by ease
o f-en t ry , min imal governmen t int ervent ion , en t rep reneurial
in it iat ive , and di s t in c t ive upper/ lower c ircuit and racial
ro les . A large numb er of importers and in den t agen t s deal ing
in small in dividual t ran s ac t ion s are j uxt aposed with a small
number of larger firms , s ome with the ir own in den t departmen t s ,
which acc o un t fo r a con s iderab l e s hare o f f oo d impor t s .
Mo s t import in g i s by wholesalers who sell dire c t ly t o
retailers , or by re tailers themse lves . Apart f rom pot atoes ,
148
on ion s , gar lic an d a couple o f brands hand led b y exclus ive
d i s t ributors , there is n e gligible re-wholesal ing o f imported
foodlin e s ; the re-wholesal in g o f lo cally-pro ce s s ed p roduc t s
The s t ructure o f permi s s ib l e markups
i s equally un connnon .
on items under p rice con t ro l , the eas e of ent ry in to
impo rt ill g , the relat ively con fin ed region with in which dist ri
but ion takes p lace , the open trade - as in dicated by the
preponderan ce of ' connnon lines ' - and the compet i t ive n ature
of t he grocery t rade all dis courage addit ional market in g
s tages .
A key figure in importin g i s the ' in den t agent ' , who
is al s o known in Fij i as a ' commis s ion agen t ' or ' manufac
turer ' s represen tative ' . The fllll ct ion of the inden t agen t
is to p l ace orders from local me rchan ts with overseas
suppliers (Fig . 15 ) . The s ign if icance o f the inden t agen t to
the impo r t in g t rade is suggested by the fact that few supp liers
accept orde rs s ave through inden t agent s , and o ft en only
agen t s reconunended by conunercial b anks in Fij i .
Inden t agent s ob t ain bus in e s s with a greater o r l e s s er
degree of act ive p ur suit of p o t en tial cus t omers : after a
s ec re t ary , the mos t common employee o f an indent agen t is
an o rder- t ake r who s olicit s busine s s . Under normal c ircum
s tances , the inden t agen t does n o t t ake p o s s es s ion o f , o r
assume legal liab ility for , goods o rdered t hrough him. Goods
o rdered via an inden t agen t are forwarded in the n ame o f the
clien t , who p ays by a sight-draft or l e t t er of credit as
the goo d s are received in Fij i . No depo s it is paid at the
t ime of p lac in g an o rder . Paymen t is made only at the t ime
If goo d s are not accep t ed by
o f actual accep tan ce o f goods .
the merchant . who placed the o rder or p aymen t i s not fo rth
coming for any reason , the inden t agen t has a mo ral , but not
legal , respon s ib ility to f in d an alt ernat ive buyer . Rej ected
del iverie s ref lec t poorly on the inden t agent and can lead
to a break with the affected s uppl ier , so it is in the int ere s t
o f t h e indent agen t to a s s e s s care fully his clien t s ' credit .
The agen t re ce ives from the supp lier a connn i s s ion o f up to
Importers do not
abo ut 5 per cen t o f the value o f o rders .
pay inden t agen t s fo r thei r s ervice s .
In den t agen t s are among the mo s t s peculat ive an d en t re
preneurial par t i cipan t s in foo dstuff d i s t ribution in Fij i. .
The ch ie f requiremen ts for en t ry int o in den t in g are familiarity
with l o cal demands and overs eas s upply source s , a cert ain
amollll t of agg r e s s iven e s s to win orders and res il ien c e to
s urvive in a very comp e t it ive f ield . No t only i s compet it ion
FIJ I
OVERS EAS
Letter o f credit.
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aft _____.
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-
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- - - - -
7
:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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Island traider/
Bu y ing house
W holesaler,
Wholesaler-Reta iler,
or Retai ler
Indent Agent
(Comm ission Agent)
(Man ufacturer's Rep .)
· -· -·-
Isla nd Trader,
'Agent'
�-----��--____y-�
·· ·· ·-··· ··· ·· ·· ·_
·_
· ··· ·_·_
· ··_
· ·_
· ··_
· ·_
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· ·_
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·_
·_
·_
· ·_
· ·_
·_
· ·_
·_
· ··+
· ·_
·_
· ·_·_
· ·_
· ·· �1 Companfs Bu�ng House
Co m pa n
W ho lesa le
or Agent
I
ndent
Retailer
Office
Com pany's
Customs
Agent
order
payment
goods
comm1ss1on
...,__
di rection of transfer
Figure 15
Grocery import ing channels
• · • • • • • • • ••• • •• • . .
CUSTOMS
.
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.
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- - - ·- ·
. . . . . . . . . .., • • •
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I
150
between agen t s in ten se , but it c an be a s difficult f o r an
agen t to receive connn i s s ions from a supp lier as it i s for
him to ensure tha t t rade rs p lacin g orders have the mean s t o
make payment .
The only formal en t ry requiremen t for inden t ing is pay
men t of an annual business licen ce fee . 6 Cap i t al investmen t
is slight . A telephon e and a typewriter are the bas ic
equipment re qui remen t s . With groceries , no disp lay s t ock
is required although it can b e helpful . Train in g come s
largely f rom exper ience working for o ther inden tors .
Some
agen t s operate from the ir homes and have no emp loyees , but
mos t have a ren ted o f f ice and two o r three emp loyees . Mo re
prosperous f irms have a telex mach ine , a bus iness vehicle
and a larger , more speciali z ed and frequen tly non-family
s t aff .
It is indicat ive o f the in security o f inden t ing that
thirteen of s ix t y- three in dent agen t s l is t ed in the 1 9 7 6 - 7 7
Suva telephone d irec t o ry were uncon tac tab le an d apparen t l y
no t operat in g in March 1 9 7 7 .
Inden t agen t s are lo cated ch ief ly in Suva an d Lautoka ,
where there are thirteen , t en o f whom have either a branch
o r head o f fice in Suva . 7 Only 2 2 agen t s in Suva are inden t
agen t s in the s t rict sense of people who merely p lace orders
on behalf o f impor ters . There are an other twen ty-four agen t s
who des crib e themselve s a s ' in dentors ' but who occas ionally
import goods with the ir own res our ces . These goods are
generally fo r sale through their own wholesale-re tail out le t s .
Product specializat ion o c curs among inden t agen t s but n o t so
much in foodstuffs as in o ther go ods . Four of forty- s ix
' inden tors ' in Suva deal excl us ively wit h foods tuf f s , twenty
one deal with non-food i tems on ly and twen ty-one with both
food an d non-foods tuf f s . Agen t s o f t en say they will ' deal
in any thing that makes a p rofit ' , a p roviso that apparen tly
limit s exclus ive involvemen t in foo d . O f the twen ty-f ive
agen t s in Suva who inden t foods tuffs , six or so appear to
handle the bulk o f the trade .
In terms of numb er o f agen c ies , in den t ing is dominated
by locally-owned in den t in g f i rms . These locally-owned firms
are almo s t alway s operated by the owner an d are licen s ed
bus ines ses , al though no t regis tered companies .
Of the forty
th ree agen c ies in Suva for wh ich the informat ion is available ,
thirty o f the owne rs are In dians , in cluding nineteen Guj eratis ,
and one is Chinese . Twelve inden t agencies are European
f irms ; only two of th ese are lo cally-owned . An equal number
o f locally- and overseas-owned agen c ies have a s econ d bran ch
151
o ffice ( in either Laut oka or Suva none has mo re than two
o f fices ) : half the overs eas-owned firms have bran ches ,
compared to one- in-eigh t local agen c ies .
The own ership of the European inden t agen c ie s is
in tere s t in g for what it sugge st s of the s ign ifican ce of
ve rtical linkages in the foo d s upply sy stem. At leas t s ix
o f the European firms are owned by e s t abl ished is land trader
companies in New Zealan d and Aust ralia , in c luding one agency
that is a who lly-owned s ub s idiary of Burns Philp . The
remain der are own ed by overs eas manufacturers of non-food
product s . The s t aff o f th e overs eas-owned agencies i s gener
ally all lo cal . A con s equence of overseas owne rship on
inden t agencies i s that o rde rs for goo ds from the home coun t ry
of the propri e tary firm mu st usually b e placed v ia the paren t
company .
Although mo s t lo cally-owned inden t agencie s con s i s t o f
lone independen t op erat ors , some d o have formal links with
o ther lo cal f irms . Among agen t s who in den t food s t uf f s ,
operat ion o f a whole s ale-re tail outlet by othe r family members
is t he mo s t connn on fo rm o f l inkage . At least seven o f the
owners of locally-owned in den t agencies own or share ownership
of other firms , and it is l ikely that there are other such
l inkage s .
The ab s en ce of res t r ict ion s on foo d s tuff impor t ing , the
aggre s s ive bus ines s hab it s of inden t agent s and the eas e o f
en t ry int o inden t ing al l con tribute t o con s iderable compe
t it ion in foo ds t uff imp o r t ing . A number o f fac tors , however ,
count erac t p o t en t ial ins tab ility in the t rade .
One is the
back-order character of food impor t s . Whether for lack o f
cap i t al , pred i ctab le and l imit ed demand f o r foodstuff s o r
o ther reason s , foods tuf f s are imported p rimarily in re spon s e
t o e s tablished deman d . Mos t re tailers an d wholesale-re tailers
who import do so as s to cks require replen ishing and then
they only order good s for which they have as sured outlet s .
In the past y ear or
They ra ,ely impor t un tr ied p roduc t s .
so , a coup le o f f irms in Suva have t aken advan t age o f
container fre ight facilit ie s an d have b egun importing on
s pe culat ion food s tuffs and general hous eho ld i t ems . Their
impact on the food t rade has b een s l ight .
Inden t ag en t s
frequen t ly impo r t new non-food l ines o r ' good deals ' on
e s t abl ished l ines at their own exp en s e and sub sequen t ly
wholesale the good s - but this rare ly occurs with foo d s tuff s .
152
Ano ther con s ervat ive force in foodstuff impo r t s is
exclus ive brand repre sen tat ion by in den t agen t s , an d t o a
lesser exten t by impo rt ers , h ere called ' di s t ributors ' .
Al though i t i s an amb i t ion o f mo s t indent agen t s to gain
exclus ive repre sentat ion r ight s to a p ro duc t , exclus ive
agencies or f ranchise righ t s are far less common among food
s tuff s than o ther goo ds , and anyway do not apply t o mo s t
imported s t ap les . Food bran ds that are ' exclus ive ' t o inden t
agen t s include Kraft , Quake r Oat s , Sunshine (milk) , SPC
( canned fruit ) , Dis t illers Co . (yeast ) , Lion (bak in g powde r ) ,
Go l den Circle ( canned fruit ) , Cadbury ( co coa) , Zorn and
Orders for produc t s with a
s ome brands of canned f ish .
res i den t representative are accep t ed only if they come through
that agen t . Mo s t of the exclus ive rep resen t at i on righ t s
a r e hel d b y overseas-owned inden t agen c ies , an d mo s t overseas
owned agencies deal ing in foodstuffs have s ome exclus ive
brand right s . 8
Access to p ar t i cular b rand s may b e rest r icted by means
o ther than a s s i gn ing exclus ive righ t s to an inden t agen t .
Some manufact urers accept o rder s only t hrough app o in ted
agen t s in the p ro duc ing coun t ry . Pro duct s o f t he New Zealand
Dairy Board , such as butter and An chor milk , for in st ance ,
are expo rted on ly via official Dairy Board agen t s in New
Zealan d . While s ome manufact urers app o in t in den t agen t s t o
handle order s f o r their produc t s , o thers appo in t an importer/
whole s al e r as exclus ive d i s t ributor . This pract i ce has ,
however , p ract ically ceas ed in foo d-l ines . The one maj or
excep t ion is Ocean mackerel , wh ich is imported only b y the
Carpenter group . Anothe r related form o f con t ro l occurs
whe re a supp l ie r agrees t o do bus ines s on ly with part icular
firms .
It has b een sugge s t e d (but no t sub s t an t iated ) , for
in stan c e , that a maj or Aus t ralian s ource o f rice has agreed
to supply only three mill s in Fij i . While exclus ive repre s
en tat ion can be j us t ifie d e conomically by suppl ier , agen t
and purcha s er , i t can crea t e monopol is t i c t rade prac t ices .
On the who le , however , such acces s res tric tion has a far
smal ler role in the trade of foods tuffs than o th er produc ts .
In c onclusion , three general poin t s can b e made about
p r o c e s s e d food impo rt in g .
Firs t ,
the sys t em is predominan t ly
back-order supply system charact erized by the underdevelop
ment of warehous in g and few importer-dist ribut ors ( rather
than import er-whol esalers ) . Thi s s t ruct ure con t ributes t o
the periodic short-supp ly o f many connno dit ie s .
Secon d , the
influence of ove rseas l inks in the in t ernal market in g sys t em
is readily apparen t . Not only do the l inks orien tate t rade
a
153
t o part icul ar coun t rie s , bu t even the source of supply wi thin
oversea s coun t r ie s is o f t en det e rmined by the d i st ribution
policies of s uppliers and ove rs eas agen t s . Mo reover , ove r
seas-owned inden t in g firms appear to handl e a dis proport ion··
ately large share of t rade .
The dominan ce may b e due partly
to b et t er overseas l inks 1 also impor t an t is the leve l o f
capitalizat ion , fami liarity wit h overseas busine s s me thods
and exclus ive rights to some key produc t s .
Fin ally , of all levels o f t rade in p roces sed foods ,
impo r t ing operates w it h l ea s t governmen t involvemen t . On
the one hand , th is may b e j ust if ied by the belief that minimal
res t rict ion will en courage compet it ion among importers ,
which will ult imat ely b enefit con s ume rs . On the o t her hand ,
the pol icy i s perhap s que s t ionab le in the light of the
crit ical con s equences o f impor t ing co s t s on in ternal price
levels .
Whole s al in g
There a r e two b as i c forms o f proce s sed food wholesalin g
in Fij i , the wholes aler-ret ailer and the non-ret ailing whole
s aler . By e s t imated share-of-t rade and numb er o f outle t s ,
wholes aler- ret ailers are the more import an t .
Wholes aler- re t a ilers impo rt or purchase f rom local food
pro c e s s ors the i t ems they whole sale ; apart from wholesalers
in is olat e d l o cat ion s who may re-who lesale , the chief re
wholesalin g organ i z at ion is the Fij i Co-operative As s oc iat ion
Ltd . Excluding the FCA , wholesaler - retailers are of two
bas ic types : the overs eas -owned general t rad ing and commercial
corporat ion wh ich has some involvement in the gro cery trade ,
e . g . Mo rris He dst rom Ltd an d Burn s Philp ( South Sea) Co .
Lt d 7 and the lo cal In dian o r Chinese f amily-owne d and operat ed
concern tha t has usually developed from a fami ly retail
bus ines s . The s cale and longevi ty of the lat t er var ies . I t
is no t unusual f o r s uch bus ines s es to wi thdraw from importing
and wholesalin g to con cen trate on ret ail in g during economi cally
depre ssed p er iod s ; for some , wholesaling has an ins i gn ificant
role in their total small t rade , but fo r o thers it can account
fo r up to 90 per cen t of est imat ed annual gro s s turnover o f up
up to $ 1 . 5 million , aro un d three-quarters o f wh ich is in
gro cer ie s .
Non-re t a il ing who lesalers are almo s t exc lus ively food
p roce s sors /manufac t urer s that wholesale their product s to
154
di s t ribut o rs or re t ailer s . N ine main food product s ( f lour ,
sharp s , sugar , dry b i s cuit s , o ils , sugar , rice , t e a an d
dairy produce ) are handled largely b y s uch wholes alers .
Before an alys ing the op erat ion s o f t hese forms
of wholes ale r , two p o in t s about wholesal in g in F ij i need t o
be kept in mind . Firs t , while they do h ave s t ron g l inks
with re t ail ing and import ing , who lesalers rarely expand int o
manufact urin g an d inden t ing . On ly one cas e came t o no t ic e
during o ur wo rk in Fij i where a lo cally-owned ret ailer
wholesaler also operated as an inden tor ; only one in s tance
o f a wholes aler- retailer involved in manufacturing was no t e d .
Second , the pro ces sed foo d s whol es al ing system in F ij i
is characterized by b o th relat ive rigidity an d flexib il i t y .
The rigidity in th e sys t em comes in large part f rom gove rnmen t
price con t ro l measures t hat dis courage wholes alin g int er
mediaries .
Some con s equences of the P IB for the food
d i s t r ibut ion s y s t em have been examined above .
On the o ther han d , the ab sence o f s ign i f ican t en t ry
res t ri ct ions to foo ds t uf f impo r t in g and whol es al ing cont r ibutes
to an ext remely flexib le and compet it ive who l e s ale environmen t .
Compet i t ion is primari ly through p rice , with service , in
part i cul ar de l ivery s e rvi ce., a s e cond form o f in cen t ive .
Competit ion is s uch that in areas wh ere it is mo s t int en s e ,
fo r in s t an ce the Suva-Nausori region , where there are over
12 0 comp anies supp lying ret ailers with gro ce rie s , 9 i t is n o t
llll c onnnon f o r wholesaler-re t ailers t o operate below cos t on
key it ems in o rder to cap t ure a share o f the t rade . On it ems
that are n o t llll d er price con t rol , markup s on a wholesale
p rice are arollll d 15 per cen t over landed cost ; retail markup s
are usually a f urther 10 per cen t . A commonly reported net
p ro f i t rat e fo r general whol esal in g in Fij i is 1 0 per cen t ,
but it is l ikely that the net pro f it on gro ceries is less
t han this . 10
-·
I t i s ind icat ive of the de gree of compet it ion amon g
wholesalers that at least f ive o f the f ift een or so main
wholesaler- ret ailers operat ing out o f Suva either ceas ed o r
sharp ly c u r t a i l e d t he i r who l e s al e ac t ivit ie s over 1 9 7 6- 7 7 .
While comp et it ion may help main tain internal pr ices at a low
level , it con t rib utes to s upply ine f f icien cies by en couraging
tm der- cap i tal i z at ion , l imi t ed s to cks and perio d i c shortages .
Compe t i t ion has no t changed the bas ic fllll ct ion of the whole
s aler , th e forwarding o f supp l ies b etween pro duce r and
155
re t ailer , al though the respon s ib il ity o f act ual t ran s fer
fal l s in creas in gly on the ret ailer . Pract ically no product s
are repacked by wholesalers , the re tailer breaking bulk from
the manufact urer ' s s ale un it to that purchased by the
con sumer .
Whole s aler- re t ailers
The re-wholes aler . Re-whol es alers or ' j obber s ' are not
common in Fij i , b o th because the l imit e d allowab le markup s
on price con t rolled items dis cour age int ermediary t rade l inks
and b ec aus e of the limited d i s t ances between importer/manu
facturer and ret aile r ; mo st are as with a con s iderable gro cery
demand are within a coup le o f hours ' road j ourney from the
main s upply c en t re s . Nevertheles s , they are an in tere s t in g
and s ign ificant p a r t o f t h e pro ces s ed f o o d s dis t r ib ut ion
sys t em, not l east b ecause although the gove rnmen t dis courages
re-wholesal in g ( fo r example , through the P IB ) , it s mo st
ext ens ive development has oc curred un der spon sorship o f the
Department of Co-op erat ive s in the fo rm o f co-op erat ive
wholesale as s o ciat ion s .
The re-wholes aler purchas es s uppl ies from manufact urers
in Fij i o r , where goo ds are p ro duced overs eas , from impo rters .
The re-whol es aler , as dis t in ct from the whol e s aler an d
importer who may re-whole s ale some go o ds , do e s not impo rt .
Re-whole s al in g is the least common form of wholes aling an d
oc curs primar ily in areas wh ere impo rt in g is dis couraged by
limited demand an d difficul t connnun icat ion s with Suva or
Laut oka , t he chief port s of ent ry . Moreover , l imit ed and
s easonal t rade often means the re-whol esaler i s wit hout the
financ ial res ources to p ay for impo r t s upon receipt , wh ich
is the s t andard pract i ce in Fij i .
Some wholes alers in the smaller towns of Vit i Levu (l ike
Ko rovou) , and mo s t wholesale r- retailers el sewh ere do in fact
re-wholesale s ome p roduct s . More commonly , re-wholesalers
operat e out o f i solated shops in rural areas when ce whol e s ale
ac t ivit ies are dire cted t o even mo re remo t e st ores . Many
shop s in s t ra t e gic rural locat ion s , such as breaks-o f-tran sport ,
funct ion as wholesale out let s .
The re-wholesaler i s invariab ly an Indian or Chine se
t rader . His s t ore rarely appears l arger o r mo re pro s perous
than mos t In dian or Chinese rural general s t ore s . Th ere is
l i t t le s t ruct ural or funct ional divi s ion of wholesale and
ret ail facilit ie s , apart perhap s from mo re ext en s ive s t orage
156
facil i t ie s than in retail outlet s . Goods , however , are j us t
as l ikely to b e s to cked in the shop area a s in s pe c ial ized
s torage space .
S t o ck con s i s t s o f gro cery and general house
hol d it ems purchased from urban-based who lesalers in bulk s uch as 100 or 2 2 4 lb sacks of flour , r i ce o r sugar , and 4 8
o r 7 2 unit cartons o f canned goo ds .
S t o ck i s usually re
wholesaled in smaller un it s but is not repacked . Half-sack
meas ure s or hal f- do z en lot s of it ems l ike packet s of tea or
canned goo d s are connnon re-wholes ale un i ts . Re-wholesalers
are generally pas s ive in the ir whol esale act ivit ie s : they
do not s o l ic i t t rade or del ive r purchas e s .
Mo s t re-wholesalers do far mo re bus ines s as ret ailers
than as whole s alers b ecause re-wholesal e rs are p r imarily
emergen cy supply s ource s . When urgen t suppl ies run short
in ret ail s t ores , o r when the retailer has in s uf f ic ien t
ready cash , o r t oo poo r a c re dit rat ing , to warran t a t rip
t o a more d i s t an t s upply s ource where goods a re cheaper and
availab le in a great er ran ge and quan t it y , the re-whol esaler
is used .
The re-whole saler has only a small margin in which t o
e s t ab l ish a re-wholesale price a s the gro cery l ines that are
the b as is of his t rade are un der price con t rol . In fact ,
s ales to ret ailers are o f t en made at retail rate s , although
the re may be s ome dis coun t if payment is in cash . Even where
a ret ail er is suppl ied at a s p ecial re-whol e s ale price , the
resul t an t ret a il price is usua ll y higher than fo r goo d s pur
chased dire c t ly f rom a whol esaler . The re-wholesaler s urvives
in the face o f these pricing dis advan tage s be cause of his
great er acce s s ib ility for s ome retailers , lower direct t ran s
port delivery co s t s to the ret ailer and a t t imes by o fferin g
mo re l ib e ral credit t h an wholesaler s . Moreover , as mo s t
rural ret ail s t ores have relat ively s t atic pat ronage and
serve cus tomer s in s emi-monopo l is t i c condit ion s , the higher
prices neces s it at ed through s ervic ing b y re-whol e s alers can
b e p as s ed on to con sumers without the con s e quences o f lo s ing
cus tom that woul d be expected in mor e compet it ive circums t ances .
The numb e r and l ocat ion o f re-whol es alers cannot b e
readily det ermin ed from b us ine s s l i cen ce records .
S in ce f o r
mos t re-whol esal er s , whol esal in g i s errat i c an d largely
supplemen t ary t o retailing , the addit ional co s t of a whole
s ale-re tail l i cence may not be warranted ; an d re-whole s alers
locat e d in rural areas can o f t en operat e un detected b y
authorit ies . However , a sugge s t ion o f the exten t o f this
157
fo rm o f t radin g b ecame apparen t during a survey of
l i cen s ed ret a il out let s in the Cen t ral Divis ion : of 352
' ret ail ' s t ores s urveye d in urban an d rural area s , twen ty
two supplied o t her s to re s .
Re-whole s al in g is mo s t fully developed in the co-operat ive
movemen t . As the middle l evel o f the co-operat ive con sumer
s ocie t y o rgan i z at ion , regional whol esale associat ion s have
been e s t ab l i shed largely s in ce 1 9 7 2 to s upply goods at
wholes ale prices to member pr imary s o c iet ies . The region al
ass o ciat ion s are s upplied by the Suva-based apex o rgan iz at ion ,
the Fij i Co-operat ive As soc iat ion Lt d . 11 The co-operat ive
movemen t has b e come involved in wholesal in g in o rder t o
p rovide a more efficien t service t o member s o c iet ies an d t o
enab le i t to ret ain a share o f t rade that was go in g to sup
pliers out s ide the movement .
I t was thought there would be
greater e ff icien cy if the apex organ izat ion operated as a
cen t ral b uying ho use for societ ie s , and the a s s o ciat ion s
operated a s re gional warehous es . Th es e would meet s o ciety
deman d s more e fficien t ly , and b e ab le to pass on bulk purchase
di scoun t s .
The pre s en t regional as s o c iat ion s can pot en t ially
serve mo s t p r imary s oc iet ies an d it is not envis aged that
the numb e r will in crease great ly . The a s s o c ia t ion s rece ive
government gran ts for cap it al co s t s of shop and s t orage
development an d to sub s idize management expen s e s .
The co-op erat ive who le sale sys t em has not been success ful
f inan ci ally (Tab le 3 . 2 ) . Except p e rhap s in the mo s t isol at ed
is land areas , s o c iety loyalty t o co-operat ive wholesale
s uppl i ers i s weak . Re gion al wholesale a s s o c iat ion s have had
leas t s ucce s s on Vit i Levu .
Over the mo s t recent accoun t s
period , three o f s even assoc iation s there in cludin g on e on
nearby Vat ulel e i s l an d made a net lo s s on whol e sale t radin g ;
two b roke even and two made a net pro f it .
The exper i en ce o f th e Nadroga-Navo s a As soc iat ion sugge s t s
t h e difficul t ie s fac in g wholesale a s s o ciat ion s o n Vit i Levu .
The As s o ciat i on ceased op erat ion s in January 19 7 7 aft e r two
years act ivity during which the numb er of p urcha s in g societ ies
fell from over s eventy to less than ten . The As sociat ion
charged for del ive-ry an d in s is t ed on · part-paymen t a t
deliver¥ . In con t ras t ) o ther whol e s alers in S igatoka wh ere
the As s o c iat ion purchas ed s t o ck for re-whol esale , impo rted
or purchas ed direct ly f rom local food pro ce s s o r s an d could
of fer lowe r wholesale prices t han the As s o ciat ion . Other
whole s alers coul d al so use f ree deliver ies and a flexib le
credit po l i cy to at t ract cus tom .
In addit ion to this bas i c
158
s upply prob lem, the As s o ciat ion was s ome t ime s poo rly s t o cked
when lo ans from the Departmen t of Co-op erat ives to pur cha se
s t o ck were delayed .
Whe re s o ci et ie s do not have ready a c ce s s t o al ternat ive
s upp l iers , as in Lau and Lomaivit i , wholesale as s o c iat ion s
have been more s ucce s s f ul . Only one o f s even a s s o ciat ion s
in the Eas t ern Div i s ion had a net t r adin g lo s s over the mo s t
re cent acco un t s period .
Co-op erat ive ' di s loyal t y ' , however ,
is apparent in thos e areas al s o in that region al ass oc iat ion s
connnonly purchase s t o ck f rom impo rt e rs an d who l esalers other
than the FCA.
S o ciety an d as s o ciat ion ' disloyalt y ' can b e at t r ibut e d
in part to e conomic connnon s en s e .
S uppl ie s for s o c iet ies
at region al as soc iat ion s , and even at the FCA are frequen t ly
more expens ive than el s ewhere owing t o re-whol e s al in g markup s ,
poor b uys and b ad pricin g p ract i ce s . Becaus e o f this ,
re g ional as s o ciat ion s cannot expect the cus t om o f s o cie t ie s
that have access t o d irect import e r-whol esalers . Mo s t
societ ies on ro ad l inks t o Labas a or the main towns o f Vit i
Levu are in this category , a s are s o ciet ie s in the Yas awas
and the Lomaivi t i and Lau islands , which have regular s hipp in g
l inks with Suva .
Compoun ding the dise conomies of s upply by re-who lesalers
are que s t ion s o f the e f f i c iency o f the co-op erat ive wholesal in g
The F CA has a reput at ion o f b e ing an expens ive
o rgan iz at ion s .
and unreliab le gro cery wholesaler . Trad in g lo s s es are
co un t e red by acro s s-the-board price inc rease s that only
resul t in further diminut ion of t rade an d decreas .ed profit · and
con sequen t addit ional p rice hikes . 12
Management of the FCA has recen t ly been t aken in hand
by an overs eas a id t eam an d reo rgan i z at ion is 1ID der way t o
curb the downward t rend in sales volume an d p r o f i t rat e s .
Over the p as t two y ears , s ales have decl ined by 14 . 5 per cen t ,
although gro cery s ales fell by a l i t t le l es s than this . For
the y ear end in g 30 Sept emb er 1 9 7 6 , t o t al s ales were s l ightly
more t han $1 mill ion , j us t under hal f o f whi ch was in groceries ;
Of gro cery s ale s ,
fuel s ales compris e an equal share o f t rade .
7 7 p er cent we re wholesale t ran sac t ion s made at a ne t l o s s
o f 1 7 . 5 p er c en t : on ly on e departmen t o f t h e As s o ciat ion , a
ret a il outlet caterin g primarily t o FCA s t af f in Suva, made a
net p ro f it .
159
The FCA imports mo s t overseas supp lies d irec t , the
orders usually go ing from i t s inden t sect ion to a ' buy in g
house ' in New Zealan d that a c t s as agen t and consol idates
order s .
S t o cks p roduced lo cally are purchas ed dire c t from
manufac t urers . Orders from member asso ciat ions are proces sed
in Suva . By sup p ly ing only regional associat ions rather
than primary so c i e t ie s , it should be p o s s ib le to overcome
much o f the p roblem of bad credit to s o c iet ies ; credit
acco un t s o f a small number of high-vo lume p urchasers are
easy to mon it o r .
In theory , sup p ly run s l ink regional wholes ale as soci
at ion s with the Suva FCA headquar ters about every two weeks .
In fac t , s upp lies are very ir regular on bo th the s ea run s
to Kadavu , Lomaivit i , Lau and Taveuni , Vanua L evu and
Ro tuma and to s o c ie t ies on the c ir cum-Vi t i Levu road . The
s upply run that operat e s wi th mo s t regular i ty is the liquor
who les al er ' s route around V i t i Levu . The As so c iat ion ship s
supp l ie s on p rivate ves sels or on g overnmen t ship s a t
commer c ial rates . Links b e tween reg ion a l who lesale as soci
at ion s an d s o c ie t ie s on mor e isolated i s lands are even more
It
t enuous than between the FCA and regional as so ciation s .
is n o t unusual for s ome is lands to b e o u t of foods t uffs
o ther than that p roduced on the i sland , for weeks an d even
mon ths .
The dec lared obj ec t ive of the FCA i s a monopoly o f
wholes ale s up p ly to co-operat ive s o cieties in a t leas t the
It remain s to b e seen
Eas tern Divis ion and Cakaudrove .
whe ther the advantages from centralized import ing and d i s tr i
but ion are s ufficien tly at trac t ive to win so ciety and as soci
at ion cus tom .
The ac t ivit ies of the FCA p rovide an interes t ing
in s tance o f an effort t o s tructure a s upply sys t em mo re to
meet s ervice obj ec t ives than to op erat e wi thin parameters
appropr iate to the phy s ical and commercial environment .
Impor t in g who l es aler-re t a ilers .
The mo s t connnon type
o f who les aler-re tailer is the trader who buy s locally-p roces sed
f oo d s , such a s sugar , f lour , sharp s , rice , tea and dry
b i s cuit s from a manufacturer an d who impor t s o ther s t o ck
d ire c t ly . P rice con trol re gulat ion s en courage merchan t s to
import dire c t ly ; in addit ion to who lesalers , import ing is
also done b y some larger and speci al i z ed re t a ilers , such as
supermarket s , Indian and Chinese food specialis t s and the few
fresh fruit an d veget ab le spec ial is t s . Alt hough the require
ment of p ayment upon delivery for imported goods means there
is a relat ive ly small numb er of con s i s t en t and e s t ab li shed
160
importers , there are al so nume ro us spe culat ive s easonal
impo rters .
Canned tomatoes from Taiwan , for ins t an ce , have
recen tly b een widely imported by entrepr eneurs rangin g from
small general retailers to duty- free goods merchan t s .
Canned fish i s ano ther spe culat ive import field . Mo s t
impo r ters , includin g the tran s itory , seasonal op erators ,
retail as wel l as wholesale .
Two basic forms of the import in g wholesaler-retailer
are iden t if iable .
One is the ' in tegrate d wholesaler-ret ailer ' ,
the merchant who wholesales and ret a il s without s truc tural
o r funct ional dis t in c tion be tween the s e activities . An
o f f i ce and a bulk s t o re for wholesale trade may b e s e t a s ide
from the re t a il shop , but s eparate wholesale an d re tail
accoun t s are not maintain ed , a connnon s t af f is emp loyed ,
and s t o ck is sold wholesal e o r re tail .
Other who les aler-retailers maintain d i s t in ct wholes ale
and re tail fun ct ion s , facilit ies , supplies , s t aff and accoun t s ;
examp le s are Morris Heds trom and Burn s Philp , although in
some o f the ir branches the s eparat ion o f fun c t ion is no t
main ta in e d .
The operat ional separation o f wholesal e and
re tail act iv i t ie s may b e a p ro duct o f the volume q f t rade ,
but the divis ion also coin cides with racial differences in
ownership an d methods o f bus ines s op erat ion .
Wholesaler-re t a ilers who import and p urchase lo cally
are urban-based and concen trated in the larger t own s .
In
the Cen t ral Divi s ion , for in s t an ce , ther e are approximately
twen ty-f ive s uch wholesaler-retaile rs in Suva , t en in N aus o r i ,
three in Navua , one in Korovou and only two or three are in
rural areas .
S imilar urban / rural an d large/ small t own
dif ferences are found elsewhe re ( Tables 3 . 4 , 3 . 5 ) . Easy
acce s s to b o th supp l i er s and cus t omers wit hin Fij i , and
through ports-o f-en try t o external supplier s , p red icates
cen t ral urb an lo cat ion s .
In tegrat ed wholes aler-re tailers
are almo st al l e it her Indian s o r Chines e : only two who les ale
retail bus in e s s e s out of more than 100 are Fij ian . 13
There are no fo rmal en t ry requirements to gro cery whole
salin g o ther than paymen t of the app ropriate busin es s licence
fees . Although a small numb er o f bus ines s e s are regis tered
private compan ies , mo s t are a family general retail s tore
from which wholes ale trade is con ducted with minimal s t ruc
tural modificat ion , apart perhaps from the con s t ruc t ion or
leas in g of a bulk- s tore . Bus ine s s e s are operated by the
owner and man ag emen t is by t he owner or his family .
If
161
Table 3 . 4
Locat ion and ownershiE o f re t a il and whole sale- ret a il grocerl'. outl e t s
Fi ' i
a
Own e rshiE
Locat ion
( Divis ion )
b
Total
Ch ine s e Fij ian
Co-op . European Other Unknown
Indian
Ret ail
Cent ral rural c
urban d
We s t e rn rural
urban
Northern rural
urban
Eas t e rn rural
urban
To tal
4
3
12
3
595
187
126
7
18
2
16
17
940
223
14 0
113
1
14
2
4
439
53
1
6
84
111
5
1
153
811
483
173
96
25
71
2 62
4
119
6
458
163
7
28
315
6
159
44
9
6
4
9
1106
4
4
49
1
2
3
1
2 05
16
52
2658
Who lesale-re t ail
Cent ral rural
urban
We stern rural
urban
No rthern rural
urban
Eas t e rn rural
urban
Tot al
a
b
c
d
9
40
5
24
1
10
2
35
2
1
3
8
3
48
3
11
11
1
1
8
4
31
2
1
1
1
2
1
6
82
25
11
21
2
2
1
142
Race o f owner i s de rived f rom name o f s t o reowner and / o r s t o re as l is t ed
in bus in e s s l i c en c e records .
In mo re isolated areas in part icular ,
licen ce records are not complete or up to dat e .
Data on s t ores in Kadavu
are not availab l e :
if in cluded , the numb er of retail Fij ian and co
operat ive s o c i e ty s tores in rural E as t e rn Division would in crease
s ignifican t ly .
In cludes o ther Pac i f i c Is landers and s t o re s operated by Fij ian groups
( e . g . women ' s club s ) o the r than co-o p erat ive societ ies .
It is assumed that all shop s in rural areas s e l l food (with the excep t ion
of tho s e around Suva and Nauso r i , many of which were visited to as certain
fun ct ion ) .
The funct ion o f al l s t o re s in urban areas was che cked individually : non
food shop s are excluded f rom the t ab l e .
Sourc e :
Busine s s l ic ence regis t er s , various o f f ices , l s t quar t e r 1 9 7 6 for
the Central Divis ion and 4 t h quarter 1976 for e l s ewhere .
162
Table 3 . 5
----
Locat ion an d ownership of retail and who le sal e-re tail grocery outle t s ,
Cen t ral Divis ion
--------
Locat ion
Urb an areas
Suva
retail
c
w / retail
Naus ori
ret ail
w / retail
Navua
re tail
w/re t ai l
Korovou
re t ail
Total
--ret
ail
w/re t ail
Rural areas
Suva
re t ai l
w / retail
N aus ori
retail
w / ret ail
Navua
re t ail
w / re t ail
Korovou
retail
Vun idawa
retail
Total
s t ores
In dian
140
28
56
15
65
9
21
10
18
7
3
1
14
2
13
2
1
12
9
2
187
40
96
24
71
10
151
4
38
2
241
4
100
3
75
1
22
77
3
Ch in e s e
Fij ian
b Co-op . EuroSOC .
pean
4
2
1
1
4
6
2
4 .
3
20
1
70
1
13
2
92
1
45
2
35
17
1
1
40
30
1
25
14
2
3
51
10
595
9
173
5
25
1
2 62
2
119
1
Urban and
rural t o t al
re t ail
w/ ret ail
7 82
49
269
29
96
11
266
2
12 5
3
b
c
Unkn own
6
1
4
To tal
---reiail
w/ re t ai l
a
Other
4
3
2
1
3
3
1
3
4
6
4
12
7
1
15
Race of own e r i s derived f rom name o f s t o reown e r an d / o r s t ore as l i s t e d
i n busin e s s l icen c e records .
In cludes o th e r Pac i f ic I s l an ders and sto res op erated by Fij ian groups
( e . g . women ' s club s ) o ther than co-op erat ive socie t ie s .
Excluded f rom ' w/ retail ' are man ufacturers and processors holding a
licence to who l e sale thei r produc t s .
S o urce :
Bus in e s s li cence regi s t ers , var ious o f f ices , Cen t ral Divis ion ,
l s t qua rter 1 9 7 6 .
163
vo lume is suff icien t , wage labour may be hired . Larger
operat ion s employ twelve or f if teen people and managemen t ,
retail attendan t s , bulk- s tore labour , salesman an d driver s
are a l l dis t in guishable role s . Facilit ies a r e bet ter and
t rade vo lume i s larger than among re-wholesaler s , but the
fun c t ion o f the two fo rms of operat ion is e s s en t ial ly the
s ame : to collect and redi s tr ibut e goo ds with minimal
repacking .
In addit ion to grocerie s , who l esaler-retailers deal
in the connnon hous ehold i t ems that are bas i c to the t rade
of the general s tores they s ervice but the re is min imal
handlin g of o t her non-food l in es . Jus t as re tail outle t s
carry a broad s tock t o a t t ract cus tom , so d o who l e saler
retailers need to supply the bas i c goo ds han dled by re tailers .
Non ethele s s , there i s some spe cializat ion , particularly
amon g the smaller whol es aler-reta ilers operating in urb an
and peri-urban areas , a numb er of whom have ceased dealin g
in locally man ufactured goods , part icularly f lour � sharp s ,
r i ce an d s ugar . One cause of this spec ializat ion is that
allowable who l e s ale markup s on i t ems un der p rice con t rol
dis courage t rade in these i t ems b e cause of the cos t s o f
s to ck , labour , s t o rage an d t ran spor t . When these p roduct s
came under p rice con t ro l in 1 9 7 3 , whole s al ers ceased free
delivery o f them ; many now have st opped dealin g in the .
it ems al together .
The s upp ly o f these bas i c goods is further con s t r ic t ed
by the fact that the p roducers of some that are p ro ce s sed
lo cal ly have min imum purchase policies or policies res t r i c t in g
whol es ale acces s , both of which dis courage t h e involvement
o f t rade rs in wholesal in g . Wholesaler-retailer f irms that
deal in thes e basic goo d s are inc reas ingly l imi ted to the
larger regional supp lier s , includin g s ome in tegrated whole
s aler-ret a iler s , as wel l a s Morri s Heds t rom and FCA. The
move t owards whol e s ale special i z at ion in small vo lume/high
bulk it ems is espec ially apparen t amon g s ome Guj erat i
merchant s in Suva who now deal largely in it ems they import
direct ly s uch as canned f ood s , dhal , In dian s p i ce s , e dib le
o il s , potat oe s , garlic and on ion s .
In tegrat ed wholesaler-retailers act ively s eek bus ine s s .
Their salesmen v i s i t retailer s t o take o r ders within specific
territorie s . The few retailers with t e lephon es may t elephone
order s . Each retail s tore has a n umb e r of more or les s
regular sup p l i er s who e ither vis it or are in telephone
con t ac t . Ret ailers are very cos t -con s c io us of s to ck and do
164
not he s itate to in form re gular suppl iers i f they can purchase
cheaper elsewhere . Moreover , mer curial s al e s represen t at ives
o f o ther whol e s alers - and o f inden t agen t s encouragin g
retailers t o import direct - appear almo s t daily t o push
the ir p roduc t s .
Wholesal er- re tailer s op erate in b roadly-defin ed but n o t
exclus ive t errit orie s (Fig . 1 6 ) . Botm. daries o f operat ions
are more or les s demarcated b etween t own s , although large r
suppl iers o f t en d eal chief ly in their own and neighbourin g
t owns , ignorin g t h e in tervenin g rural areas . Two Suva f i rms ,
fo r ins t ance , sen d s alesmen to the island towns o f Levuka ,
Savusavu and even Waiyevo : s ale smen visit these p laces on ce
every three or four weeks and goo d s are shipped s oon after .
In areas acce s s ible by road , a whole s al e r-retailer attemp t s
t o se rve retail shops onc e a week . In urban an d peri-urban
are as aro tm.d the wholesaler ' s base , the s alesman t akes orders
in. the mo rn ing and return s with goo d s in the aft ernoon of
the s ame day .
In mo re dis t an t areas , orders are taken one
day and del iveries are made the n ext , or perhap s two days
later .
Mos t town s have two or three chi ef importin g whol esaler
retailer s , and a mul t it ude of less- act ive or regular im
po rters . The chief importin g merchan t s usually have a maj o r
share o f wholesal e supply t o the town ' s h in t e rland , b u t rural
areas are f requen tly left to smalle r who lesaler s . Hence , a
maj o r import in g who les al e r in Tavua may do cons i derab l e
busin e s s in Tavua an d Ba an d even a s f a r away as S igatoka ,
b ut n o t act ively en courage much closer rural t rade as the
t rade vo lume and credit d i ff icult ies are no t con s i dered
wo rth the ris k .
S tore owners with vehicl es generally u se t ravell in g
s alesmen only t o replen ish it ems that are tm.expectedly out
of s t o ck , or for regular o rde rs from an e s t ab l i shed s upplier .
The owners of larger bus in e s s e s vis it the town depo t o f the ir
regular who lesaler t o collect goods . Del iveries of orders
p laced through s al e smen are o f t en made without an exp l i cit
t ranspo rt char ge , wh ich is pos s ib le partly b ecaus e the z one
within whi ch the s ale smen op erat e i s usually l imit ed - rarely
more than ten or f i f teen miles f rom the wholesale r ' s shop and few deal in the generally bulky price-con t rolled goo ds .
Order s placed by retailers when they vis it the wholesaler ' s
base are delivered without t ran sport charge if the order is
lar ge o r del ivery can b e in tegrat ed in to a s t andard s upply
rtm. .
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Supply areas of retail grocery s tores in the C entral
Divis ion ( Sourc e : Fieldwork)
166
It is rarely pro f it ab le f o r wholesaler-re ta ilers to
o f fer free goods delivery o r credit , al though su ch services
may be required t o e s t ab lish and maintain cus tom. When a
firm feels i t has e s t ab lished a reliab l e clien tele or has
decided to c ut back wholesal in g exp an s ion , credi t becomes
t i gh t and de l ivery o f goo d s i s dis couraged .
The withdrawal
of the s e s ervice s mus t be carefully t imed as a deb t or can
eas ily defect to an o the r s uppl i er and the deb t become
irrecoverable .
One part icularly a ggre s s ive but not very common form
o f wholesal in g is where whole salers sell direct from a t ruck
loaded with s upplies . A couple o f s uch merchan t s operate
from rural b as e s in the Wes t ern Divis ion .
S i x- t onn e t rucks
are loaded wit h b as i c gro cery supplies in cluding p r i cecon t ro lled commodities and retailers - usually rural s t o re s are app roached fo r on-the-spot cash or credit sale s .
The s e
travel l in g wholesale merchan t s report edly b ecome more s eden t ary
and l e s s speculat ive once t hey have e s t ab li shed retailer s '
pat ronage through service , at trac t ive p rices an d deb tor
independence . This form o f wholesalin g is more common in
non- foo d s t uf f t rade than the general gro cery t rade .
Unl e s s a grocery whole s aler-ret ailer uses compet i t ive
p ricing , service and credit to gain a larger share o f the
market , bus in e s s expan sion generally ent ails movement in t o
ano ther func t ion o r region . The lat t er i s more common . Few
int egra t ed wholesalers-retailer s expand either ver t ically
into indenting or food manufac ture or horizon tally into nonf ood t rade .
Once a company feels tha t l imit s of viab le
expan s ion in the local market have been reached and t hat
furthe r at t emp t s to capture a larger share will p rovoke
ult imately uneconomic comp e t it ion , a b ranch may be e s t abl ished
in ano ther centre . A number of wholesale- re t ail out let s
opened in Suva over the past few y ears are exp an s ion out l e t s
for Tavua and Lab asa bus ine s s e s . Expan s ion outlet s have
ident ical f un c t ion s to the p aren t shop s , although buy in g may
be cen t raliz e d in one out let .
Branches b ecome increa s in gl y
independen t however , an d th e family ' s en t rep reneurial e f f o r t
i s l ikely to b e concen trated in the mor e active and succes s ful
outle t . Moreover , the rel ian c e on family for skilled and
p ro f e s s ional input creat e s a limit t o expans ion ; the large s t
number of ret ail and wholesale-retail gen eral grocery outlet s
operated by an imme diat e family en coun t e red in the survey was
t hree and even these op erat ed largely independen t ly o f
one ano ther . As the food market will n o t b ear much comp e t i t ion ,
expan s ion generally en t ail s con s iderab le re lo cat ion wh ich in
167
tuTI1 encourages b ranch aut onomy .
TuTI1over of in t egrated who le s aler-r etailers varies
con s iderab ly . Urb an-orien ted out l et s in Suva probably have
gro s s annual turnove rs of $ 100 , 000 to $ 2 0 0 , 000 . Well- s t o cked
supp li ers servin g rural areas eaTI1 arolll1. d the upper limi t s
o f t h i s ran ge . Who lesaler-ret ailers based in Suva serving
smalle r towns and is land cen t re s have gro s s t urnovers of
$ 1- 1 . 5 million . Turnover s o f the s imilar clas s of who lesaler
re t a ilers in Lautoka and Labasa are probab ly in the same
range . Turnover o f who lesal ers els ewhere woul d b e cons ider
ab ly le s s .
In a s econd form o f import ing wholesaler-retailer , as
dis t inct from the integrated who lesaler-retailer , who lesale
and ret ail operat ions are administ rat ively an d even s pat ially
d is cret e .
Burns Phi lp ( South Seas ) Co . Ltd , 14 Morris Hedst rom
al5
Lt
and the F ij i Co-operat ive As so ci at ion are the primary
examples of this type o f who lesaler . Thes e fi rms dif fer from
other wholesal er-retailers in fundamen tal ways in addit ion
to s cale of operat ion . Mo t ivat ion , organizat ion and business
met hod s are ' upper c ircuit ' , so re flect in g the expatriat e
European owne rsh ip or management . The wholesal in g act iv it ie s
of the FCA have been examine d above .
In this sec t ion ,
at tent ion wil l fo cus on Mor ris Hedst rom and Burn s Philp .
At one level , Mo rris He dst rom and Burns Philp have much
in common . Both have in tegrat ed vert ical s t ruc tures that
enab le them t o handle goods f rom the ove rs eas pur chase s t age
thro ugh to ret ailin g wit h minimal n on- company involvemen t .
Through tradin g volume , each has acc e s s t o quant ity d is co un t s
that are rare ly availab l e t o o t h e r impo rt er s . Their gro cery
whole s al ing act ivit ies are largely pas s ive . Ano ther feature
in common is the ' s ervice ' aspect o f the ir wholes al ing :
their s t o ck inc ludes price-controlled e s s ent ial commodit ies
shunne d by many wholesalers and they carry some cus t omer s
The ext ent
over p rolon ged perio d s o f f inanc ial dif f iculty .
and role o f philan thropy in such s ervice is d i f ficul t to
determine , but t he b roade r , partly non-economi c , con text of
th e firms ' act ivit ie s is undeniab le .
The import ance o f gro cery t radin g to Burn s Ph ilp an d
Mo rris Heds t rom differ s . B u rn s Ph ilp is more ret ailer than
wholesaler : on ly b e tween on e-quarter and on e-third o f it s
gro cery s ale s , in cludin g l iquo r , are wholesale . Tho se foods
that are s o l d whole s ale are mainly imported . Price con tro l s
168
on b a s i c it ems and compet it ion among who lesalers have led
to a corpo rat e pol i cy that focuses gro ce ry wholesalin g on
high value impo r t ed it ems with minimal involvemen t in p roduc t s
manufactured in Fij i . Where locally-pro c e ssed produc t s are
wholesaled , it is as a service to large cus tomers , such as
hotel s , and to en sure cont inued whole s ale patronage of non
food l in es .
Gro ceries are wholesaled main ly through the
Suva , Lautoka , S igatoka and Labasa out let s . Wholesal e service
is availab le elsewhere ( Levuka , Savusavu and Tave tm i ) but is
con f ined to l iquo r and s ome other supplies t o hotels and
clubs .
Company managemen t views wholesal e act ivit ies of the
smaller branches as prima rily a commtm ity s ervice .
Burn s Philp ' s emphas is on ret ail ing is part o f an at t empt
to rat ional iz e mer chandisin g and to b reak in to the urb an
cen t red ma s s market for gro cer ies an d gene ral homeware .
The
o r ient at ion i s a depart ure from the company ' s t radit ional
emphas i s on gro cery and con sumer goo ds mer chandis in g for
the expat riat e ' carriage-t rade ' , whi ch has now lost much of
i t s fo rme r s i gnifican c e .
It is based on west ern-s tyle ,
med ia-orien t ed , self- s ervice department s t ores managed largely
by youn g , re cen tly recruit e d expat riat e s t af f . Whole sal in g
has t aken a b ack- seat .
Lo cally-p ro ces s ed gro cery requiremen t s are purchase d
as re quired by Burn s Philp branch s t o re s for e ither ret ail
or wholesal e t rade .
Overs eas buyin g is c en t ral iz ed in Suva ,
when ce orders are channelled through Burn s Philp o ff i ce s
overseas ( in Aus t ralia , New Z ealand , Hon g Kon g an d t h e UK
and U SA) or through an agen t where the company does not have
an off ice ( as in Taiwan ) .
Imported goo d s are s t o red in the
company ' s Suva warehouse and d i st r ib ut e d to b ranches or
wholesaled t o ret ailers and other wholesalers .
Foods t hat
are imported by Burns Philp in clude sal t , conden s e d and
evaporated milk , canned corne d b e e f an d ' luxury ' items l ike
j ams , spreads and mi scell an eous canned goo ds . The company
doe s not hold any exclus ive distribut ive r ight s to food l ines .
Burns Philp has the f inan c ial resources and supplier
con t ac t s t o impo rt all it s overs eas requi remen t s but lo cal
impo rters ar e f requen t l y us e d when st o cks run out . As pur
chas e s are p r imarily for retail sale , rather than re-whole s al e ,
the company can use lo cal import ers and so reduc e impor t ing ,
s t o rage an d inventory cos t s . Fruit and vegetab l e s in cluding
dhal , on ions , garl ic and po t atoes are the chi ef it ems purchase d
from impo rters , the produc t s ' per ishability b e in g fo r Burn s
Philp an addit ional dis in cen t ive t o impo rt in g .
169
Mo rris Hedstrom Lt d and Woo lwo rths Lt d , the me rchandis ing
outlet s in Fij i of W . R. Carpen t e r Hol dings Lt d , are mo re
involved than Burn s Philp in both wholesal ing and ret ail in g
gro cer ies an d bas i c consumer items . Morris Hedst rom operat es
t en general wholesale-retail out l et s . Wh ere t rade volume
will support all- cash ret ailing o f foods tuf f s and homeware ,
these act ivit ies are hived- off to b e han dled by in dep enden t
Woolworths out le t s . There are two Woo lworths stores in Suva
and it is pos s ib le that o thers will be e s t ab l ished in Laut oka
and Naus ori in the near future .
Morris Hed s t rom is a maj or foo d s t uf f and general whole
saler . The s igni fican ce o f wholesalin g act ivit ies varies
b etween b r an ches : in s ome , such as in Laut oka , wholes aling
can accoun t for 8 0 p e r cent o f t rade . Foo dstuf f s an d as soci
ated household non-food requiremen t s l ike s o ap account for
50 to 60 per cen t o f Morris Hedst rom merchandise t rade by
value .
Morris Hed s t rom b r an ch s t ores have con s i derab le aut onomy
in t rad ing act ivit ies . Each bran ch i s respon sib le for retail
and whol es ale t radin g within the con t iguous region . Bran che s
purcha s e autonomo us ly most locally p ro duced suppl i es but all
import ing is done through the S uva head o f fice . For s ome
items , such as canned mackerel , deman d of all Mo rris Hedst rom
b ran ches is amalgamat ed in one o rder so vol ume di s co un t s are
ob t a ine d ; ind ividual bran ches are respon s ible fo r assessing
demand an d sub s e quently s el l ing their s hare of the split
Orders for lo cal p roduct s on wh i ch vo lume di s coun t s
shipmen t .
apply are a l s o amal gamated an d sub sequen tly b roken in to ind i
vidual b ran ch requirement s . The Lautoka b ranch ac t s as a
cl ear in g house fo r We s t e rn Divi sion and Labasa bulk-volume
o rders .
Wholesaling of foods t uf f s by Mo rris Hedst rom should b e
seen in the con t ext o f the f irm ' s role a s a gene ral whole
s ale r , whi ch en t ail s carryin g the low earn ing p r ice-con t rolled
basic commodit ies spurned by many who lesaler-ret ailers as
wel l as mo re lucrat ive grocery and non-food l ine s . Wholesal in g
o f b a s i c gro c ery items i s largely pas s ive : min imum services
are provided t o clien t s , s o l imit ing cos t s on goods wh ich
return l i t t l e pro fit .
Sale smen do not solicit orders and
ret ailers who s t o ck from Morris Hedst rom are encouraged to
collec t their goo ds . Del ivery is made wit hout charge only
i f s ignificant purchases of h i gher-pro f it good s are made .
In con tras t , t rade in l iquor and non- food it ems is ac't ively
pursued by s al esmen .
In spite o f the pass ive at t it ude to
170
wholesal in g b as i c foo ds , th es e commo d it ies s e rve a s the
b as is of Morris Heds t rom ' s gene ral whole sale t rade and play
It is the
an importan t part in p romo t in g ret ail t rade .
range o f goo ds carried , as much as vol ume o f t rade , that
set s Morris Hedst rom apart from o t her whol e s aler-re tailers .
In addit ion to a lon g- e s t ab l i shed connni tment to b road
b ased whol e s al ing , the economi c advan tage s comin g f rom t he
company ' s vert ical l inks an d the amal gamat ion o f b ranch
requiremen t s to qual ify for vol ume di scoun t s , an o ther fact o r
con t r ib ut ing t o Morris Hed s t rom ' s dominance o f general foo d
wholesal in g is the firm ' s con t ro l over the impor t in g o f
Ocean mackerel . Th is i s t h e mos t popular variety o f canned
fish in a b ran d- cons cious count ry . Trade f igures for Ocean
mackerel relat ive t o o ther variet ie s are unknown , b ut there
is no do ub t t hat it dominat e s canned f i sh s ale s .
The exclus ive
impo rt ac ce s s to Ocean mackerel is a s t r on g draw i t em for
ret ailers an d fo r other wholesalers serv ing a Fij ian cl ien
tele . In addit ion t o Ocean mackere l , o ther wholesalers
pur chas e f rom Morris Hed s t rom a l imit e d range of impo rted
i t ems , as they als o do from Burns Philp . Morris Hed s t rom
does no t hold exclus ive dist ribut ion r i ght s to other s igni
f i can t food l ines .
As the recen t c reat ion of Woo lworths ' outl e t s sugges t s ,
th e gro cery t rade i s increas in gly special i z e d an d the
s t ruc ture of Morris Hed s t rom wholesal e act ivit ies i s far f rom
s t at ic . With road development in the Wes t e rn Divis ion , for
ins t ance , whol e s ale a c t ivit ies are b ecomin g cent ral iz ed in
The t ime i s not very far o ff when Mo rr i s Hedst rom
Lautoka .
whol e s al e services in the We s t ern Divis ion will b e o f fered
only out o f Laut oka . Wholesal e act ivity in Nausori may l ike
wis e g ive way to Suva , and i t i s l ikely that Labasa will
s e rvice Savusavu once the two areas are l inked by road .
Non-ret ail in g wholesalers
Food pro ces s ors an d manufacturers . Food pro ces sors an d
manufa ct urers are t h e chi ef n on-re tai l ing foodstuff whol e
s alers ; the main pro duc t s involve d are f lour and sharp s ( one
mil l er ) , s ugar ( one miller w ith four mil l s ) , dry b i s cuit s
( two manufact urers ) , edib le oil ( two importer s /packers an d
proce s s o rs ) , r ice ( three chief millers ) , t e a ( three packers )
and dairy pro duce ( one cent ral dairy ) . Apart from three
sugar mil l s , all plan t s are l o cat e d in Laut oka o r the Suva
Naus ori are a . All the f irms are p rimarily p ro c e s s o rs an d
Some
manufacturers , b ut they als o wholes ale the i r product s .
171
manufact urers have exp anded int o manufacturing o f b o t h food
and non- food l ines , b ut generally processors are owned and
op erat ed independen t ly o f on e ano ther . 16 The ownersh ip o f
p ro ce s s ors i s in dependent o f ownership o f overs eas gro cery
suppliers or impo rt er/wholes alers b ased in Fij i .
The p ro ces s ors in fluen ce foo d marke t in g in two main
way s .
One i s through the ex- fact o ry purch ase unit which
usually rema ins unaltered tm t il t he item is ret ailed ; the
o the r is company poli cies towards wholesale acces s . At one
ext reme , manufacturers are l argely pass ive in the market in g
o f their p rodu ct s and res t r ic t who lesaler acce s s .
Some
companie s at t empt to s t ruct ure whole salin g by e s t ab l i sh ing
pr ice s t ruc t ures with vol ume purchase dis count s ; such attemp t s
t o regul at e d i s t ribut ive sys t ems seem t o be t h e subj ect
o f info rmal agreemen t s b etween manufacturers of s imilar
pro duct s .
Other manufacturers , par t i cularly t ho s e p ro ducing
in comp et ition w ith o ther p ro ducer s , have open ac ces s and
flexib le sal e s pol icies , with a numb e r even employin g a small
act ive sal e s s taff . An examinat ion of the market in g pol icies
o f a small numb er of l ocal foods tuff pro ces sors gives an
impre s s ion o f the range o f their involvement in marke t in g .
The sugar in dus t ry and i t s involvement in wholesaling
it s p ro duct of fers an example o f res tr i c t ive merchant-acc e s s
pol icies .
S ugar is milled an d market e d by the government
Fij i Sugar Corpo rat ion ( F S C ) . Ab out 2 0 , 000 t onnes are ear
marked annually fo r t he int ern al market , in clud ing market s
in neighb ourin g Pac ific coun t r i es .
So p re c i s e is t he allo
cat ion for t h e lo cal market that a s l i gh t delay in the s t art
o f a s eason ' s crushin g can result in widespread tmavailab il i t y
o f sugar an d p r ice dislocat ions - as happened when the 1 9 7 7
crushing s eas on was delayed one week through indus t r ial
disput e s . Un t il the 1 9 7 7 s eason , raw s ugar was wholesaled
from F S C ' s four mill s to presele ct ed wholesaler s , a rel at ively
un chan g in g ro up chosen on the bas i s of pas t pur chas e
his t ory . l
Each whole s aler has an annual pur chase quo t a o f
a t least 100 t onnes . . Pur chas es ar e · · made b y the t onne , in
s acks of app roximat ely 1 0 8 kg weight , 18 in min imum lot s of
five t onn e s ;
the re axe no quan t ity d is count s . Al l sales
are cash , ex-mill . Wholesalers collect sugar at the mil l s
an d t ran s po r t it t o the i r b ulk s t o res whence it is s old t o
ret ailers witho ut repackin g .
1
From the 1 9 7 7 season , F S C has l imited int e rn al sugar
supply t o Pen an g mill at Vaileka , on the grounds t hat the
s ugar p ro duced there i s f ree- flowing and so more suit ed to
1 72
con sumpt ion in i t s raw s t at e . The con cen t rat ion o f int ern al
supply at one out let has admin i s t rat ive advantage s for F S C ,
although t he co s t to the con s umer has n o t b een calculat ed .
The other maj o r mon opoly food producer in Fij i , Flour
Mills o f Fij i Lt d ( FMF ) , has an open and flexible in ternal
market ing sys t em. FMF is an overs eas-owned company e s t ab
l i shed in 19 7 3 to mill flour , sharp s and other produc t s f rom
impo rted wheat . Government in fluen ce on the e s t ab l ishmen t
of the mil l an d i t s operat ion s has b een con siderab l e .
It is
re ported that by the agreemen t illl der whi ch the mill was
e s t ab l ished , no other flour mill can be b uilt in Fij i for
a pe rio d o f t en y ears an d flour can only be impo rt e d illl der
governmen t l i cen ce , wh ich is grant ed when the mill is illl ab le
to meet domes t ic demands . The company also rece ived t axat ion
and o t he r inc en t ive s . For i t s part , the company reput edly
guaran t eed t o p ro duce flour an d sharp s below the landed co s t
o f equivalent impo rt e d produc t s . 19 Sal e s a re in 6 5 an d 5 0
k g sacks , ex-mil l ; there are n o b ulk purchas e di s coilll t s o r
company del ivery servi ces ; credit i s available .
In respect o f distribut ion , gove rnment influence on FMF
has been two-fo l d . The mil l has b een dire c t e d to sell to any
cust omer who makes a minimum purchase o f one t onne . FMF was
als o encouraged to as s i s t merchan t s develop regional ware
houses to hold approximat ely two weeks ' s upply of flour an d
sharp s . Fourt een merchan t s are commi s s ioned as ' warehouse
agen t s ' in the main cen t res o f the We s t ern Divis ion an d in
Lab as a , wit h FMF ext endin g credit facil it ies t o enab le each
to st ock app roximately 1000 sacks o f flour and sharp s . But
warehous in g co s t s ( includ ing fumi gat ion ) , the disin cent ive
o f c apit al t ied up in s t o cks , t ogether with imp roved connnun i
cat ion s between Suva and the Wes t e rn Divis ion led to a
collap se o f al l b ut two o f the mer chan t s with in two or three
mon th s ; thes e two mer chan t s now c arry well below the in t en ded
s t ock .
FMF h as been re s pon s ive t o local market demands - the
quest ion of p ro f iteerin g b eing sub judice .
However , expan s ion
of millin g fac ilit ies in early 1 9 7 7 is aimed at p ro duct ion
for exp o rt . 2 0 Once export sales commen c e , it wil l be int er
e s t in g t o s ee whether servi ce o f the local market ret ains
high priority .
Ano ther way of st ruct ur ing a dist ribut ion sys t em is
through price in cen t ives . One food p roducer t hat has at t empt ed
this is Cope Allman ( So uth Pacific ) L t d , an Aus t ral ian-owned
173
company locat ed in Suva , which manufactures edible o ils and
fat s , margarine and dry b i s cuit s , in addit ion to soap and
plas t i c p ro duct s .
Oil , fat an d mar garine product ion is
primar ily for in dus t ry and l arge-s cale users . Dry b i s cuit s ,
however , are aimed at lo cal con sumers an d Cope Allman manu
facture s in compet it ion with one o ther local produce r . 2 1
Cope Allman has at temp ted to develop a three- t ier sys t em
o f dis t r ib ut ion o f it s p roduct s , part icularly for b is cuit s
and s oaps :
' de alers ' who make pur chas e s of $ 30 , 000 t o
$ 4 0 , 000 p e r month an d s o ob tain goods by quant ity disco tm t s
a t prices that allow re-wholesal in g o r l arge retail ret urn s ;
' wholesalers ' who purchas e in 1 0 0 t o 2 00 car t on lo t s at
smaller dis coun t s that do not en courage re-wholesal in g ; and
' ret ailers ' purchas ing in lot s o f fifty carton s and le s s .
Dealers in clude the three or fo ur maj o r who lesaler-retailers
and at l east one Indian j obber who places a s in gle sub st ant ial
order whi ch he then bulk-b reaks and dist r ib ut e s t o a number
o f ret ailers - who f requently give the j obber a s pecif ic
order .
Price an d s ervice support o f p roduct s reflect s t he
de gree o f compet it ion in each market . For in s t an ce , Cope
Allman pre fers to s ell dry b is cui t s to on ly s even sele cted
wholesalers in Suva , Savusavu and Lab as a on a c &f Lab asa/
Savusavu an d int o- s t ore Vit i Levu bas i s . A small depot has
been open ed in Laut oka t o solicit cus t om and co-o rdinate
· s uppl ies in the Wes t ern Divi s i on whi ch is the lo cat ion of
compet in g s o ap and b is cuit manuf acturers : 5 to 1 0 per cent
of an o rder is made immediately and the b alan ce is t hen s ent
from Suva . For pro duc t s o ther than b is cuit s o r soap where
there is les s compet it ion , s al e s policies are not so generous .
Sal e s on s uch goods are ex- factory or ex-Laut oka warehouse
an d , i f t hey are o ffered at all , vo lume pur chase dis coun t s
are con s i derab ly below those offered on soap an d b i s cuit s .
With the except ion o f milk and b ut t er suppl ied by the
Rewa Co-ope rat ive Dairy Company Lt d , di s t ribut ion and p ro duct
acce s s policies of oth er lo cal food pro c e s s o rs are relat ive ly
open . 2 2 For exampl e , the three chi ef r i ce mill s sell s in gle
4 5 kg s acks o f rice ex-fact o ry an d all have far-rangin g s al e s
teams . Two mills have es t ab l ishe d warehous e s in cen t re s
away from t he i r mil l s in at t empt s to inc rease t rade . Rewa
Ric e , the third mill , re lies on s upp lies t o cane- farmer s for
a cons iderable share o f its market , b ut is curren t ly att empt in g
expans ion b y sellin g r ice in ' re t ail packs ' up t o 1 0 k g in
con t rast to the 4 5 kg s acks offere d by t he other millers .
174
Non- retailing, non-proces s ing wholesalers . These are
either spe cial ized import ers or general me rchant s who import
dire c t ly an d purchase f rom local proce s s ors and o ther
suppl i er s . B oth types o f op erat ion are o f recent origin and
have a minimal share in t o t al wholesale t rade .
The chief spe cial iz ed import er-whole s aler is a Suva
based Ch inese firm impo rt in g fre sh vegetables an d f ruit .
Thro ugh exclus ive d is t r ib ut ive right s for p roduc t s o f the
New Zealan d Apple and Pear Board ( as well as pos s ib ly other
ove rseas pro duce s uppli ers ) and aided by ext ens ive cont act s
and experien ce , this impo rt e r handles much of t he Cen t ral
Divis ion impo rt t rade o f fresh ve get ab l e s an d f ruit , in cludin g
po t at o , on ion an d garl ic import s . From a warehouse in cen t ral
Suva , th e impo rter suppl i es mark et vendo rs , retail shop s ,
the maj o r expat riat e-owned supermarket s and o ther wholes alers .
Fruit and veget able impo rt in g in to the Wes t e rn Divi s ion is
more open b ecaus e o f the greater acces s ib i lity o f importers
to Nadi airport , the po in t o f ent ry of air- f reighted p ro duce .
A s ub s idiary of a New Zealan d f irm re. cently e s t ab l ished
a warehous e in Suva fo r the whol e s ale dis t r ib ut ion of imported
franch i s ed gro cery l ine s .
It remain s t o be s een whether
there i s suf f i c i ent deman d for the exclus ive p ro duct s , which
in cl ude a l in e of sweet b is cuit s and an ins t an t cof fee , t o
support a s pe cial i z ed gro ce ry d is t r ib ut or-whol e s al e r .
In a s econd t ype o f non- ret ail whol e s ale operat ion ,
in t ermed iaries b o th impo rt an d purchas e lo cally p roce s s ed
foo ds fo r re-wholesalin g . As well as actual ly purchas in g
good s , s ome ' whol e s alers ' op erate a s ' brokers ' , as s emb l ing
o rders fo r shipment t o is olated cus t omers . Wit h good co
ordinat ion of suppl ies and ship s , i t is pos s ib l e f o r these
b rokers to o p erat e without ext en s ive st o rage facil i t ies .
The f ew presently do ing b us ines s who are located in Suva
and who s erve island retailers have small bulk s tores .
Prices charged by these as s emb ler-who lesal er s are invariab ly
higher than thos e avail able at o ther whole s ale source s .
However , their s urvival is an ind i cat ion that they provide
a s ervice not o f fered by other whol esale o ut le,t s servin g the
s ame regions .
Trends in whol e s al in g
Gro cery whole s al ing in Fij i i s part o f a general whole
s al in g s y s t em from which it do es not di ffer s ign ifican t ly in
175
organ iz at ion . En t ry in t o whol es alin g , a s in to import ing ,
is easy . Wholesalin g i s primarily on a back-order sys t em ,
which sugge s t s the t rade i s un der- cap it al iz e d . Be cause o f
ease o f acce s s t o impo rt in g , t h e spat ial con cent rat ion o f
demand an d , fo r gro ce rie s , int e rvent ion o f the government
through price cont rol , the re are few in termediaries be tween
importer/whol e s aler or l o cal p ro ce s sor an d ret ailer . Gro cery
wholesal in g is generally ' open ' in t hat there is little
exclus ive b ran d represen tat ion . Al though their actual share
of t rade is unknown , wholesale t rade is dominated by the
two overseas-owned firms . Th is s it uat ion has addit ional
s i gnif icance in that the racial ownership of t he f irms an d
their methods o f b us iness organizat ion are d i fferent from
mo st other part i c ip ant s in t he gro c ery t rade .
Recen t l y , th ere have been some chan ge s in gro cery whole
s al in g . On e is the apparent in creas in g dominance by the
In spite
overseas-owned firms , p ar t i cularly Morris Hedst rom .
o f in ten tion s t o the cont rary , price con t rol measure s seem
to have enhan ced the p o s i t ion of Morris He dst rom as numerous
indepen den t whole s aler/ ret ailers have ceased deal in g in
price- con t rolled e s s en t ial connno dit ie s , wh i ch has enab led
Mo rris Hed s t rom t o cement it s role as a gen eral wholesaler
by us in g the es s ent ial connno d it ies as draw items fo r more
lucrat ive l in e s .
In addit ion , t rade vol ume and capital
res ources give Morris Heds t rom ac ces s t o favourab le b ulk
t rade d i s c oun t s . While wholesale supply by Mo rris Heds trom
may be e fficien t , in c reasin g con cen t rat ion of t rade rai s e s
t h e po s s ib il it y of a monopoly over supply - or a t l east o f
overwhelming domin an ce .
Ano t her wholesal in g t ren d is the estab l i shmen t o f
' dis t rib ut o r s ' who import groceries and bas ic household
requiremen t s in b ulk , part i cularly by cont ainer loads to
gain freigh t co s t b enefit s and pro te ct ion a gainst pilferage ,
and who then sell the product s t o ret ailers via the ir own
dis t rib ut ion n etwo rk .
The ran ge o f pro duct s handl ed depends
very much on ' spec ial b uys ' an d do es not in clude many basic
foo d s t uf f s .
In th e s hort-t erm s uch operat o r s may cause some
dis lo cat ion to larger e s t ab l i shed whol esalers by b e ing able
t o sell a part icular i t em mor e cheaply be caus e o f s peculat ive
purchas ing and lower overhead s .
In the lon g run th is compe
t it ion could lead to b et t er s t o ck s uppl ies and more compet it ive
pri cin g .
Also evident i s t h e e s t ab l ishment o f regional warehouse s
b y both dist r ib ut o r s and manufacturer s . Warehousing i s
176
increasingly corrnnon in the Laut oka area fo r Suva firms , and
vice versa , b ut as yet has no t b een e s t ab l i shed out s ide Vit i
Levu .
It is pos s ible that improved commun icat ion s within
Vit i Levu will l e s sen the need for regional warehous ing .
It i s as l ikely , however , t hat compet it ion will b e as int en s e
in service as in pricin g , so regional d is t rib ut ion cen t res
will be main t ained .
The dominance o f Mo rris Heds t rom an d the e s t ablishmen t
o f dist ribut o rs an d region al warehouses all point t owards
in creased special iz at ion in wholesal ing .
Trade i s b e comin g
con cent rat ed in urb an impo rter-whole saler s , even at a s ub
firm level .
Ret ail in g
The re a r e two b as i c forms o f ret ai l gro cery o ut l et in
F ij i .
One i s the mob ile out let o r hawker , and the o ther
the f ixed outlet or s tore . Hawkers play a negl igible rol e
in foo d s t uf f dist rib ut ion t oday , although un t il re cen t ly
they we re impo rt ant in b o th rural and urb an areas . As e ither
a purely ret a il outlet o r the ret a il arm of a whole sale
ret ail op erat ion , s t o res are the cons umers ' b as ic source of
import ed an d l o cally-proce s sed foo d .
Con comi t an t t o the e s t ab l i shment o f shop s in ' urb an '
cen t re s , an d pre-dat ing th i s development el s ewhere , foodstuffs
and o th er goo d s were avail abl e f rom hawkers . The numb e r of
hawkers probab ly reached a peak in the int er-war period when
Indian s , in part i cul ar , hawked b o th pro duce and pro ces sed
foods , as wel l as non- food it ems , in Indian sett lemen t s ,
F ij ian villages and t own s . Act ivit ies o f hawkers were l argely
un cont roll ed unt il 1 9 2 4 wh en the �eneral Hawke rs L i cence
was in trodu ce d . Thi s l imit e d produc t s whi ch coul d be sold
by hawkers .
Fo r ins t an c e , hawkers coul d not deal in pigeons
and wild b irds but did not require a l i cen ce i f they hawked
b eads , cur io s i t ie s or foo d an d pro duce . 2 3 Con t ro l s over
hawking have developed s t eadily s in ce 1 92 4 . Under the 1 9 35
Towns Ord inance , all hawkers op er at in g within gaz et t ed t own s
had t o be l i censed . By-laws enact ed by lo cal t own bodies
during the 1940s main tained this requi rement .
During the 1 9 5 0s the number o f h awkers dropped , part ic
ularly in the face of improvement s in t ran sport that expan ded
shop hint erlan ds . In the early 1 9 6 0 s , howeve r , there was a
reb irth of hawkin g as soc iat ed with the development o f tourism.
177
Con cern over the in cr eas ing n umb er o f hawke rs and complain t s
f rom ret ailers that hawkers compet ed with them b y s el l ing
an almo s t unl imit ed ran ge o f goo ds , led to new legislat ion .
A s i gn i f i can t feature of the legis lation was the defin it ion
of ' goods ' that hawkers could o f fer for s ale . Re s t r ict ion s
on goo ds s old we re aime d primarily at non- foo d it ems .
Hawkers were s t ill ab le to s el l pro duc e s o lon g as no t in
con t raven t ion of lo cal marke t regulation s - wh ich gene rally
p rohib it ed the sale of fresh veget ab les and fruit with in
two or three mile s of o ff ic ial market s except at li censed
out let s , i . e . , s t ores .
They were not prohib ited from selling
prep ared foo d , b ut foo dstuff s al es have b e come largely con
f ined to confect ion ery and snacks . 24 In small t owns , hawkers
are an import an t source o f foo d , part i cularly on the rural
out skirts of town and with foods like f ish and game . As
towns grow an d hawke r legis lat ion is enacted and en forced ,
it is likely that thi s t rade will dimin i sh .
There are not many l i cen sed hawkers in towns with l it t le
t ourist trade . Levuka , for in s t ance , had on ly one li censed
hawker in 1 9 7 6 .
In o ther t own s , espec ially in Suva and
Laut oka , the demand fo r hawke r l icen ces can be so great that
the numb er i s s ued may be limited , as it was in 19 7 6 in Suva
to 700 , 300 o f wh ich were for foodstuff hawkers . Hawking
t o day caters p r imar ily to the t ouris t t rade and provides
snacks at pub l i c even t s . Hawkers con t inue to be main ly
Ind ians .
Th ere is po tent i al con flict between hawkers and lo cal
aut horit ie s in that the t enden cy of . handicraf t and curio
sellers to operate from f ixed p it ches is at odds with the
In creas in g demand
definit ion of hawker s as mob ile vendo r s .
for sell in g sp ace and con fl ict b etween hawkers , police and
t our i s t s have led t o reformulat ion o f hawker legislat ion ,
especial ly in Suva where the number o f hawkers is large s t
and problems associated with t hem mo st acut e . Th ere , pro
vis ion is b e in g made for a ' Bazaar Li cen ce ' that will permit
hawke rs to operate from s t at ionary s i t e s . A s imilar form
o f l i cen c e is likely to b e adop t ed in other t own s visited
by ove rs eas t ouri s t s . The b a z aar licen ce is des igned to
acconnno date hand icraft dealers and ha s no innne diat e con s equ
ences fo r foodstuff retailin g .
Ret ail s t ores are the chief s our ce o f import ed an d
locally-proces sed foo d product s for the consumers of Fij i .
In s ize and var iety o f s t ock , stores ran ge from sophist icated
s upermarket s in mul t i- fun ct ion department stores t o small ,
178
poorly- s t o cked con ce rn s wh ere goods are s t acked in the
co rners of a l iv ing- room fro m which busin e s s is conducted .
Between these ext remes , a wide range o f s t ore- types can b e
dis t inguished on the bas i s o f lo cat ion , ownership feature s ,
s iz e and range o f s t o ck an d cl ien t ele . Very f ew r e t ail
s t ores are owned by regis tered companies . Most are family
b u s ine s ses carrying gro ceries as part of a gene ral s t o ck .
A number o f general s t ores in towns have recent ly been con
ve rt ed in t o s el f - s ervice ' supermarket s ' . The predomin ant
s t o re in rural are as i s either a co-operat ive s o c iety out l et
o r a small general s t o re owned and operat ed by an ind ividual
and his family .
Grocery retailin g i s charac terized by easy acce s s for
p art icipant s , t rading t hat is ' op en ' in that there are no
s i gn if i cant r e s t ri ct ive s upply monopolie s , b o th marked
competit ion ( e . g . in cent ral Suva) and l i t t l e comp e t it ion
( for examp le , in mo st rural areas ) , and low returns relative
to t ime invest ed . Thes e characteris t ic s con t r ibute to con
s id e rable ins t ab ility in foo d retailin g . The annual gro s s
turnover in r e t ai l s t o res ranges from $ 3 - $ 4 million for the
three chi ef s upermarket s in Suva to les s than $ 10 0 0 at a
cons iderab le numb er of rural s t o re s . At mos t outle t s s el l in g
grocerie s, aro un d 80 p er cen t of turnover comes from grocery
s ale s .
Ret ail in g in t h e Cent ral Divis ion
To gain an imp ress ion o f the form and fun ct ion o f retail
grocery s to re s in Fij i , it i s useful t o con s i der the s t ores
o f t h e Cen t r al Divis ion . An immediat e impres s ion tha t comes
from acquain t ance with connne rce in the Divis ion , as with
Fij i at l arge , is that there are a great numb e r o f shop s .
In the Cen t r al Divis ion there are over 1300 regis t ered ret ail
b us ine s s es , 7 82 o f whi ch deal with gro cerie s , in addit ion to
ano the r 4 7 foodstuff wholesale-ret ail busin e s s e s ( Tabl e 3 . 5 ) .
Retail s t o re s that do no t sell food are lo cat e d p r imarily
in Suva city , although there are als o a few in Nausor i and
Navua . 2 5 Only f ive shops in rural areas of the Cen tral
Divis ion - all in the great er Suva area - do not s el l any
food s t uf f s .
Three-quarters of the 82 9 shops in the Cen t ral Divis ion
that s ell gro ceries are in rural areas .
In Suva c it y there
are 1 6 6 shops that s ell food and in the t own s of the Divis ion
there are ano ther fifty-nine ( thir t y-one in Nausori , s ixt een
in Nav.ua , twelve in Korovou) . One-third ( 32 . 3 per cent ) o f
179
the shops are owned b y Fij ian ind ividual s ; 1 5 . 4 per cen t
are co-operat ive s o c iety s t ores . 2 6 Ind ian s own 35 . 9 per
cent o f the shops and Ch ine s e 1 2 . 9 per cen t . The rema ind er
are operat e d b y European s ( 0 . 6 per cent ) and ' o t her ' races
(1 per cen t ) .
Dat a on s t o re owner ship by race do not reveal lo cat ional
aspect s o f s t o re owne rship an d s hare of t rade . Wh ile one
half of all s t ores are Fij ian-owned , all b ut twelve ( e i ght
of which are co-operat ive s o c iet ie s ) are o ut s ide urban areas .
In con t ras t , Chinese s t ores are con cen t rat ed in urb an areas
( 81 out o f 10 7 ) .
Ind ian shops are connnon in b o th areas
( 40 per cen t urban , 60 per c ent rural ) . European st o re s ,
for example , Morris Hedst rom , Woolworths and Burns Ph ilp ,
prob ab ly handle abo ut 35 p er c en t o f the ret ail gro cery
t rade of the Cen t ral Divis ion , Ind ian s t ores ab out 3 0 per
cen t , Chines e ab out 12 per cen t , and Fij ian an d co-operat ive
s o ciety s tores abo ut 8 per cen t each . 2 7
Bas ic dat a on ret ail fo od shop s in the Cen tral Divis ion
and their owners were ob t ained from a ques t ionnaire survey
con duct e d in May and June 1 9 7 6 .
In all , 352 ran domly-selected
s t ores sellin g foo d we re surveyed . The coverage in rural
areas was about one- third ; in S uva city it was about onehalf an d was complete in Naus or i , Korovou and Navua t owns . 2 8
The s tore s . Mos t Cen tral Divis ion stores ( 6 3 per cen t )
are operated e ither by an individual or as a partnership
The connnon form
( 12 . 3 per cen t ) , usually within the family .
o f non-family ownership is the co-operat ive s o c iety ( 19 . 3
per cen t ) . An other form o f F ij ian owner ship i s the ' club '
s to re wh ich i s operated by a village group , such as a family ,
a youth or women ' s club , or mataqali . A connn i t tee i s usually
selec ted to op erate the s t ore and the pro f i t s are put to a
particular proj e c t or s hared among members o f the opera t in g
group . A f i f th type of s t ore ownership organ i z at ion i s the
l imited liab il i t y company reg i s t ered with the Register of
Compan ies and required to comp ly with the Companies Ordinance .
In the Cen tral Divis ion there are only about t en regis tered
compan ie s involved in the food trad e ; about hal f are owned
by expatriate European firms and about half by lo cal Chinese
and Indian mer chant s .
Differences in the owner ship o f s tores , reflec t ing as
they do upper and lower c ircuit part ic ipat ion , are pertin en t
180
In
to many fo rms of s t ore operat ion and or gan iz at ion .
particular , s t ore s chedules , equipment and s cal e an d len gth
of operat ion vary acco rding to ownership .
As well as b e ing predominan t ly ' f amily s t ores ' in t e rms
of owne rsh ip , gro cery s t ores are f amily con cerns in that if
the op erator is not the owner ( as in 52 . 6 pe r cen t o f case s )
he i s l ikely t o b e a memb er o f the owner ' s family . Only
s ixty- five shops were en co un t ered where the operat or was a
paid employee ; almo s t al l these were co-operat ive s o ciety
s t o res . No shop s we re surveyed where owner and operat o r
were not o f t h e s ame race . Almo s t three-quarters o f shop s
are operated by the foun der or by someone in the fotmder ' s
family .
In the one-half o f s t o res whe re operat o rs have
chan ged , the change has oc curred in the past four y ears and
the n ew owner ship con t inues to b e f amily-based , alb eit o f t en
from families other than that o f the founder .
Family-base d own ership and small s cale of op erat ion
are refle c t e d in retail s t ore employment pat t ern s . The work
fo rce o f s t ores , p art icula rly if regist ered comp an ies an d
co-op erat ive s o c i et y st ores a r e dis counted , is l ar gely f rom
the owne r ' s family . At almo st two-thirds of the s t o re s
op erat ed and own ed by ind ividuals ( 1 81 out o f 2 72 ) , the owner
is the full-t ime chief o perat o r . In st ore s where there is
another ope rat o r , it is mo s t l ikely t o be a member o f the
operat o r ' s f amily working without a f ixed s alary .
A large pro po r t ion ( one-third) of s t ore o p erat ors do
no t have regular ass ist ance and an equal p roport ion have
only tmpaid hel p . Eighty-one s t o res with s ome paid employees
( in addit ion t o the o p erat or) were en count ered ; twenty- s ix
of these also have unp aid wo rkers . All but four o f the 314
re corde d unpaid workers were relat ives of th e s t o re-op erat o r .
In contras t , 106 of 1 60 paid employees were not rel ated to
S tores are mos t l ikely to have
the s t o re-own er or operat o r .
unpaid , part - t ime as s is t an ce ( 3 3 . 9 per cent o f s t o res ) .
Some have mo re than seven p art- t ime helpers but the maj o r it y
have one o r two . Very few s t ore-op er at o rs have ful l - t ime
as s is t ance an d only 1 0 . 2 per cent have paid p art- t ime help .
As s i s t ance , p ar t i cul arly pa id h el p ,
areas .
is mo s t connnon in urb an
In ret ail st ores there is l it t le special iz at ion o f
Operator an d as s is tan t s o ft en per fo rm s imi lar tasks .
lab our .
In ret ail-whol esale s tores , th ere is generally a divis ion
of labour between s ales on the one hand and s t o r in g , packin g
181
and loading dut ies on the other . As ide from the large s t
supermarket s an d some ret ail-wholes ale outlets where labour
is more speci al ized , people of one race are rarely employed
in es tab lishment s owned by ano ther rac e .
The use o f ass is t an ce shows d i s t inc t variat ion by race
o f s t ore-owner ( Tab le 3 . 6 ) . Fij ian s are t he leas t likely
to have as s i s t an ce : two-third s have none comp ared to ab out
one- f ifth of Chinese and Indian s t o re-own ers . While all
shops emp loy paid labour at ab out the s ame f requency - that
i s , in about one-in- t en shops - Chinese an d Indian shops are
about three t imes more l ikely to have help than Fij ian-owned
s t o res .
Many shop s are old and apparen tly securely e s t ab lished .
Ten per cen t o f the surveyed shop s have op erated for more
than thir t y y ear s , on e-quarter have for les s than two and
40 per cen t for under f ive y ear s . At the s ame t ime , however ,
there are ind icat ions of ins t ab ility in s to re op erat ion .
For example , o f 140 retail food shops operat in g , and surveyed ,
in Suva in May 1 97 6 , twelve months l at er e ight had clo s ed ,
an other e ight were un der new management and at least s even
It is uncerta in
o ther food shops had been es t ab l is hed .
whet her the s e changes are ind icat ive of short-t erm ins t ab il
it ies in food r etailing or are an exp re s s ion of a lon ger
tren d . Many rural s t o res have poorer survival rat es than
urban out let s , even after allowin g for t rading that can be
markedly period i c ; the irregular nature o f t rade refle c t s
an endemic short age o f fund s f o r main t ain ing s t ock and the
vari able f in an c ial fortun e s of the clien t ele .
Many r e t ail s t ores s ugge st a certain do ggedness of
survival . For in s t ance , s t or e o p erators wer e asked the
number of o ccas ions on which t he s t o re had b een closed for
more than a day or two , aside from weeken ds and pub lic holi
day s , s ince e s t ab l ishmen t .
Only f if t een s t or e s had clo sed
for a cons iderab l e period an d twelve of these had c losed only
once .
The connnon reason f or closure was the t empo rary ab sence
o f s omeone t o op erat e t he shop . Although many s tores , p ar
t i cul arly in rural areas , have a history of irregular closures
that the survey did not reveal , othe r s remain open for long
periods when t rade is mor ibund . 2 9
The expat r iat e-owned supermarket s and s ome o ther shop s
in Suva city operat e on a def in it e s chedul e - Sam t o Spm
Monday to Thursday , Sam to 6pm on Friday an d 8am to 12 . 30pm
on Saturday - but few o th er stores do . 3 0 Over one-half o f
I-'
ex:>
N
Tab le 3 . 6
Employmen t o f a s s i s t an ce by retail s t ores
As s is t an ce
No . o f
store s
Store ownership
F ij ian
Chinese
Indi an
Co-op .
None
137
57
12
31
36
Unpaid he lp only
134
17
36
76
3
Paid help only
55
9
8
15
27
Paid and tmpaid help
26
3
5
12
2
352
86
61
1 34
68
Tot al s to re s
Note :
Source :
As s is t ance may be e ither full- t ime or p art - t ime .
Survey of ret a il foo d s t o res , Cent ral Division , May-June 1 9 7 6 .
SOC .
183
the surveyed shops
open on s ix days .
an d n o t to a fixed
connnon pat t erns of
open every day an d ano ther one-third
In country areas shop s may open at call
s chedule , but o therwise there are three
open in g .
One open ing p at t ern , found main ly in urb an areas , is
f or shop s t o open from 6 or 6 . 30am un t i l 7 . 30 or 8pm.
Actual hour s are f lexib le . Opening t ime is frequen t ly
con t in gent upon b read or newspaper del iver ies , t he s i gn if i
c an ce of t he ' breakfas t trade ' in b read , milk and newspaper s ,
and the general l ike l ihoo d o f cust om . Not infrequently ,
small s t ores operat ing ' all day ' close t o enab le the operat or
to vi sit t he b ank , do o ther errands or to rest . Another
common arrangement is for shops t o open an d c lo s e at the
above t imes , b ut als o to clo se for an hour or two for lunch .
Shops in the s uburb s of Suva and In dian-owned s tores else
where t end t o follow t h is s chedule . Finally , s ome shops
open for spec i f i ed one or two hour p eriods during t he day ,
mos t commonly in the mo rning and again in the even ing , as
Co-operat ive s o ciety an d
wel l as somet imes at midday .
Fij ian village s t or e s mos t o f t en operate on thi s s chedule .
In the pas t s tores t ended to b e at the ro ad-facing end
of a woo den bus iness and res iden t ial building . Many newer
s t ores are of a s imilar des ign but are con st ruct ed of con
cret e .
In t own areas t here i s a t rend towards s ingle-fun c t ion
buildings , the res iden ce of the s t ore-owner b e in g lo cated
elsewhere . Village s to re s are generally wooden non
res ident ial buildings . Variat ions in store d e s i gn are
apparen t throughout t he Cen t ral Divis ion , p ar t icularly b etween
s t ores in cen t ral bus iness d is t r ict s of t own s and shops
elsewhere , an d t o some ext en t also b etween F ij ian-owned and
other store s . These differen ces are lar gely a p ro duct of
the chronolo gy o f store con st ru c t ion .
There n eed not b e a s t or e building at al l , of course .
A f ew s t ores were encoun t ered operat ing o ut of l ivin g-rooms ,
sup p l i e s b e in g k ep t in b ags and b o xe s in a corner .
In all
b ut f ive of the s urveyed shop s goods were displayed . Mo st
display was through b ehind- the- count er shelves an d / o r display
cases on the count er .
Recen t ly a small number o f shops have been con st ructed
as , or conver ted t o , s elf-service s t o res . Th es e ' super
marke t s ' compris e les s than 5 per c en t of the s urvey s ample
an d are almo s t exclus ively in urb an areas .
They are a
radi cal innovat ion in gro cery retailin g .
184
There is minimal development of storage facilit ies in
retail s t ores .
Few shops have sep arate s t o rage facil it ies .
Bulk items s uch as sacks of rice , f lour , sharp s , s alt and
sugar an d other goods not on d isplay are stored on the shop
floor in almo s t three-quarters o f the shops surveyed ,
although 42 per cen t o f shop s had a s t o reroom. Most st or e
rooms are a small room in the shop building . On the whole ,
shops are small and crowded , even wit hout bein g f urther
c ramped by s tored goods .
Seven p er cent of the surveyed
shops had a f lo o r space of l e s s than 9 . 3 s q . m. and one
quarter les s than 1 8 . 6 s q . m . ; only 3 0 per cen t had more than
46 . 5 sq . m. of floor s p ac e and only four had more than 186
s q . m.
Essen t ial s t o r e equipment is l imit ed to shelves and
disp lay cab in et s . Only s tores in town s are likely t o have
cash regi s t er s . Refrigerat ors or f reezers are more connnon
than cash regi s t ers . All t own shops and some shops in the
greater Suva-Naus ori rural area have elect r ic it y and almo s t
two-thirds have a refr i gerator or freezer .
Out side elect r i f ie d
areas , a f ew shops have kerosene-powered refrigerat ion tm it s .
On the whole , rural shops do not have refrigerat ion .
While the s t o res surveye d carried a b road r an ge o f s to ck ,
foo dstuf f s were always the bas i s o f i t . 31 Non-food it ems
rarely accotmted for more than ' ab o ut 1 / 4 ' o f s t o ck by value ,
and were mainly goods l ike s oap an d o ther c l ean ing it ems ,
co sme t i cs , s tat ionery , hous ehold ut ens ils , keros ene an d ,
less connnonly , a few clo thes an d s ome uncut material ( Tab le
3 . 7 ) . The mos t common class o f goo ds , apart f rom foo d , was
cle an ing items , reco rded in 92 . 8 per cent o f s t ore s . Mixed
goods s uch as kit chen ut en s il s , clothin g and o ther household
requiremen t s , were s old by over 80 p er cen t o f s t ore s and
s t at ionery produc t s and drapery each by one-thi rd .
In over
80 per cent of the s t o re s which s old non-food it ems , those
goods compri s e d les s than one-qua rt er o f s t o ck . Only twen ty
two ( 6 . 3 per c en t ) s t o res d id not se ll non - food it ems .
In
only f ifty- s ix ( 16 . 2 p er cen t ) s t o res did food comprise one
half o r less o f s t o ck . As ide from s oap , c igare t t e s and
mat ches , the mo st widely carried n on-food i t em was kero s ene used as a cookin g fuel - whi ch was re co rded in 9 5 per cent
of shop s .
Measured by either the numb er o f foo d types or food
items on d isp lay or in st orage , gro cery st ocks in retail
s t o re s were fotmd by the survey to be l imit ed ( Tab les 3 . 8 ,
3 . 9 ) . 3 2 One-third o f all s tores had l e s s than twenty differen t
Tab le 3 . 7
Natur e o f sto ck in retail gro cery s tores
S t o ck
Share (by app rox . value ) of
s t o ck t ype in t o t al s t o ck
for stores sell ing
Per cent s t ores
selling s t o ck
<1 /4
c . 1/4
c . 1/2
c . 3/4
all
100 . 0
0.9
0.9
14 . 4
77 . 6
6.3
Clean ing items
92 . 8
83 . 5
16 . 5
Mixe d goods
81 . 2
95 . 3
3.9
0. 8
S tat ionery
37 . 0
81 . 9
17. 4
0. 7
Drape ry
15 . 1
81 . 1
15 . 1
3.8
Gro cerie s
Not e :
Source :
On ly shops s el l in g foo d were surveye d .
are within th e ran ge 345-34 8 .
Val id re sponses f o r e ach s t o ck cat e go ry
Survey of ret ail foo d s t ores , Cen t ral Divis ion , May-June 1 9 7 6 .
186
Tab l e 3 . 8
Numb er o f d if f eren t f ood t�Ees
s to cked by retail s t ores
Foo d types
a
On display
Number o f
shops
In s t o rage
Per cen t
t o t al shop s
Numb e r of
b
sho p s
< 10
26
7.4
43
10-19
93
26. 5
13
2 0-2 9
82
23. 4
14
30- 39
71
20 . 2
4 0- 4 9
51
14 . 5
50-59
21
6. 0
7
2.0
>59
No t availab l e
Tot al
1
352
100 . 0
70
a
A ' foo d t yp e ' i s a generic group l.ike ' canned f ish ' ,
' sauce ' or ' sugar 1 , irrespe c t ive of variet ies or brands .
b
Thirteen shops had goo ds s t o re d b ut no further details
were reco r ded :•
Source :
Survey o f ret ail food s tores , Cent ral Divis ion ,
May-June 19 7 6 .
187
Tab le 3 . 9
DisElay and s torage invent ory of ret ail food st ores
Number o f
a
food it ems
In s t orage
In shoE
No . ShOJ2S
Per cent
10
3.1 )
100- 4 9 9
97
29. 8 )
5 00- 9 9 9
66
20. 2
1000-14 9 9
44
13. 5 )
1500- 19 9 9
34
10 . 4 )
2 000- 2 9 9 9
53
16 . 4
3000-3 9 9 9
15
4. 6
7
2.1
<100
No . shOJ2S
Per cen t
11
13 . 9
11
13 . 9
12
15 . 2
7
8. 9
25
31. 6
13
16 . 5
4 000- 4 9 9 9
>5 000
Not availab le
No goods s t ored
No respon s e
Tot al
a
17 8
26
352
95
100 . 0
352
100 . 0
A ' food i t em ' is an individual s el l in g un it . Where
goods ar e s t o red in b ulk , they are reduced t o the mo st
connno n s el l ing unit s . For ins tance , a 1 1 2 lb b ag o f sal t
in s torage is recorded as 1 1 2 uni t s .
Source :
Survey of retail f ood s t ores , Cen t ral Divis ion ,
May-June 1 9 7 6 .
188
foods . They dealt in the b as ic it ems - cann ed fish an d
meat , sugar , s alt , tea, bakin g powd er , f lour , sharps and
rice - and litt le more . On ly twen ty-eight of the surveyed
s t ores s t o cked mor e than f ifty food types . Over two- thirds
of shops had n o food in s to r age .
There was con siderable variat ion in the s iz e of s to cks
in s torage . Ab out one-third of shops with any goods st ored
had less than 5000 food items in s t orage and another one
third had b etween 1000 and 3000 items . The remainin g twen ty
f ive s tores had over 5000 it ems in s t orage . The numb er o f
food types in s t orage was l imit ed generally . F o rty-three
of the s even t y shop s f or which dat a were availab le had les s
than ten dif feren t foo d types s tored and non e had more t han
Items mos t connnon ly in s tor age were sugar , salt ,
thirty .
flour , sharp s and rice . Survey data on st o ck sugges t there
is a correlat ion b etween mode of p aymen t , that i s acce s s t o
credit , an d t h e value o f s t o ck on dis play and in st orage
( Tab le 3 . 10 ) .
As ide from the upper Navua and Wainimala valley s , the
Namo s i area and the Rewa Delt a , mos t s tores in the Central
Divis ion are on ro ad s t o local cen t re s or Suva . Shops in
Suva are s uppl ied by Suva-based import ers and whole s alers .
These busin es ses are also the main suppliers for s t ores in
o ther t own s al though a numb er o f retailer-wholes alers ,
espe c ially in Naus o r i , import dire ct ly . Rur al s t o res are
generally s upplied from who l esaler-ret ailers in the n eares t
urban cen t re . Dis t in c t supply areas c an b e del ineated in
the Cen t ral Division (Fig . 1 6 ) .
S i gatoka and Vaileka
s uppliers serve st ores on the two road l inks n ear the
b oundary with the Wes t ern Divis ion , some 100-llO km f rom
Suva . As wel l as b e in g supp l i ed by l i cen sed retail-wholesale
out let s in t owns and at a couple o f rural c entres - such as
co-operat ive wholesale as s o c iat ion s t ores in the upper Navua
valley and S erea and an Indian st o re at N akelo - s t ores are
also st ocked from o ther ' ret ail ' s tores . Twenty- two o f the
surveyed shops in addit ion to s ix licen s e d retail out let s .
operate a s un l i cens ed re-wholesalers f or ot her st ores .
One reason for the gro cery supply sys t em o f the Cent ral
Divis ion b e in g fo cused on Suva-Nausor i is the relat ive com
pactn e s s o f t he region where s tore s are loca t ed . The mean
dist an ce o f surveyed s t o res from Suva is 2 8 . 3km: two- thirds
( 65 . 9 per cen t ) are with in 32km of the city and over one
quarte r ( 2 8 . 4 per c en t ) within 8 . lkm. While 9 0 per cent o f
Tab le 3 . 10
Mo de o f Ea�ment for suEplies and foo d s t o ck characteris t ics
of retail s t ores
Mode of
p ayment
Numb er
store s
Value ( $ )
s to ck on
display
Value ($ )
s t o ck in
storage
Per cen t
s t o c�
lo cal
Per cen t
s t o ck
c
b as 1. c
1 81 . 16
( 702 . 38)
27 . 3
( 15 . 6 )
72 . o
( 1 6 . 0)
Cash
190
Cash and credit
108
9 2 1 . 88
( 106 3 . 38)
506 . 2 9
( 1 6 14 . 06 )
25. 6
( 16 . 2 )
65. 6
(19 . 4 )
Credit
14
112 5 . 2 7
(1859 . 5 7 )
5 39 . 04
( 17 03 . 10)
25 . 6
( 1 5 . 0)
61 . 9
(2 3 . 3 )
Unknown
11
1381 . 5 3
( 9 13 . 5 3 )
2 5 2 . 20
( 602 . 2 5 )
22 . 0
( 11 . 2 )
56 . 1
( 22 . 6 )
a
3 9 3 . 33
a
( 4 64 . 04 )
Figures in bracket s are s t andard deviat ion s o f mean values .
b
' Lo cal ' foods are t aken a s b o t tled milk , e ggs , b ut ter , fro z en chicken , ghee in 2 6oz .
and smaller con tainers , canned t una , local fish , rice , dry bis cuit s , b read , sugar , an d
loc al fruit an d veget ab le s .
c
' Bas ic ' foo ds are t aken as canned b eef and mut t on , drip p in g , milk o f all types , ghee ,
canned mackerel ,. rice , flo ur , sharp s , dry b i s cuit s , pot atoes , on ion s , garl ic , sugar , tea ,
oil and s al t .
Source :
Food sto ck inventories , survey o f re t ail food store s , Central Divis ion , May-June 19 7 6 .
190
s t o r e s c an b e reached b y road , the acce s s t o s ome i s mo r e
di ff icult .
S tores in the Rewa Delt a are generally acce s s ib le
only by wat er , often by a one hour or s o power boat t r ip .
Some shops in the Wain imala val ley are well beyond a three
hour boat j ourney . Others in Namo s i are acces s ib le on foo t
only .
Dis t an ce f rom Suva and mean s o f access are related to
the p eriod of o p erat ion o f stores . The further a s tore is
from Suva , th e shorter the period it is likely to have b een
open . Over 4 0 per cent of st ores mo re than 64km from Suva
have been open less than three y ears : 44 . 6 p er cen t of
st ores with in 16km of Suva have b een open for more than t en
y ears , compared t o 2 0 . 7 per cent o f stores lo cated mo re t han
64km away .
S to cks o f all shop s , except for a few in Suva an d o ther
town s , are l imi t e d ; the average value of displayed gro cery
s t o ck is under $ 700 with a further $ 300 worth s t ore d . There
are s ome int eres t ing correlat ion s b etween s t o ck s iz e and
d is t an ce from S uva . On e is that the numb er of foo d t ype s
and inven t o ry s ize is correlat ed ind ire c t ly with d i s t ance
from S uva . F o r ins t an c e , the prop ort ion o f s t o re s s t o cking
less than twenty types of food increases from 12 . 1 per cen t
f o r stores within 8km o f Suva t o o ver 7 9 . 4 per cen t f o r
s t o res over 6 4km away . Likewise , only 4 . 4 p e r cent o f st ores
within 8km have fewer than 500 it ems in their inven t o ry ,
b ut 7 3 . 5 p er cen t o f tho s e over 64km away have inven t o r ies
o f fewer than 5 0 0 i t ems . Mean s tock values range from $1504
t o under $300 for s to res in the 1 . 5-14 . 5 an d over 64km from
Suva dis t an ce groups .
One half o f the s to res within 8km of
Suva have no foods s t ored : 9 0 per cent o f tho se more than
64km away have none st ored .
Whi l s t the proport ion of s t o ck t hat is gro ceries doe s
n o t vary great ly with dis t an ce from Suva , s t o ck compo s it ion
does :
in e s s en ce , the nearer a shop to S uva , the smaller
the proport i on of grocery s to ck that is locally p ro duced
and o f ' bas i c ' food it ems ( Tab les 3 . 11-3 . 15 ) . 33
Di s t an ce f rom Suva is on e meas ure of lo cat ion for stores ,
but a more pros aic indicat ion is acces s ib il ity , especially
as many shops in the Divis ion are not s e rved directly f rom
Suva . 34 The maj ority of shops are on reasonab le roads within
5 6km o f the c it y , and o thers are on the two chief llO km l on g
ro ads lead in g t o t h e Wes t ern Divis ion , but a n o t incon s ider
ab le numb er are in lo cat ions that require a chan ge o f
191
Tab le 3 . 11
Fo od s t o cks and s to re d i s t ance f rom Suva
Number of food typ e s
Dis t an ce
from Suva
(km)
Number o f
s t ores
Per cen t s t ores in food type s ize group
2 0-2 9
30-39
40-49
50-59
>59
9.1
20. 2
26 . 3
21.2
13. l
7.1
6. 1
12 . 1
24 . 2
39 . 4
29 . 3
32 . 3
18 . 2
18 . 2
7.1
5.0
35 . 0
23. 3
7.7
46 . 2
11 . 5
26 . 5
52 . 9
14 . 7
2.9
<10
10-19
99
3. 0
10-16
33
1 7- 32
99
33-48
60
49-64
26
>64
43
<10
a
11. 1
2.0
11 . 7
15 . 0
5.0
11. 5
15 . 4
7.7
2.9
S i z e o f food inven tory
Dis t ance
f rom Suva
(km)
Numb er of
s t o re s
<1 0
91
1 0- 1 6
28
1 7- 32
94
3 3- 4 8
55
49-64
24
>64
34
Per cen t s t ores in food itenP s iz e group
5 002 0001001000>2 9 9 9
< 100
2999
999
1999
499
4. 4
23. 1
33. 0
22 . 0
25 . 0
21. 4
32 . 2
21. 4
35 . 1
26 . 6
17 . 0
13. 8
2.2
40. 0
12 . 7
29 . 1
14 . 5
3.6
4.2
41 . 7
16 . 7
12 . 5
16. 7
8.4
11 . 7
61. 8
8.8
11 . 7
5.9
5.3
a
A ' food type ' is a generic group l ike canned f i sh , sauce o r s ugar ,
irre s pective of var iet ies or b rands .
b
A ' food item ' is the individual common s el l in g un i t ,
meat o r a poun d o f rice .
Source :
17 . 6
such as a can o f
Survey of re t ail food s tores , Cen t ra l Divis ion , May-June 1 9 7 6 .
192
Tab l e 3 . 12
S t o re d i s t ance f rom Suva an d foo d s t o ck charac t e ri s t i cs
Dis t an ce
from Suva
(km)
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
d i s p l ay
Value ( $ )
s t o ck in
sto rage
Per cen t
s t o c�
local
Per c en t
s t o ck
c
basic
1060 . 41
a
( 1305 . 84 )
444 . 3 3
( 12 4 7 . 2 3 )
25 . 3
( 1 3 . 8)
60 . 5
( 19 . 9 )
1-15
12 9
16-31
92
479 . 29
( 6 84 . 7 4 )
9 7 . 37
( 4 00 . 69 )
24 . 1
( 13 . 4 )
71. 4
( 16 . 5 )
32 - 4 7
62
483 . 01
( 5 70 . 18)
630 . 18
(2050 . 93 )
24 . 4
( 16 . 0 )
70 . 2
( 15 . 1 )
48-63
28
5 4 1 . 34
( 8 69 . 14 )
160 . 3 7
(496 . 94 )
33 . 0
(20 . 8)
73. 3
( 18 . 1 )
64- 7 9
28
2 08 . 13
(450 . 55 )
11 . 82
( 3 9 . 60 )
35 . 4
(18 . 7)
77 . 5
( 14 . 9 )
80-112
8
128 . 2 7
( 1 63 . 18 )
145 . 33
( 38 0 . 54 )
29 . 1
( 18 . 1 )
90 . 8
( 11 . 4 )
Unknown
3
92 8 . 1 8
( 1 189 . 1 6 )
849 . 37
( 1 4 7 1 . 15 )
34 . 3
( 16 . 2 )
78 . 7
(13 . 3)
673 . 2
32 3 . 4
26 . 4
68. 3
All shop s
a
Number
stores
350
Figures in U L acke t s are s t andard deviat ions of mean value s .
b
' Lo cal ' foods ai:e t aken as b o t t led milk , eggs , but te r , fro z en chi cken ,
ghee in 2 6 o z . and smaller cont a iners , canned tuna , local f i sh , rice, dry
b is cuit s , b read , s ugar , and l o cal f ruit and ve get ab l e s .
c
' Basic ' foo ds are t aken as canned b ee f an d mutton , dripp in g , milk of all
types , ghee , cann e d macke re l , rice flour , sharp s , dry b i s cuit s , p o t at o e s ,
onion s , garl i c , s ugar , tea , o i l and salt .
Source :
Foo d s t ock invent orie s , survey of ret ail foo d s t ore s , Cen t ral
Divis ion , May- June 1 9 7 6 .
193
Tab l e 3 . 1 3
Foo d s t o cks and retail s t o re acce s s ib il ity
N umb e r o f food t�']�esa
Mean s o f
acce s s
Road
c
Boat
d
Boat
Road , foot
Number o f
s t ores
Per cen t s to r e s in food type s iz e group s
<10
1019
2 029
3039
4049
5 059
>59
types
312
5.1
23. 7
23. 7
22 . 1
16. 3
6.7
2.2
25
20. 0
52 . 0
24 . 0
4.0
10
50 . 0
50 . 0
2
50 . 0
50 . 0
Size of food inven tory
Means of
acce s s
Numb e r of
s tores
Per cen t s t o re s in food i t enP s iz e groups
<100
100499
500999
10001999
2 00 02999
Road
287
1.4
27 .2
20. 2
25. 8
18. 1
Boat
25
16 . 0
44 . 0
20. 0
16 . 0
4.0
10
20. 0
80 . 0
--- -
Boat
e
d
Road , foo t
2
>2 9 9 9
it ems
7.3
100 . 0
a
A ' food type ' is a gen eric group l ike cann ed fish , s auce or sugar ,
irrespe c t ive of varietie s or b r and s .
b
A ' food i t em ' is an individual coIImlon s e l l in g un i t , such as a can o f
meat o r a pound o f rice .
c
Boat t rip le s s t han 4 5 minut es .
d
Boat trip over 45 minutes ( an d up to t hree hours ) .
Source :
Survey of r e t a il food s t o re s , Cen tral Division , May-June 1 9 7 6 .
I-'
"°
�
Table 3 . 14
Trans2ort ac ce s s an d food s to ck charact e rist ics
Tran s p or t
acces s
Road
Numb er
stores
311
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
display
Value ( $ )
stock in
s t o rage
Per cen t
s t o c�
local
P e r cent
s t o ck
c
b as1c
.
7 32 . 7 9
a
( 10 32 . 80 )
331 . 6 3
( 12 2 6 . 42 )
26 . 1
( 15 . 3 )
66 . 9
( 18 . 8 )
Road and b o at
( <4 5 mins . )
8
3 9 3 . 35
( 5 08 . 89 )
4 5 5 . 42
( 871. 50)
26. 3
(1 6 . 4 )
70 . 5
(11 . 4 )
Road and b oa t
( > 44 mins . )
27
118 . 15
( 12 1 . 8 9 )
5 6 . 16
( 2 0 9 . 54 )
27. 8
(17 . 5)
81 . 4
( 15 . 0 )
2
12 3 . 14
( 12 . 4 7 )
36 . 0
(9 . 9)
80 . 5
(9 . 2 )
Road and cons id .
foot
a
Figures in b racke t s are s tandard deviat ions o f mean values .
b
' Lo cal ' f o o ds are t aken as b o t t led milk , eggs , butter , f ro z en chicken , ghee in 2 6o z. and
smalle r con ta in ers , canned tuna , lo cal fish , rice , dry b is cuit s , br ead , s ugar , an d lo cal
fruit and vege t ab l es .
c
' Bas i c ' f o o ds are t aken as canned b ee f an d mutton , dripp in g , milk o f all t ypes , ghee ,
canned mackerel , rice , flour , sharp s , dry b i s cuit s , potatoes , onion s , garl i c , sugar , t ea ,
o il an d s alt .
Source :
Foo d s t o ck inven to r ie s , survey o f ret ail foo d s t o re s , Cent ral Divis ion , May-June 1 9 7 6 .
Table 3 . 15
S t oreowne r ' s po s se s s ion of b u s ines s t ransport and food s t o ck characteris t ics
Type of
t.ran sport
Numb er
cases
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
display
Value ( $ )
s t o ck in
s t orage
Per cen t
stoc �
lo cal
Pe r cen t
s t o ck
c
basic
653 . 54
( 1 6 3 7 . 22 )
24 . 2
( 14 . 0 )
64 . 6
(18 . 7 )
Vehicle
95
1352 . 09
a
( 14 2 0 . 2 3 )
Boat
20
14 9 . 61
( 2 63 . 16 )
142 . 6 3
(384 . 07 )
30 . 8
(1 7 . 3 )
86 . 3
(11 . 9 )
221
3 9 9 . 69
( 44 8 . 13 )
224 . 40
( 1 02 7 . 0 6 )
27 . 1
(16 . 0)
69 . 2
(17 . 3)
14
1 1 32 . 7 2
( 1 75 3 . 3 0 )
24 . 0
( 16 . 2 )
53. 4
(26 . 7 )
N o t ransport
Unknown
a
Figures in b ra cket s are s t an dard deviat ions o f mean val ues .
b
' Lo cal ' foo ds are taken as b o t t l ed milk , eggs , butter , fro z en chicken , ghee in 2 6o z. and
smal l e r c on t ainers , canned tun a , local f is h , rice , dry b is cuit s , b read , sugar , an d local
fruit and veget ables .
c
' Basic ' foods a re t aken as canned b ee f an d mut ton , dripp in g , milk o f all t ypes , ghee ,
cann e d macke rel , rice, flour , sharp s , dry b is cu it s , pot atoes , on ions , garl ic , sugar , tea ,
o il an d sal t .
Source :
Food s t o ck inven tories , s urvey of retail foo d sto res , Cent ral Divis ion , May-June 19 7 6 .
196
transport mo de .
For ins t an ce , abo ut thirty o f the st ores
surveyed are in the Rewa Del t a area an d can be reached only
by b o at (by t rips of up to an hour ) f rom l an d in gs on roads
that lead to S uva and Nausori . As noted above , s to re s in
the upper Navua an d Wainimala valleys an d Namo s i areas are
even more inacce s s ib le .
S t o cks are influenced by the acces s ib il ity o f s t o res .
Of the thirty-five s t o res reached by b oat , 80 per cent have
fewer than twenty food types an d only one has more than
twen ty-nine . Th e corresponding rate s fo r road-acces s ib l e
s tores are 2 8 . 8 and 4 7 . 3 p er cen t . Moreover , none o f the
s tores reache d by a boat trip t aking longer than 45 minut es
has more than n ineteen foo d t ype s . A s imilar patt ern is
apparent in the number of i tems s t o cked : 7 1 . 4 per cen t o f
s t ores ac ce s s ible by boat ( and a l l o f t ho s e reached b y a
b o at t rip over 45 minute s ) have fewer than 5 0 0 it ems , whilst
on ly 2 8 . 6 per cent o f road-acce s s ib le s t ores have s t o cks of
this s iz e . The amount of good s in s t o rage als o refle ct s
acces s : only two o f thirty- s even shops inacces s ib le by road
have goo d s s t ored .
Four b as ic forms of s t ore ownership were enco unt ered
in the Cen t ral Divis ion : bus inesses owned by individuals
or in formal p artnerships b ut not regist e red as l imite d
l iab i l it y companies (hereafter c al led ' p rivat e s t ores ' , 2 65
cases ) ; co-ope rat ive cons umer s ociety s tores ( 6 8 ) ; village
' club ' or rna taqa li s t o res ( 14 ) ; an d regis t ered compan ies ( 4 ) .
These f o rms o f own er ship imp ly differ en t racial , e conomi c
and legal requirement s s o it i s to be expect ed t hat s t o res
of different ownership wil l vary in part i cular ways .
The
ret ail s t ore s urvey revealed (by chi-square analy s i s ) that
s t o ck-relat ed variab les like s t o ck compos it ion or size are
independen t of ownership form ( Tab le 3 . 1 6 ) . Other var iab le s
l ike display form, o p erator , founder , operat in g s chedule
an d variab le s refl e ct ing the s cale o f operat ion are n o t
independent o f t he t y p e of ownersh ip .
A marked differen ce by owner ship form is in the use o f
help i n shop s . Private s t o res rely mos t o n unpaid lab our ,
42 . 2 p er c en t having part-t ime labour an d 1 7 . 5 per c ent
unpaid full-t ime l ab o ur . Vill age s tores have the next highes t
us e of 1.lll p aid labour ( 14 . 3 per cen t part- t ime , 2 1 . 4 p e r c en t
full- t ime ) .
Co-operat ive s o c iety s t o res have leas t unpaid
ass ist an ce - their s t oremen and othe r off icials are usually
s alaried . Regis t e red companies have highest employment
frequen cy of paid l ab our, all h aving full-t ime and p art- t ime
Tab le 3 . 1 6
Form o f store ownershiE and food stock charac terist ics
Form o f
ownership
Licensed individual ,
family
Number
store s
2 65
Value ( $ )
stock on
display
7 6 3 . 33
a
( 1005 . 16 )
Per cent
s t o c�
lo cal
Per cen t
s t o ck
c
b as ic
3 84 . 7 5
( 1316 . 62 )
25 . 5
(15 . 5 )
66. 1
(18 . 9 )
Value ( $ )
stock in
s t o rage
Co- op erat ive
68
2 5 0 . 38
( 389 . 55 )
4 9 . 60
( 2 16 . 3 0 )
28 . 7
(16 . 4)
77. 7
( 13 . 0 )
Village group
14
1 60 . 13
(17 9 . 60)
18 . 5 7
( 5 7 . 14 )
33 . 8
( 13 . 1 )
72 . 3
(15 . 3)
3
4 9 6 3 . 22
( 9 6 . 80 )
2 62 1 . 65
( 2360 . 9 4 )
22 . 0
(4 . 4)
28. 0
( 2 0 . O)
Regist ered comp an y
a
F i gures in b racket s are s tandard deviat ions o f mean values .
b
' Local ' foods are t aken as b o t t le d milk , e gg s , b ut t e r , f ro z en chi cken , ghee in 2 6o z . an d
smalle r conta iners , canned tuna , lo cal f i sh , r ice , dry b is cuit s , b read , sugar , an d local
fruit an d veget ab l es .
c
' Bas i c ' foods are taken as canned b eef and mut ton , drippin g , milk o f all type s , ghee ,
canned macke re l , r ice , flour , sharp s , dry b is cu it s , potato e s , onion s , garl i c , s uga r , tea ,
oil and s alt .
Source :
Foo d s t o ck inven to ries , survey o f retail food store s , Cen t ral Divis ion , May-June 19 7 6 .
198
p a i d help . Vill age s t o re s ( 7 . 1 per cent full-t ime and
part - t ime ) and p r ivat e s t ores ( 2 0 . 2 per cen t ) have lowes t
rat e s o f p a i d h elp .
Many d if ferences in s to re op erat ion that may at f ir s t
appear att r ib ut ab le t o form o f ownersh ip are more prob ab ly
the product of a variety of interrelat ed factors . These
include , in addit ion to owner s hip fo rm , variat ion s in oper
ational modes b y race o f owner , involvement in a par t i cular
comme rc i al ' c ircuit ' and the rac ial and s o c io-e conomic
charact er o f the cl ien tele .
Consequen ces of these factors
are examined - b elow . It is s uffi cient h ere t o make one b as ic
p o in t ab out ret ail o p erat ion s in F ij i : the re are s i gn i fi cant
dif feren ce s in the form an d nat ure o f operat ion b etween
outlet s operated by d i fferen t races .
Tab l e 3 . 1 7 pres en t s dat a on the locat ion of Cent ral
Divi s i on s t ores and the p eriod t hey have been funct ion in g ,
by race : 35 F ij ian-own ed s t ores are both the mo s t d i s t an t
from Suva , t h e ch ief s ource o f s upply and the mo s t re cent ly
e s t ab lishe d . F ij ian s t ores have been operat in g f o r les s
than half as long as all shops and average only one- s ixth
the life span o f Guj erat i shops .
Co-ope rat ive s o c iety
s tores have b een operat in g lon ger than ind ividually-owned
Fij ian s t ores ( 8 . 3 y ears comp ared to 5 . 1 ) b ut s t il l for
short er periods than any other shop s . F ij ian shops are
locat e d further from Suva t han shops o f o t her races . The
average dis t an ce from Suva for all sho p s is 2 9 km . For
Fij ian shops t he average is 39km , for Chines e llkm an d for
Indian f rom 19 t o 32km .
S imil arly , in t e rms o f invent o ry s i z e , origin ( lo c al /
non-local ) and comp o s i t ion (bas i c /n on-bas i c ) , shops o f the
chie f raci al groups fall int o d is t inct cat e go r ie s (Tab le s
3 . 18 - 3 . 2 1 ) . Fij ian s ho p s have t h e smalle s t s t ocks i n s t orage
or on displ ay , and the l ar gest share o f s t o ck t hat is lo cal
and bas i c .
Chin e s e and In dian s t or es have gro cery s t o cks
o f approximately the s ame s iz e ( almo st t en t imes the value
o f s t o ck in in dividually-owned F ij ian s hop s ) and l ocal and
b as ic foods are o f equal impor t an ce in sho p s of b o th race s .
In addit ion t o havin g l arger and more d ivers e s t o cks , Chinese
an d Ind ian sho p s are l e s s depen dent on gro ceries than are
Fij ian s t o re s .
Raci al variab le s in retail ing and in the proces s e d
foods dis t r ib ut ion system in gen eral are examined fur t her
b elow .
It is enough h ere to con cl ude by no t in g that while
199
Tab le 3 . 1 7
Dis t ance o f retail shops f rom Suva an d
compari s on by race of owner
years of operat ion :
Storeown er
Km
from Suva
a
(N)
Mean
Years operat in g
Mean
(N)
39 . 0
( 14 1 )
5. 1
(58)
6.4
(3)
5.0
(2)
Mo slem
31 . 6
( 12 )
18 . 3
( 11 )
Hindu
24. 6
(96)
17 . 2
(17 )
6uj erati
19 . 5
( 15 )
29 . 7
( 11 )
Punj ab i
29 . 6
( 10 )
n . a.
n . a.
Indian , unspec .
25 . 6
(8)
3. 7
(6)
Chinese
10 . 6
(51)
14 . 8
(23)
Part-European
n . a.
n. a.
8.0
(3)
All shop s
28. 2
( 35 2 )
12 . 4
( 2 36 )
Fij ian
Other Pacif i c Is l .
Indian
a
Mean cal culat ed f rom numb er of shop s for which th ere
are valid respons es (N) .
Sour ce :
S urvey of retail food s t o res , Cent ral Divis ion ,
May-Jnne 19 7 6 .
N
0
0
Tab le 3 . 18
Number of items disElaled and s tored.- b� ·- race of s t o reowner
Number of i t ems on d isElal
Owner
a
Fij ian
Indian
Chinese
<100
9
<5 00
a
5 001000
10001500
15002 000
2 0003 000
30004000
77
17
32
21
11
14
23
6
4
22
8
6
32
13
6
8
>8000
4
No in fo .
2
17
5
Numb er o f i tems s t o red
Owner
F ij iana
Indian
Chinese
1005 00
5
5
5001000
10002 000
2 0003000
4
4
3
2
6
4
1
4
3
>5000
Goods stored
no details
15
9
8
2
No goods
s tored
118
43
8
No in fo .
14
57
21
Total
s tores
144
142
51
Tot al
s t ores
144
142
51
Co-operat ive society and village s t ores , and three s tores operated by non-Fij ian Pacific
Is lande rs , are t re ated as ' Fij ian ' .
Source :
Survey o f re tail foo d stores , Cen t ral Divis ion , May-June 19 7 6 .
Tab le 3 . 19
Race o f owner an.d food s t o ck characte ris t i c s o f in divi dually-owned s t o re s
Owne r
Fij ian / Pac i f i c I s . a
In dian
Chinese
Part-European
Unknown
Numb e r
s tores
62
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
display
1 4 5 . 15
( 1 7 2 . 89 )b
Value ( $)
s t o ck in
s t orage
Per cen t
s t o ck
l o cale
Pe r cen t
s t o ck
b as i c?
2 7 . 47
( 138 . 7 6 )
30 . 4
( 18 . 7 )
78. 6
( 16 . 3 )
142
1000 . 5 9
( 12 18 . 4 7 )
449 . 6 3
( 14 4 5 . 83 )
23. 5
( 14 . 0 )
63 . 8
( 18 . 7 )
51
9 65 . 61
( 794 . 2 6 )
805 . 9 8
( 1 809 . 5 6 )
25 . 2
( 14 . 5 )
58. 6
(17 . 4)
4
464 . 54
( 4 62 . 4 1 )
30 . 7 8
(61. 56)
29 . 8
(10 . 7 )
57 . 8
(8. 0)
11
1 381 . 5 3
(913 . 54)
2 52 . 2 0
(602 . 2 5 )
22 . 0
(11 . 2 )
56 . 1
(22 . 6 )
S to res operated b y groups ( e . g . villages o r mataqa l i ) o r c o-operat ive s o c i e t ies are
in c luded under ' Fij ian / Paci f i c I s l an der ' .
b F igures in b racke t s are s t andard deviat ion s o f mean values .
c
' Lo car foods are t aken as bot tled milk , eggs , but ter , f r o z en chicken , ghee in 2 6 o z . and
smaller con tainers , canned tuna , lo cal f ish , r ice , dry b is cu i t s , bread , s ugar and
local fruit and ve getables .
d
' Ba s i c ' foods are taken as canned b ee f an d mut ton , dr ipp in g , milk o f all types , ghee ,
canned mackere l , r i ce , f lour , sharp s , dry b is cui t s � p o tatoe s , on ion s , gar l ic , s ugar ,
tea , oil and salt .
Fo o d s tock inven to ries , survey o f retail f oo d s t ores , Cen t ral Div i s ion ,
Source :
May-June 19 7 6 .
a
N
0
I-'
N
0
N
Tab l e 3 . 2 0
Own e rship
Numb er
s t o re s
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
d isplay
Value ( $ )
s t o ck in
s t o rage
Per c en t
s t o ck
c
local
Per cen t
s t o ck
d
bas ic
3 7 . 12
( 1 75 . 4 8 )
29 . 9
(17 . 2 )
77 .5
( 14 . 7 )
Fij ian and o t he r
Pac i f i c Is lande r a
14 3
Indian
142
1000 . 5 9
( 12 1 8 . 4 7 )
449 . 6 3
( 14 4 5 . 8 3 )
23. 5
( 14 . 0 )
63 . 8
(18 . 7 )
51
9 6 5 . 61
( 79 4 . 2 6 )
80 5 . 9 8
( 1 809 . 5 6 )
25 . 2
( 14 . 5 )
58. 6
(17 . 4)
4
464 . 54
( 4 6 2 . 41 )
30 . 7 8
(61 . 56 )
29. 8
(10 . 7 )
57. 8
( 8 . 0)
10
14 3 6 . 6 8
( 1 8 6 7 . 88 )
33 3 . 1 6
(1037 . 2 7)
22 . 1
(10 . 1 )
54 . 5
(22 . 6)
Chines e
Part-European
Unknown
19 6 . 33
( 300 . 1 1 ) b
S to r e s op erated b y group s ( e . g . villager o r ma. taqa li ) or co-operat ive societ ies are
in c luded under ' F ij ian and other Pac i f i c I s lander ' .
b Figures in b racke t s are s t an dard deviat ion s of mean value s .
c
' Local ' foods are taken as b o t t l ed milk , eggs , bu t t e r , frozen ch i cken , ghee in 2 6oz .
and smaller con ta ine rs , canned tuna , local f ish , rice , dry b i s cu i t s , b read , s ugar ,
and lo cal f ruit and vegetab l es .
d
' Bas ic ' foods are t aken as canned beef an d mut ton , d r ipping , milk o f all type s , ghee ,
canned mackere l , ric e , f lour , sharp s , dry b i s cu i t s , potatoes , on i on s , garlic , s ugar ,
tea , oil and s al t .
Source :
Food s t o ck inven to ries , survey o f re tail food s t ores , Cen t r al Divi s ion , May
June 1 9 7 6 .
a
Tab le 3 . 21
Foo d s to cks o f Ind ian-owned retail st ores
Value ( $ )
s t o ck on
display
Value ( $ )
s t ock in
s t o rage
Per cen t
stoc
l o cal
P e r cen t
s t o ck
c
bas ic
142
1000 . 5 9
a
( 12 18 . 4 7 )
44 9 . 6 3
( 14 4 5 . 8 3 )
23. 5
( 14 . 0 )
63 . 8
( 18 . 7 )
Mo s lem
12
1069 . 5 7
( 82 1 . 5 0 )
1357 . 9 8
(2713 . 7 7)
30 . 8
(10 . 7 )
65 . 8
(18 . 4 )
Hindu
96
838 . 2 1
( 9 15 . 65 )
366 . 2 5
( 1 3 5 6 . 52 )
23. 4
( 14 . 4 )
64 . 4
(17 . 4 )
Guj erat i
15
1837 . 08
( 2 39 2 . 82
250 . 07
( 8 12 . 05 )
14 . 5
(8 . 0)
60 . 6
(25 . 2 )
Punj ab i
10
1 6 84 . 9 4
( 15 35 . 32 )
651 . 2 6
( 1063 . 2 3 )
28. 4
( 14 . 9 )
61 . 8
(25 . 2 )
9
483 . 63
( 3 81 . 1 3 )
189 . 4 6
(494 . 5 7 )
24 . 5
( 16 . 4)
63 . 6
(15 . 5 )
Numb er
s t o res
All Ind ian s t ores
Unkn own In d i an
cultural gro up
- ---- -- -
�
----·-
a
F i gures in b racke ts are s t an dard deviat ion s o f mean values .
' Lo c al ' foods are t aken as b o t t led milk , eggs , butter , f r o z en chi cken , ghee in 2 6 o z .
and smal ler con taine rs , cann ed tuna , lo cal f ish , rice , dry b is cuit s , b read , sugar ,
an d lo cal fruit and vege t ab l e s .
c
' Bas i c ' foods are taken as canned b e e f and mut ton , dripping , milk o f all types , ghee ,
cann ed mackerel , rice , fl o ur , sharps , dry b i s cuit s , potatoe s , on ion s , garl i c , s ugar ,
tea , o il an d s al t .
Foo d s t o ck invent o r ies , survey o f ret ail food s t o re s , Cent ral Divis ion ,
Source :
May-June 19 7 6 .
b
N
0
w
2 04
ret ail gro cery s t o res in the Central Division are , l ike
those elsewh ere in Fij i , p r imarily small , family-owned and
operat ed o ut l e t s with foods tuffs as a dominan t p art o f a
general s t o ck , there are marked d if feren ces in the locat ion ,
s cale an d mod e of operat ion o f - out lets that are related to
the owner ' s rac e .
S t o reown e rs - at least tho s e covered
The s toreowners .
in the Cen t ral Divis ion retail food s t o re s urvey - share a
numb er o f common characterist i c s . 3 6 As a group , s t o reown ers
are mal e , married and over thirty y ears of age . The mean
numb e r of dependan t s is 5 . 6 .
Ab o ut 4 per cent are illit erate
and an equal propo rt ion have not b een t o s chool b ut claim
lit e racy . One-third have only. s ome p rimary s chool e ducat ion .
Ab out the s ame number ( 37 . 1 per cen t ) have comple t e d p rimary
s chool b ut very few ( 7 . 8 p er cent ) have comple t e d s econdary
s chool . Levels of formal literacy , of course , have l i t t l e
relat ion t o s t o re operat ion . Few retaile rs keep writ ten
records of t ran s act ions and many are fllll ction ally ill it erat e .
Almos t all s t o reown ers have had an o ccupation prior t o
op erat ing the p resen t s t ore , the mo st common b e ing farming
or work in g in anoth er s t o re or small b us iness ( Tab le 3 . 2 2 ) .
Slightly more than one-half of s t o reowners have an o ther
o ccupat ion apart from the ir shop . The mos t common forms o f
add i t ional employment · are farmin g ( 34 . 2 per cen t o f s tore
owne rs with other o ccup at ions ) an d o th er s t o re o r busine s s
int eres t s ( 2 6 . 5 ) . S alaried or wage employment as a s e con d
o ccupat i on is not common .
Person al charact e r is t ics o f s t o reowners vary b etween
rac ial group s . 3 7 For in st an ce , forty-eight o f f ifty-two
Chinese shopowners were b orn overseas comp ared t o e ight e en
o f 142 Indians ( and no F ij ian s ) . Chinese s toreowners are
cons iderab ly older than other s : 32 . 7 p er cen t are over
s ixty y ears old compared to 11 . 3 p e r cent of Indian s an d
1 7 . 5 p er cent o f F ij ians .
Indian s toreown ers t end t o b e the
younges t . One in six Ind ian s t oreowners i s under thirty
y ears of age (and one in two Guj erat is ) : only one in e ight
F ij ians and one in twenty- s ix Chines e s t o reown ers are o f
comparable a ge . As ide from b e in g y o un g er , Indian s t o reown er s
s t an d apart through b eing b et t er educat ed ( part i cularly
Guj erat is an d Moslems ) and are more l ikely t o b e mal e .
Maj o r d i f ferences b etween s t oreown e rs o f differen t
races a r e apparen t in busine s s experien ce . Only one o f
2 05
Tab le 3 . 2 2
Occupat ion of s t o reowners (prior t o and
concurren t with op erat ing presen t s t ore)
Occupat ion
P rior t o
op erat in g
presen t s t o re
At pres en t
Numb e r
p er cen t
Numb er
per cent
Farmer , vill ager
59
27 . 3
40
34 . 2
Unskilled t rade
21
9. 7
2
1. 7
Skilled t rade
26
12 . 0
6
5.1
Semi- skilled t rade
18
8.3
4
3.4
P ro fe s sional
19
8. 8
9
7.7
Semi-pro f e s s ional
21
9.7
8
6.8
Store , small
b us in e s sa
52
24 . 1
31
26 . 5
17
14 . 5
117
99 . 9
Other
S ub - t o t al
2 16
Not availab l e
No prior/pres en t
occupat ion
Total
a
99 . 9
9
2
35
14 1
2 60
2 60
Includes market ven do rs ( 2 ) an d real e s t at e agen t s ( 5 )
in presen t o ccupat ion .
S ource :
Survey o f retail food s tores , Cent ral Divis ion ,
May-June 1 9 76 .
206
fifty- s ix Fij ian s t oreowners owned a s t o re or b us ines s prior
In con t ras t ,
t o the one o p erated at th e t ime o f int erview .
2 7 . 7 per cent o f In dian and 2 9 . 5 p er cen t Chine s e st o reowners
have had another shop o r b us ine s s . F ij ian s t o reowners are
from predominant ly agricult ural backgrounds ( 41 . 1 p er cent ) :
the rat e for Indian s is 2 4 . 1 p er cent and for Chinese , 15 . 6
per cent . Amon g Indian s to reowners , no Mos lems o r Guj eratis
have been farmers but 2 7 . 2 p er cen t of Hindus have been .
A simil ar pat t e rn of agr i cult ure and s t o re /bus in e s s own ership
is apparent among s toreowners wit h ano ther s ource of income .
For in s t ance , of thirty-e i ght Fij i an s who have another in come
source , 65 . 6 p er cen t are in agricul t ure and only 2 . 6 p er
cen t have another s t ore or bus ines s : the rates for Indian s
Chinese s t oreown ers
are 2 3 and 36 . 1 p er cent respect ivel y .
with other income s ources are not in agricul ture b ut mainly
have another st ore or b us in es s .
Th e s e c t ion s b elow on ' A t ypology o f ret ail foo d s t o res '
an d ' Race and t rade ' cover further aspe ct s of s t oreown er s .
It i s en ough here t o no t e that the two connnon feat ure s o f
al l owners i s their l imit ed e ducat ion , whi ch rarely includes
commercial t rain ing , and their d iverse former and current
employment backgrounds . Th ere are marked differences in
these variab les b y the race o f the owners ; thes e are discus sed
b el ow .
Gro cery ret ailing el s ewh ere in F ij i
To che ck the validity o f dat a from the Cen t ral Divis ion
ret ail s t o re s urvey an d t o ob tain informat ion abo ut ret ail
food out le t s el sewh ere in F ij i , small s urveys were con duct ed
in Ba and L ab as a towns and surround ing dis t r i ct s in Novemb er
In each are a , all l i censed s t o res in t own selling
19 7 6 .
food an d an app roximat ely equal numb er in adj o in in g rural
dis t r i ct s were covered . S ixty-e ight s t ores were s urveyed in
Ba and Lab as a .
The bas i c f indin g o f t h es e surveys i s t hat the s t ruct ure
o f gro cery ret a il ing in Ba , Labasa and the Cen t ral Divi s ion
has much in common . Ownership forms , for in stan ce , are
in Ba an d Lab as a , over 85 p er cen t o f
s imil ar in all areas :
s t o res are individually owned and an equal propo r t i on o f
In both B a an d L abasa
shops in each i s owne d b y In dian s .
t own s an d re gions , s ix Chines e shopkeepers were en coun t e re d ,
as well as four and three F ij ians respect ively . Pat t e rn s
In ne ither
o f owne rsh ip by race an d l o cat ion a r e al so s imilar .
Ba n o_r Lab as a t own s i s th er e a Fij ian-owned shop , although
2 07
each has a co-operat ive so ciety s tore .
Chinese and Indian
s t ores ar e about equally d ivided b etween town and coun try ,
although in both areas Guj era t i shop s ( twe lve in Ba , s ix in
Lab asa) ar e locat ed on ly in towns .
One dif ference b etween ret ail in g in Ba and Labasa i s
the t ime shop s have funct ioned : shop s in Labas a are lon ger
e s t ab lish ed than tho se in Ba ( 2 0 . 2 compared to 1 3 . 3 y ears )
and have al s o operated longer under the pr esen t owner ( 10 . 4
year s t o 8 . 7 in Ba) . The period owners have operate d any
shop i s s imil ar in the two are as ( 14 . 2 y ears in Labas a ; 1 3 . 8
in Ba) .
In both areas , town shop s have o p erated longer than
rural shop s , al though the differen ce is not as great in Ba
as in Lab as a where shop s in t own are on t he average twice
as o ld as rural shop s .
Features of ownership were also compare d . The survey
revealed t ha t shops in Ba are mor e likely to have been
e s t ab l ished by someone o ther than the present owner ( in two
third s of c as e s ) than in Labas a ( one-half ) , and that whils t
owner-oper at o r s p redominat e in b o t h areas , they are les s
common in B a ( 5 2 out of 6 8 cas e s ) t han in Lab as a ( 61 out o f
68) .
In terms o f rac ial variab le s , key feat ures of shop
operat ing exper i ence in Ba and Labasa are s imilar , and are
also s imilar to the general t rend s revealed in the Cen t ral
Division . F ij ian s t oreowners have ope rate d shops f or 3 . 3
y ear s in Ba and 2 . 1 in Lab as a ; Indian s for 1 5 . 7 and 1 3 . l ;
and Ch inese for 1 3 . 3 and 32 . 8 y ear s .
Tab le 3 . 1 7 presen t s
s imi lar dat a f o r Central Divi s i on s t ores . Amon g Indians ,
Punj ab is have the longest shopkeep in g experien ce , followed
by Guj erat i s who have doub l e the y ears exper ience o f o ther
Ind ian s t o reowners ; the sit uat ion of Cen t ral Divis ion Indian
s to rekeeper s is not great ly d i f feren t .
The Cen tral Divis ion survey reveale d that Chinese and
Indian shop$ sellin g foo d s t uf f s rely l es s on food s al e s t han
F ij ian shops and that shops locat ed in rural areas have
great er dependence on food than other shop s . Th ese f in din gs
were upheld in Ba and Lab as a . For ins t an ce , in b oth areas
gro ceries compr ise at leas t three-quart ers the s t ock of all
F ij i an s t ores b ut less than thi s in a t leas t one- third of
Ind ian and one-half o f Chines e shop s . Foo d is the bas ic
s to ck o f all gen eral ret ail s t o re s .
2 08
Det ailed inve s t i gat ions of s t ore t rade l ike tho s e done
in the Suva area were not conduc t ed in Ba and Lab as a . How
ever , dat a on s t o re s t o cks an d general ob servat ion in tho s e
areas and elsewhere sugge s t t h a t the relat ive share o f ret ail
t rade by r ace calculat ed fo r the Cent ral Divis ion ( cf . note
2 7 ) is roughly representat ive o f the s it uat ion elsewhere in
Fij i , espec i ally if it is adj us t ed to refl e ct the dis t r i
b ut ion o f s t o re t ype ( s ee Tab le 3 . 4 ) .
A typo lo gy o f retail grocery shops
The above analy s i s o f gro cery ret ailin g derived from
s urveys of outlets give s an impre ss i on o f the broad features
o f ret ail ing in the Cent ral Divis i on and , more gen erally ,
elsewhe re in Fij i .
It sugge s t s that there are a numb e r o f
dis t in c t fo rms of retail busines s , the key variab le s f o r
the s e b e ing s hop fl.lll ct ion , lo cat ion , form o f b us iness organ
The var iab les are
izat ion and race o f the s t o re owner .
inter- related but even s o bas i c s tore types are iden t i
f iab l e . Examinat ion of the s e is us eful for the concep tual
ization of the retail sys t em tha t resul t s and also b ecau s e
o f the opport unity i t offers t o examine i n det ail the op er
at ion o f t yp ical o u t le t s o f each t ype .
In the Cen t ral Divi sion t here are s even b a s i c typ e s o f
retail gro cery s t ore :
(a)
expat riat e-owned s up ermarke t s ;
(b )
spec ializ ed food ret ailer s ;
(c)
s ub urb an neighbo urhood shop s ;
(d)
suburban co m1mm ity shop s ;
(e)
rural gene ral s t ores ;
(f)
village s tores ;
( g)
co-operat ive society s t ores .
The typo logy is based on ret ail o ut le t s in the Cen t ral
Divi s ion , especially in Suva and the adj acent area . The
first two t ypes of shop , for instance , are largely conf ined
to Suva . However , i f allowan ce is made for t he g reate r
s ophi s t ication an d s pe cializat ion o f gro cery ret a il ing in
Suva than elsewhere , the t yp o lo gy can b e extended t o o ther
areas of F ij i .
The s even types of outlet are examined below .
2 09
Expat riat e- owned s upermarket s are operated b y the two
ch ief expat r ia t e European companies in Fij i , Burns Philp
( South Sea) Co . L t d , and W . R. Carpenter ( South P ac i f i c ) Lt d .
Burns Philp operate s mer chandise out let s at seven s it e s in
Fij i , each with s e l f-s ervice gro cery ret a il facilit ies as
part of a gen eral s t ore . The supermarket con cept is mo s t
developed in the Suva Burns Philp s t ore where a re cen t ly
con s t ruct ed s upermarket is a s e ct ion of a cen t ral ly-lo cat ed
departmen t s tore . W . R. Carpen ter ret ails t hrough eleven
F ij i out let s . Two are in cen t r al Suva operated b y the sub
s id iary Woo lwo rths Lt d o n a cash b as is . The o thers are
operat e d by Morris Hed s t rom Ltd as who le sale-ret ail outlet s
that deal in cash and credit , wi th foo dstuffs an d as s o ciat ed
household pro duc t s b ein g s old in general departmen t s t o re s .
The two Woo lwo rths s t o res and the Burn s Philp ' Fo o dhall ' in
Suva are the mo s t developed f orms in F ij i o f the b roadly
s to cked self-s ervice s t ore connnon in mo·s t Wes t e rn coun t r ie s .
It i s not co in ci dent al that this recen t ly-in t ro duced form
of retailin g has a t t ain ed great e s t development in S uva ,
where gro cery retailin g is mo st compet it ive .
The exp at r iate-owned s upermarket s s t an d apart from o ther
retail f oo d outle t s not on ly in terms of ownership and
b us in e s s method s , b ut al s o b ecaus e of their cen tral lo cat ion
two are adj acent to the Suva �arket and b us s t at ion and the
third is within a couple o f minut e s ' walk - and the s cale
of op erat ion ; each has an e s t imat ed gro s s annual t urnover ,
in groceries , of mor e than $ 3 mill ion .
As well as b eing s imil ar in des ign to supermarket s in
Aus t rali a , t he home o f Burns Philp an d Carpenters , the o ut le t s
are operated on the upper circui t b us in e s s prin c iples common
to Wes t ern e conomies . Employees are on regular wages o r
s alaries and a r e un i on i z e d .
S ales a r e cash only .
S tr i ct
Sales t echniques include
operat in g s chedules are fo llowe d .
' draw i t ems ' , special-s ale s , compet it ive gimmi cks , intra
s tore pub l ic addres s sys t ems and media advert i s in g .
S t o ck
and s ales are con t in uo us ly mon ito red and s t o ck ordered in
an t i cipat ion o f cus t omer deman d . No o ther shop s in Suva o r
elsewhere have a s t o ck ran ge t hat app roache s t hat o f the
s up ermarket s .
The ran ge o f s t o ck availab le in the s uper
market s - in cludin g fresh veget able s and fruit , dairy pro duct s ,
b as ic an d l uxury gro cery l ines and common household it ems make s po s s ib l e one-st op shopp in g .
The e xpat riat e-owned s upermarket s are more than maj or
ret ail out l et s . They have evolved f rom gen eral purpos e ,
210
largely pas s ive who lesale-retail o utlet s t o b e a t the front
In competit ion b etween
o f a comp et it ive grocery t rade .
thems elves and with locally-owned s t o res for an in creas in gly
mob ile and r i cher clien t el e , the s up ermarket s have b e come
p ace- set t ers in ret ail innovat ion .
Some innovat ion s , such
as prepacke d product s , advertis in g , s ales and draw it ems ,
have b een ado p t e d by other ret ailers . Moreover , p rice com
p et it ion b etween expat riat e firms has resul ted in the con s umer
b ecomin g mo re p rice-con s cio us and the mo re compet it ive
ret a ilers offerin g co s t and s e rvi ce incent ive s . However ,
apart from S uva an d the larger towns , the expat r iat e-owned
gro cery outlet s con t inue to provide the t r adit ion al general
wholes ale- re t ail servi ce . But s ome o f the sup e rmarke t s '
innovat ion s are reachin g even these t own s whi ch s ugge s t s t he
f ar-rea ch in g consequen ces o f the t r ade p ract i ces of the
expa t riat e-owned supermarket s .
In Suva , an d t o a le s s ext ent in all t owns , there is
s ome hierarchical development o f ret ail o ut let s rangin g
from local , isolat e d general s t ores , through ne i ghbo urhood
an d commtm ity cen t res t o cen t ral , wide-drawing o utlet s . An
impress ion of dif feren ces in patronage o f these outlet s is
availab le f rom a comp arison b etween cus t om at the exp at riate
owned supermarket s in cent ral Suva and three shopp in g cent res
in Suva .
One i s a neighb o urhood c ent re in a low income area
(Milvert on Road , Raiwaqa) ; an other ( Flags t af f ) has a wide
range o f funct ions an d a high-acces s locat ion and draws
cus t omers from a c on s iderable area ; the third , Toorak , is
int e rmed iat e in respect of f un ct ion and access ( Tab le 3 . 2 3 ) . 38
Th e t rade o f the expat riat e-owned sup ermarket s d i f fers
in many ways from t hat o f the shoppin g cen t res .
The s uper
market s are S uva ' s only retail food shop s that draw from a
regional h in t erlan d . They are used for casual s upplie s ,
snacks and even meals by people livin g or workin g in nearby
areas , and they are a main source o f groceries for families
l iving throughout the great e r Suva area . Expat riat e E uropean s
an d wealthy local p eople d o a l arge p art o f their foo d
shopping a t t h e supe rmarket s . At the same t ime , the s t ores
have a s ign i f i can t poo rer clien t ele who frequent ly s p en d
small amoun t s while in the cent r al c i t y area ·fo r other
reason s , part icularly for work or t o vis it the market .
Aroun d one-h al f o f s up e rmarket cus t omers spen d les s than $ 5
on a vis i t .
The me an amount spen t i s $ 8 . 0 4 - $ 7 . 3 1 on food
s t uff s .
Sales at s t ores servin g a neighbourhood client ele
are f requen t ly less than $ 1 p er person an d are o f t en about
35 � .
2 11
Pat ronage at shopping centres and expat riat e-owned supermarke t s in Suva
Supermarke t s
Pat ronage features
�pin g cen t res
Toorak
Milverton Rd�s t a f f
40 . 4
45 . 8
47 . 3
52 . 2
44 . 9
44 . 3
6.0
10 . 3
10 . 9
68 . 5
29 . 4
28.2
20 . 9
27. 1
30 . 6
30 . 2
Occupat ion o f household head
p ro fe s s ional
semi-pro f e s s ional
skilled , semi- skilled
un skilled
unemp loyed
37. 2
21 . 1
25 . 5
10 . 2
5.0
12 . 5
20. 0
29 . 0
23 . 5
n.a.
38 . 0
16 . 6
22 . 0
7.5
n.a.
19 . 5
8.3
39 . 0
21. 7
n.a.
Race
Fij ian , o ther Pac . Is l .
In dian
Ch inese
European
37 . 9
39 . 5
4.0
12 . 0
61 . 2
29 . 4
1.0
46 . 0
31. 6
4.4
9.7
38 . 8
51. 5
7.0
1.0
V i s i t for home consumption
94 . 3
97 . 0
93 . 8
89 . 4
82 . 4
15 . 6
1.5
43 . 5
23 . 4
13 . 7
18 . 3
76 . 3
6. 6
4.5
12 . 4
Per cen t o f cus t omers male
Po s i t ion
head
wife
child
in
household
Dis tance of res idence from sho p s
< . 4km
. 4 - . 8km
. 8- 1 . 6krn
>l . 6km
15 . 6
82 . 3
Means of transport
foo t
bus
9.4
58. 8
95 . 6
1.0
51. 9
7.4
78 . 9
5.7
Las t t ime h ' ho l d memb er bought
he re
today / ye s t erday
within week
25. 7
77. 2
79 . 7
82 . 7
47. 9
54 . 0
65 . 8
69 . 0
1 00 . 0
98 . 0
91 . 1
92 . 5
n . a.
77. 1
33. 7
62 . 8
35 . 6
42 . 7
61 . 0
24 . 8
65 . 0
85 . 0
78.2
85 . 2
26 . 9
26 . 4
23 . 5
23 . 4
17 . 4
33 . 3
23 . 9
25 . 4
4.8
16 . 7
16 . 4
62 . 1
6.6
17 . 0
27.4
47 . 0
Payment by cash
2.1
Main s ource gro ceries
this cen t re
cen t ral Suva
Main source f res h f ruit and
vege t ables
market
(+ 1 6 . 4 part mkt )
Money spen t on food
< $2
$2-$5
$ 5- $ 1 0
> $ 10
Produc t s bought b y more
than 20% cus tomers
cereals , f res h vegs ,
bakery p ro duc t s , f resh milk ,
bakery prods , dairy
fresh me at .
prods , s ugar/ s al t , o i l /
fat , poul t ry / e ggs , fresh/
f ro z . meat , c anned f ish ,
b everage s , fresh milk .
·��
-��
Figures are percent ages of val i d respon s e s in each cate gory - out o f
824 int e rviewed at t h e supermarke t s , 2 0 3 at Milverton Road , 340 a t
Flagst a f f and 3 01 at Toorak .
Source :
Patronage surveys at three exp a t r i at e -owned s up e rmarke t s in Suva
and three shop p in g cent r e s , Jllll e 1 9 7 6 .
Note :
2 12
Ano ther differen ce b e tween patronage o f expat riate
owned s uperma rket s and lo cal shopping cen t res i s the d is t an c e
cus tomers l ive from the place o f purchase . N inety p e r cent
o f cus t ome rs at s uburban shopp ing cen t res l ive within one
mile o f t he s hop : the comparab le rate for sup ermarket
cus t omer s is 1 7 . 7 p er cen t . Di fferen ces in resi dent ial
lo cat ion are reflected in t ransport mean s : almo s t thre e
quarters o f shopping cent re cus t omers walk to shop compared
t o 9 per c en t of people purchas in g at supermarket s .
Othe r d i s s imilarit ies in c l ient ele are rac e ( European
purchas in g concent rat ed in the cent ral s upermarket s ) , the
shopping ' t eam ' (husband an d wife a c co llll t fo r ab out 90 per
cen t of s upermarket patrons compared t o about 40 per cen t
a t shoppin g c entres ) , frequency of vi s it ( a hous ehold memb er
had b een to a s upermarket within t h ree days of int erview in
2 5 . 7 p er cent o f cases , compared t o 62 p er cen t for cl ientele
of shoppin g cent res ) , c re di t acces s (not available at super
market s but used by 6 per cent of cen t re cus t omer s ) , s o cio
e conomi c s t a t us o f the household head ( 5 7 . 3 p er cen t o f
hous ehol d h eads o f supe rmarket shoppers are in profe s s ion s
o r skilled t rade s , compared t o 39 . 8 p e r cent at shopp in g
centre s ) , dependen ce o n central city sho p s for groceries
( the ' main source ' o f gro ceries for 7 7 . 1 per cen t o f s uper
market cus t ome rs , compared to 41 . 3 per cent at shoppin g
cen tres ) an d depen dence o n the market for fresh fruit an d
veget ables ( 82 . 4 p er cen t o f shopp ing c en t re pat rons cited
the market as the ' main source ' o f fruit an d veget ables
compared t o 6 5 . 0 per cen t o f s upermarket pat ron s ) .
Superma rket s and sub urb an shoppin g cen t re s have differ
ent fllll c t ion s in the supply of foo d . Not all shoppin g cen tre
cus t omers pat ron iz e the s up ermarket s and when t hey do it is
t o p urchas e d if feren t it ems than they would at the cen t re s .
More than 30 per cent o f sup ermarket cust ome rs b uy s ome
' cereal s ' , ' fresh ve get ab le s ' , ' b akery p ro duct s ' , ' dairy
p ro duct s other than milk ' , ' bever ages ' and ' fresh an d frozen
meat ' . At shopping centres only ' bakery product s ' were
bought by mor e than 3 0 per cen t of customers .
' Milk ' and
' meat ' we re the n ext mo s t popul ar it ems , each pur chased by
20 p er cent of pat ron s . While at s up e rmarket s el even d i ff e ren t
type s o f f o o d were purchased b y mo re than one- fifth o f
cus t omers , only three i tems h a d s uch s upport a t shoppin g
cent re s .
A reas on for th e diffe ren ce i s that mos t shopping
c en t re s are s ources o f b a s ic gro ceries an d are used only to
top up immediat e needs of other i t ems . Pur chase s are small
213
Some shops in c en t res provi de more s pe cial ized
and frequent .
s e rvi ces , e . g . l iquo r s ale s , b ut con comi t an t ly mos t meet
immediat e l o c al deman ds .
Spe c iali z ed food ret ailers are chie fly b ut chers , although
there is inc reasin g special izat ion in shops retailing fresh
fruit an d veget ables . But cher shops d i f fer from other ret ail
fo o d out l et s in the degree of special iz at ion and the develop
ment o f chain out let s . 3 9
There are lic en sed b ut chers in all cen t re s s ave Vaileka ,
Korovo u , Navua and Levuka . Ten of the twenty- f ive but cher s
are in Suva , inc ludin g two halal b ut chers . Apart from
Lautoka ( three ) and Suva , no cen tre has more than two but chers .
Butchers are t he one lo cal foo d ret ailing act ivity in Fij i
with s ome development o f ret ail chain s . Twelve o f the
twenty- f ive l ic en s ed b ut cher shop s are operat ed by four
chains , two in Suva and t he two in the Wes t ern Divis ion ,
one of whi ch o p er at es in four diffe rent towns .
No ret a iler deals exclus ively in f resh fruit and vege
t ab les , b ut at least one Chinese merchant in Suva has a
b us ine s s b as ed on who lesal ing an d ret ail in g impo rt e d and
lo cal ' t emp erat e ' fruit and vege t ab les . The expat r iat e-owned
supermarket s als o h ave fresh p ro duce s e ct ion s .
It is app aren t ly b e coming more common for general
grocery shops to sell s ome f re sh , mainly lo cal , produce .
Bananas , oran ges , co conut s , dalo , pumpkin , gin ger , chill ies
and e ggplan t are o ft en sol d . Perishabl e leafy vege t ables
are als o s ol d o c cas ionally . The pro duce comes from t he
shopowner ' s garden o r is bought from pro ducers or middlemen
at the shop o r market . Often ve get ab les are l e f t at shops
by a f r iend o f the s t o reowner who sup ervises s ales as a
favour .
The expans ion o f gro cery shops int o sales o f lo cal
fresh produce is mos t marked in Suva , where about twent y o f
the 1 6 6 shops retail ing food sell p roduce . Out let s in
central Suva deal p rimarily with lo cal o r imported t emp erate
p ro duce and , as s ales are dire cted t o the expatr iat e and
other wealthy t r ade , are no t in marked comp et it ion with the
marke t . E l s ewhere , supplies are l imit ed and errat ic and
t r ade i s aimed at the urgent needs o f neighbourhood customers
fo r whom the market remains the p r ime s ource o f s upply .
2 14
Suburb an ne ighbourhoo d and commun ity shops range from
moribund general shop s to aggre s s ively-managed local super
market s an d s to res , many o f which have a liquor off-licen c e .
As ide from t h e s cale o f operati on , larger neighbo urhoo d and
smalle r community shops are not readily d i s t inguishab le .
They share common funct ions ( such as supp lyin g b as i c groceries
and househo ld goods and ac t ing as a credit s ource ) , ownership
forms and bus iness methods , and even their cus t om may b e
from either the lo cal ?eighbourhoo d o r the broader commun ity .
S ome aspect s o f the t rade act ivity o f twelve nei ghbourhoo d
and community shop s are de scribed in Tab le 3 . 2 4 .
Suburban neighb ourhood shop s do almo s t all their t rade
serving the b as ic grocery and non-food requiremen t s of the
immediate neighbourhood . The shop s may be i s o lated , in a
small neighbourhood shopp in g cen t re or in a widely-drawing
regional c en t re . Even when in a commun ity shopp ing cen tre
or on a high-acce s s rout e , n eighb ourhood shop s have l imit ed
s to cks and f re quen t ly an unprepos ses s ing appearan ce .
S t ore
owners are pass ive , pat ronage l imit ed an d t radin g periodic .
The shop s are busy from the t ime o f b read an d newspaper
deliveries ( around 6 . 30am) un t i l soon aft e r 8 am when mos t
s choo ls and emp loymen t commenc e . Late morn in g s ees a small
t rade revival as households purchase lunch needs but the
shop s are no t really busy again un t i l children get out o f
s chool and prep arat ions begin for the even ing meal .
Almo st all s ub urban neighbourhoo d sho p s are owne d an d
operated b y Indian o r Chinese families . As s i s t an ce f rom
outs ide t he fami ly i s rare . The shops can be operated by
mos t t imes by one p er son and children help out in busy
period s , mainly by keep in g reco rds as the owners are o f t en
funct ionally ill it erate .
S to ck comprises a w ide range o f
small non-foo d it ems a s well as gro ceries an d househol d
clean ing goo d s .
Gro ceries usually accoun t f o r at least
three-quart er s of t rade . The shops funct ion as a sup p ly
equalizer fo r low income n e ighbourhoo d families by b e in g a
credit s ource t o t ide over between pay days .
Another import an t funct ion o f suburban neighb ourhoo d
is to a c t as a b re ak-o f-bulk p o in t . As well as b reakin g
wholesale un it s , such a s lOOlb sacks o f rice an d 2 2 4 lb s acks
of sugar , in t o common con sumer s iz e s , they also sell i t ems
in un i t s smaller than the manufac turer ' s s t an dard retail pac k .
shops
Tab l e 3 . 2 4
--- ---
Trade cha racteris t i cs of twelve gro cery shop s in or n e ar Suva
Shop
Daily
t urn
ove r
$
Est .
weekly
turn-,.
ove r
$
Sales
in
food
Sales in
' b as i c '
foods
Av. no .
cus t omers
daily
Av . s ale
per
cus t omer
$
Custome r s
from
lo cal
area
%
%
%
1
10-35
120
67
90
50
0 . 87
100
2
2 0- 7 5
220
84
81
10
3 . 39
100
3
2 0- 80
2 80
22
39
55
0 . 79
100
4
6-100
290
47
69
50
0 . 90
85
5
30-75
370
64
72
70
0 . 82
100
6
50-160
400
63
67
75
0 . 83
100
7
45- 1 1 0
4 30
47
63
145
0 . 45
90
8
80-100
520
67
51
110
0 . 79
85
9
30- 3 8 0
6 50
72
58
25
3 . 92
85
10
30-22 5
7 70
28
48
95
1 . 25
85
11
100- 350
1 400
29
49
2 00
2 . 06
82
12
60-350
1500
30
52
140
3 . 14
65
Source :
Sales
for
Commen t s
credit
( approx . )
%
5
Owne d by ' Pranj ivan ' ( s ee t ext ) ;
on outskirts of Naus ori oppos it e s t ore 3 .
Owned b y ' Krishna ' ( s e e t ext ) ;
20
2 4km from Suva , oppo s i t e s t ore �
Ind ian -owne d ; on out skir t s o f
0
N aus ori o p p o s i t e s t o r e l ;
l i quor l i cence .
0
Ind ian-own e d ; on Kin g ' s Road at
N a s in u ; adj acen t to s t o re 1 0 .
4
In d ian-own e d ; i n isolated rural
urban s e t t lement l lkm f rom Suva .
Ind ian-own e d ; in sma l l shoppin g
1
cen t re i n p rospe rous Suva s ub urb .
Owne d by ' La i ' ( s ee text ) ; in a
10
p rosperous Suva suburb , i s o lat e d .
Chinese-owned in an a c t ive
5
Suva shopp in g cen t re .
Owne d by ' Vinod Prasad ' ( s e e
n . a.
text ) ; 2 4km f rom S uva , oppos i t e
s t ore 2 .
Indian-own e d ; adj a cen t to s t o re
5
4 ; liquor l i c en c e .
1
In dian -owned ; in a p r o s p e rous
Suva sub urb ; isolated ; l iquor
l i c en c e .
1
Owne d b y ' George Sul t an a ' ( s ee
t ext ) ; in p rospero us Suva shop
p in g cen t re ; liquor l i c en ce .
Survey o f t rans ac t ion s in shop s over s ix c on s ecut ive days in Decemb e r 1 9 7 6 .
( Se e n o t e 4 0 for me t ho dol ogy . )
2 16
One pound packs of b ut t er , fo r in s t an ce , can b e purchased
Single c igaret t es ar e availab l e at 3 � each .
in 10� s l i ces .
Keros ene is s old by measure int o t h e cus t omers ' b o t t les ,
the only b reak-o f-b ulk for kero s ene which is del ive re d t o
shops in 4 4-gallon drums o r l arger amoun t s .
Supplies are
purchas ed in cash or on credit . Turnove r , and the extent
t o whi ch expans ion is p o s s ib le , i s largely a pro duct o f s to re
lo cat ion , par t icularly acces s t o a re lat ively weal thy
In S uva , a poo rly lo cated neighb ourhood shop
clientele .
may have an annual gro s s t urnover un der $ 60 00 ; turnover s up
to $ 1 0 , 000 are not uncommon .
One neighbo urhoo d shop in Nausori was s t udied in s ome
dept h . 4 0 The shop is lo cat e d on a main road l eading f rom
the t own b ut s erves mainly local s emi-profess ional and skilled
Indi an and Fij ian res iden t s rath er than through- t raf f ic .
Few customers live more than a hundred o r s o met re s from t he
shop . Oppos it e the shop is an other with a l icence to sell
l iquo r ; this store has a cons id erable non-lo cal t rade .
No more than f ifty cus t omers come t o t he shop in any
It opens s oon aft er 6 am and clo ses an hour o r so
one day .
after night fall . Two-thirds o f s ales , b y value , are o f food ,
an d 9 0 per cent o f these sales are o f b as i c foo ds such as
sugar , s al t , flour , sharps , rice , on ion s , pot atoes , garl i c ,
. dhal , tea , milk , b read , b ut ter and c anned f ish and meat .
The main non- food it ems sold are c igaret tes , soap , i ce cream
an d swee t s . For a neighbourhood o utlet the s t ore is unusual
in that newsp ap e rs are no t sold and sales o f kerosene are
negl i gib l e . The ave rage sale is 3 7 � , with e ach customer
b uy ing an aver age of 1 . 4 different i tems . Ab out 5 per c ent
of s ales are on credit . Daily gro s s t urnover ranges f rom
$ 10 to $ 3 5 fo r a weekly rat e of about $ 12 0 or l i t t le more
than $ 6 00 0 a year . As t he shop is open for aroun d eighty
hours a week an d as sumin g that net prof it , not cos t in g
lab our , i s probab ly n o mo re than 10 p er cent o f gro s s sales it is cons iderab ly less on pr ice-cont rolled items that are
the b as is of t rade - the return on labour is about 15 � per
hour .
The shop fotmder ,
a Guj erat i man named Pranj ivan ,
c ame
t o Fij i shor t ly after Wor1d War I I . Aft er working for a
sho rt t ime fo r an other man as a tailo r , whi ch was his previous
o ccupat ion in India , Pranj ivan e s t ab li shed his own t ailorin g
bus iri.ess in Suva . In 19 5 2 h e moved t o Naus ori t o b e near
othe r mer ch an t s from his home area in India . Aft e r a couple
of y ears he ob t ained a 75-year ' nat ive lease ' on s ome land
217
and decided t o b uild a general s t ore . The 6m x 18m s ingle
s t o rey c on cret e shop , with f amily res idence , was built in
1955 with $ 1 000 o f Pranj ivan ' s money and a comme rcial b ank
loan o f $ 50 00 . Bus ines s was quite good as the shop was the
f i rs t in the imme diat e area , but the e s t ab l ishment o f bet ter
shoppin g facilit i es in Naus o r i an d the open in g o f other
gro cery shops near his s t o re s oon caus ed a decl ine in b us iness .
Af t e r operat in g the shop for almo s t f ive y ears , Pranj ivan
b e came ill . As no one in the family was availab l e t o con t inue
running the s hop , it was rented t o another p erson . In 19 7 1 ,
the y ear b e fo re Pranj ivan died , the family ' s s econd eldest
s on , the el dest s on having left the family s ome t ime b efore ,
connnenced work in a Suva b ank and decided he would also t ake
over the sho p . While he wo rks in Suva , a younger s is t er the only one not yet married - looks aft er the shop , b eing
helped o ccas ionally by her moth er or two youn ger brothers
who l ive at home . The s on an d daughter , b oth of whom com
p leted se condary s choo l , look afte r all shop accoun t s ,
but hire an account ant t o complete annual t ax return s .
S upplies are purchased from s alesmen who collect orders
and later deliver t o the shop . The shop has thirty-day
credit a ccoun t s with it s ma in s uppliers .
Chief compet it ion
come s from the shop acro s s the road which has a s imil ar
grocery s to ck but the added draw o f liquor s ales : the weekly
turnover of the compet it ion approaches three t imes t hat o f
Pranj ivan ' s sho p . Pranj ivan ' s s on admit s that n o t much money
is made from the shop and t hat there is lit t le chance o f
expanding b us ine s s , espe cially s in ce h e is busy with a full
t ime j ob . On the other han d , the shop does help the family
when they are short of money .
As no t e d above , s uburban connnun ity shops are in many
ways s imilar t o neighbourhoo d shop s , in terms of l ocat ion ,
ownership an d o rganizat ion , the difference b e in g they are
operat ed on a larger s cale .
They include the mo s t pro sperous
gro cery shops operat ed by lo cal p eople , and some even compete
with expat riate-own e d supermarket s . A range o f s hops com
p ris e this cate go ry , includin g neighb ourhood supply shop s
t hat at t ract a bro ader clien tele b ecause o f their lo cat ion ,
s upermarket s and shop s with addit ional special i z ed funct ions
( such as s el l ing l iquo r ) .
Mos t s ub urban community s hops are family b us ines ses
owned , o p erated an d s taffed by f amily memb ers . Only a
handful are regis t ered compan ies . Ownership is almo s t
2 18
exclus ively Indian o r Chin es e . The shops have developed
generally from s t ores with lo cal , l imit ed t rade . Th e larger
shop s, wholes al e-retai l , s upermarket an d l iquo r operat ion s
employ non- family labo ur b ut none i s tm ion iz ed . While
mul t iple gro cery s t o re ownership by lo cal peop l e is un connnon ,
sub urb an connntm i ty shop s are th e mo st l ikely retail out l e t s
to form a ' chain ' .
Th e usual rout e o f connne rc ial exp an s ion
is t o move int o imp o rt ing and wholes al ing via a wholes ale
retail o ut le t rathe r than to es t ab lish a dup l i cat e ret ail
outlet . There are aro un d twenty s uburban connnun it y shops
in Suva , excludin g whol esale-ret ail s tores .
An i s olated suburb an connnun ity shop in a relat ively
weal thy residen t ial area can have an annual gro s s t urnover
o f $ 2 0 , 000 t o $ 30 , 00 0 .
Shops on maj o r thoroughfares have
higher turnovers , whilst shop s with a l iquor li cence and / o r
supermarket f acil it ie s in a high-access locat ion can have
an annual turnover in excess o f $ 12 5 , 000 . The few larger
sup ermarket s t hat import s ome stock an d make home del iveries
h ave gro ss annual turnovers o f aro tm d $ 300 , 00 0 , about 80
per cen t of which comes from grocery s al es . Because of the
range in form o f operat ion of connnun ity s t o re s , it is useful
to review two cas e s t udies of different l evels of act ivit y .
The first example is a st ore o perat ed by a thirty-five
y ear old Chin ese lady on one of the main roads l eadin g f rom
S uva to the n o rtheast . The father of the owner , Lai , operate d
a small p i g and general marke t f a rm , a s well as a numb er o f
leas ed shops an d a cafe , in the Suva area , b e fo re h e b ecame
i ll and s t opped workin g . F o r s ome y ears the mother kept
the f amily by selling pro duce in S uva marke t , b ut in 1 9 61 ,
with the father ' s en couragement , it was arran ge d that the
family woul d buy the shop and t he att ached house from an
tmcle . Half the price ( $ 8000 ) was raised within the family .
The remain der c ame f rom a connne rc ial bank l o an .
One y ear
after l eavin g high s chool , wh ere she fail ed Form 4 exams ,
and after search in g f o r employment b e caus e she was not keen
to wo rk in the shop , Lai b e gan operat in g the shop with her
elder s is t er ; t he ir father gave advice an d encouragement
but l i t t le o th er help b e cause o f his illne s s . Aft er n ine
years , the e l der s is t e r go t married an d moved t o ano ther town .
Sin ce that t ime Lai has run the st ore by herself apart f rom
pe rio dic help f rom a b rot her with the a c co un t s and t ax return s .
Like p ra c t i cally all o ther lo cal ret ailers , wholesalers an d
impo rt ers , Lai has n o formal comme rc ial t rain in g .
2 19
Lai works alone in the shop every day of the week from
6 or 6 . 30am un t i l 7 . 30 or 8pm , with an hour or two o f f in
the early aft ernoon .
Stm day s are part i cularly busy as then
the two shop s tha t o f fer mo st compe t it ion , each a couple o f
htmdre d metres away o n t he s ame ro ad , are open only for a
l imit ed peri o d . All s t o ck i s purchased at the shop from
wholesalers ; Lai rarely goes away from the shop . S t o ck
compri s es gro ceries , househol d cl eanin g items , ci garettes ,
kero sene , sweet s an d a f ew veget ables from her or her
neighb ours ' garden s . An, upper shel f is st acked with cookin g
po t s : they were bought a long t ime ago by h er mot her and
h ave prove d un s aleable .
Lai hers elf now does all the stocking
on the b as is of l ines wh ich s ell quickly and is caut ious
about introducing n ew ones .
Over the week , the sho p i s vis ited by an average of 145
cus tomers d aily , e ach o f whom purchas e s s l ightly fewer than
two items . The average out lay per vis it i s 45 � . Daily turn
over ranges from $45 t o $ 100 and weekly t urn over is a l it t l e
mo re t h an $400 ( annual rat e , $ 2 2 , 4 0 0 ) . Almos t one-hal f o f
I f a 1 0 p e r c ent net pro f it is
s ales , by value , a r e foo d .
as sumed , and Lai ' s wo rkin g week is t aken t o be e ighty hours ,
she has a gro s s in come , prior t o expen ses an d t axat ion , o f
a li ttle mor e than 5 0 � an hour .
Forty per cent o f food sales are in milk , br ead and dry
b i scuit s and a further 2 3 p er cent are in other ' b as i c ' it ems
s uch as sugar , s alt , flour , sharp s , r ic e , garl i c , on ion s ,
po t at oes , dhal and tea . Over 80 per cent o f non-foo d sales
are in newsp apers , cigarett e s , kerosen e , sweet s and i ce cream.
The shop i s unusual in that there is a relat ively large non
lo cal trade ( ab o ut 10 per cen t o f s ales ) and a high proport ion
of credit s ale s .
Lai finds it dif f i cult t o l imit credit .
She has called the police over dishonoured cheques but has
She is well
not made o the r legal moves a gain s t deb to r s .
aware that t o o much pre s s ure on deb t o rs c an drive them away ,
le aving n o hope of recovery and one l e s s cust omer . In terms
o f b reaking b ulk and s upplyin g imme diat e needs through a
mult it ude of small sale s , L ai ' s shop is e s s ent ially a neigh
b o urhood st ore , although in a reas on ab ly wealthy neighbourhoo d .
Acces s t o through- t raffic raises t rade above the leve.l o f
mo st nei ghbourhood s to res t o the lower f inan c ial margins o f
s ub urban connntm ity o utlet s .
A more p ro sperous commun i ty shop is the supermarket run
by Geo rge S ul t ana , a fifty year old p art-European high s chool
graduate .
The med ium- s ized s upermarket is a converted shel f-
220
and-coun t er s tore o n a high access j unc t ion a few kilometres
from central Suva .
The owner ob tained a share in the shop
in 1965 and a few years ago received a loan from a commer cial
b ank to buy the share of the par tner .
At that t ime , the
bus�ines s was incorporated as a l imi ted l iab ility company .
Sultana worked in a variety of clerical and manager ial
j ob s before ge t t ing involved in retailing .
The shop is part i cularly busy as it sells liquo r , makes
some home del iveries and does a l i t t l e wholesal ing t o o t her
s t o res .
A number o f basic gro ce ry and l iquor l ines are
impo rt ed dir e ctly .
Sultana is full-t ime manager and o p erat o r ,
overseeing ordering ,
co s t in g ,
s t o ckin g ,
cl earance and general op erat ion s .
inden t in g ,
cus toms
He has two full-t ime shop
as s is t an t s and a numb er o f p aid part- t ime helpers .
His wife
holds a full- t ime j ob elsewhere and han dl e s the corres ponden ce ;
in th e early y ears with the shop the wi fe ' s income helped
meet hous ehol d expen s es .
An accoun t an t is h ired to prepare
t ax ret urn s .
The shop is open from 6 . 30am to 6pm Monday to Friday ,
apart from a 1 . 15 to 2 . 15pm l tm ch b reak .
s t art work at 8 . 30am.
Paid employees
On Saturday the shop clo s e s at 12 . 30pm
and do es not o pen unt il Monday .
Some res iden t s of the
immediat e ne i ghbourhood use t he shop for bas i c food suppl ies .
A main s t ay of t rade is l iquor and grocery s al e s to emp loyee s
of government and nearby inst itut ion s who shop by car .
In
addit ion to good gro ce ry st ocks and the l i quo r l i cen ce , an
impo rtant at t ract ion for these shoppers i s the fact that t he
adj acen t shop is one of the f ew but che rs out s ide the cen t r al
city .
Sult an a is con s iderin g ret a il ing f resh fruit and vege
t ab les to at t ract great er pat ronage .
General homeware is
carried b ut s ale s are in s i gnif i cant compared to thos e of
groceries and l i quo r .
in t he cent re .
There are seven other general s tores
To at t ract the non-b reakfast t rade cus t omer ,
Sul t ana has a mo re l ib eral che que- cashin g pol icy t han mo s t
food s t ores b ut risks are high .
more t han $4000 in the past y ear ,
There were bad deb t s o f
a large share o f whi ch
came f rom dishon o ured cheques .
Data on the t rade of Sul t an a ' s shop are no t as comple t e
as f o r other s t ores s t udied .
It appears that about 140
cus tomers use the s t o re daily an d spend s l i ghtly more than
$ 3 each ,
givin g a weekly gro s s of about
one-third of sales are foo d .
b as i c i t ems ,
$ 2 500 .
Less than
One-hal f o f food s al es are in
includin g sl ightly mo re than one-quarter in
221
milk , b r�ad an d dry b i s cuit s .
S i xty- f ive per cent or so o f
cust omers l ive in t h e imme diat e neighbo urhood . Few sales
are on c redit .
Rural general st ores are o pe rated by Indian and , les s
commonly , Ch inese mer ch an t s at dispersed and o ft en isolat e d
lo cat ions .
In terms o f trade volume and res iden t i al lo cat ion
of cust omers , th e stores fall in the middle range of neigh
b ourho o d and community shop s . All handle some ne ighbourhood
t rade b ut s ome have b road t rade h in terl ands . In form ,
funct ion , owne rship and mod e o f operat ion , the rural
general s t o re s hardly d if fer f rom suburb an neighbourhood
and commun i t y shop s .
The s t o re s are invariably at tached t o
the res idence o f t h e s t oreown er , are operat ed b y t h e owner
and his family and depen d lar gely on the gro cery t rade
alt hough they frequently c arry broader non-food stocks than
urban coun t e rp art s .
Af t er t he init iat ive of the st oreowner , the s cale o f
op erat ion depends largely on th e ty?e o f clientele served .
Stores with a clien tele f rom b eyond t he immediat e res iden t ial
commun ity can do well .
S to res on main roads , s e rving a
prosperous community o r at an inc ipient nucleus of set t lement
may have a con s i derab l e t rade .
Shop s at breaks-of-transpo rt
are o ft en re-wholesalers fo r more distant s t o re s . Annual
gro s s turnover of rural general s tores in the G.entral
Division can reach $ 6 0 , 000 , but the mean prob ably is around
$ 20 , 000 .
Two rural general s t o re s about 2 4km f rom Suva were
s tudie d . The s t ores are a l it t le unusual in that they are
s ituat ed in a . relat ively wealthy are a where the popul at ion
is more depen den t on wage labour t han agr iculture fo r income ,
s in ce rice and o ther farm pro du ct ion is primarily for home
con sumpt ion . They are oppo s it e one another acro s s a narrow
road. Both are own ed and ope rat ed by Indians .
The smaller o f the shops has been f un ct ion ing fo r ten
years . The own er , Krishna , is ab out forty- five y ears old
and marrie d with f ive children . After complet in g primary
s chool and b efore get t ing married , he wo rke d as a s al e s
assistant i n a Nauso r i shop . F o r almo st t en year s aft er
marriage he cont inue d this wo rk b efore dec iding to at tach a
shop to h is house on th e small p iece o f freehold land inherited
from h i s father .
Cap i t al fo r con s t ru ct ion ( $ 800 ) came equally
from personal savin gs and a loan from relat ives , who al s o
222
helped b uil d the shop . When the s t ore was comple t ed in
1 9 6 7 , Krishna resi ed f rom his j ob an d has operated the
s tore ever s in ce . 4
In addit ion to operat in g the shop with
the as s ist an ce o f his wife and daughter , Krishna also grows
enough r ice on his land fo r their dome s t ic consumpt ion .
The only out s ide help is an accollll tant paid t o compile
annual t ax return s . Four of Kri shna ' s ch ildren are s t ill
at s choo l ; the fifth , the el dest , has a part-t ime sales
po s ition in N aus o r i .
The only o ther s ource o f in come in
the family is a t axi Kr ishna own s an d operat es through a
hire d driver in Nausori .
f1
While Krishna had not operat e d a shop p r ior t o buildin g
his own , h e p icked u p p ract i cal knowl edge o f busine s s durin g
h i s fift een y ears a s a sales as s i s tan t . On ce t h e shop was
comple t e d his b i gges t p roblem was to att ract cust omers from
the longe r-est ab l ished shop acro s s the road , a t ask made
especially d i f f i cult by the l imit e d stock whi ch was all he
c ould afford to carry . 42 As ide f rom the con t inuin g p rob l em
o f compe t i t ion , which he has t ried t o coun t e r b y applying
fo r a liquo r l icence , a request whi ch has thrice b een refu s ed ,
Krishna ' s problems are those connnon to small shopkeepers .
By allowing regular cus t omers t o pur chase on cred it , he is
frequen t ly without s uffi cien t cash t o purchase n ew s t o cks .
As many of his custome rs are d epen den t in part on agriculture ,
their income is spasmodic . Krishna f inds it difficult t o
refus e credit reque s t s f rom s uch peopl e . Usually he can
ob t a in thirty days ' c redit f rom wholesale suppl iers in
Nauso r i b ut o c cas ionally he has t o pl ead fo r an ext en s ion
o f credit .
Whi le Kri shna finds st orekeepin g a s e cure o ccupat ion
whi ch enhances his self-respect , h e s omet imes feel s that he
would b e b et t er off in wage o r salary employmen t , as p rac
t ic al ly all s t o re income is used for f amily and educat ional
expenses . To make matters wor s e , h e feels that few o f his
cust ome rs app reciat e t hat only very small markup s are per
mis s ible tmder price control , o r are po s s ib l e in the compet i
t ive grocery and general hous ehol d goo d s t rade . While th ere
are no t ' price wars ' b etween his an d the oppo s it e st ore ,
the s i tuat ion is compet it ive in that prices can b e compared
and cus tome rs have a readily acces s ible alt e rnat ive source .
For fear o f lo s ing cus t omers , Krishna canno t afford
to clo se the shop fo r any l en gt h of t ime between the 6 . 307 am opening and the 7 . 30- 8pm clo sure .
22 3
Krishna ' s t ra de is mainly in bas i c gro cery l in es ,
although h e has a freezer which enab les him t o sell fro z en
goods . All s ales are ret ail an d all cu st omers are residen t
in the immediate neighbourhoo d . An average o f t en customers
a day come to the shop , the numb er rangin g throughout the
week from f ive to s ixt een . Daily turnover i s from $ 2 0 t o
$ 75 , weekly t urnove r b e in g abo ut $ 2 2 0 o r aro un d $11 , 400 a
year . One- f i fth o f s ales are on c redit , each cus t omer b uyin g
an average o f 4 . 6 i t ems per visit . Good s sold a r e primarily
gro ceries ( 83 . 7 p er cent ) ; 81 p er cent of food s ales are in
b as i c foodstuffs .
Vinod Prasad , Krishna ' s oppo s it ion , has an enviab le
connne rcial pedigre e . In the early 1 9 4 0 s , Vin o d an d a brother
ob t ained a hawke r l i cence an d dur ing the morn in gs and even ings
sold rice , s oap and o t her it ems around their s e t t lement and
in a n earby F ij ian vill age . Dur in g the day they farmed rice
and sugar , whi l st the ir father worke d as a carpenter . They
convert ed the veran dah o f the ir family hous e int o a shop in
1 9 4 3 , thus e s t ab l ishin g t h e first shop in the area . Their
commercial act ivit i es con t inued to expand .
In 1950 they
purchased a shop from a b ankrupt Chinese mer chant , then dis
mant l ed and re con st ruct ed i t at t he ir h ome . The b ro thers
operat ed the shop to gether un t i l 1 9 6 1 by which t ime they had
s aved enough to purchase a shop in a Suva suburb .
While h is b ro ther moved t o the Suva shop , Vinod remained
at the origin al shop whi ch in 19 7 3 was replaced by a modern
des ign con cre t e self-service s t ore , t he on ly one in the area
an d one of th e f ew out s i de any t own . The s el f-service fo rmat
was adopted t o at t ract and pl ease cust omers . All capital t o
con s t ruct an d expand shop facil i t ies , a s it was t o build the
origin al sho p an d for development expenses , was generat ed by
t radin g . The shop i s operate d by Vinod an d a son ; ano ther
two sons are wo rkin g with the i r un cle in the s e cond shop .
Vinod ' s shop is more than a b a s i c retail gro cery outl et :
gro ceries are delivered by van to cus tomers ' home s , some
wholesal in g is un dert aken and s ome foo d l ines are impor t e d
dire ct .
Somet imes b oys are employed t o help Vinod an d h i s
son s pack an d del iver o r de r s .
I n addi t ion t o t h e shop , Vinod
has 24 he ct are s o f land , one-third of whi ch i s used t o grow
rice fo r home consumpt ion an d the r emainder is grazed by
cat t le . Vinod als o l e as e s a s t all daily at Naus o ri market .
Each S at urday h i s s on an d some frien ds o ccupy t he s t al l an d
sell onion s , po t atoes , garli c , s p i ce s , dhal and rice .
In
conj un ct ion with h i s b rother , Vino d import s mo s t gro ceries
224
that are n o t lo cally manuf actured .
Over t h e mon i t ored week , Vinod ' s s hop had a turn over
o f ab out $ 6 5 0 o r an annual rat e of near ly $35 , 000 .
Including
cus tomers to whom deliver ies we re made , an average of twenty
f ive people purchas e at the shop daily , abo ut 85 per cent
o f whom l ive in the immediate neighb ourhood . Daily turnover
ranges from $ 2 5 to about $ 4 00 , almos t on e-quarter of sales
b e ing on cred it .
Compared t o the adj acen t s t or e , a small e r
p roport i on o f s ales is in foods t uf f s ( 72 p er cent ) an d basic
foods are le s s s ignifican t (58 per cent of food sales compared
t o 81 per c en t ) . Largely through s ervice innovat ions like
home deliveries and self-service facilit ies , as the f irst
s t o re in the area Vinod ' s s t or e has b een ab le to exp an d
t rade and wit hs tand the compet it ion o f one adj acen t s t ore
and three o th er out lets in the area .
The s t ud ie s o f Krishna ' s an d Vinod ' s s tores suggest
s ome common f eatur es o f ret ail out let e st ab l ishment and
compet it i on . Ent ry in to retailin g has few res t r ict ions ,
whi ch can lead t o an over-s upply o f out let s . Patronage o f
s tores is t o s ome extent un ch angin g , b ut aggress ive ent re
preneurship c an expand t rade . Proven expans ion te chniques
include generous credit policies an d provis ion of broad
s t o ck rather than p rice compet it ion . Mor e over , as the over
h eads o f f ami ly s t ores are minimal and alt ernat ive employment
un common , it is unusual fo r a shop t o close in the face o f
compet it ion . Given tha� p ar t i cularly in rural areas , po s s i
b il it ie s for market expan s ion are l imited , it is o f t en more
profitab le to e s t ab l ish a s e cond outl et elsewhere than to
attempt t o cap ture all lo cal t rade .
Village s to re s are o p erated by F ij ians in F ij ian villages
by an ind ividual o r o ccas ionally by a kin group o r even on
a b as i s o ther than kinship , such as a youth or women ' s group .
S t o cks ar e usually minimal and comprise l i t t le more than
b as i c f oo d s , cigaret tes , soap s an d kerosen e . Th e stores
are n on-re s iden t ial b uild ings of roughly-hewn or used woo d
an d iron . Facilit ies are minimal : few s tores have more
than a cotulter an d shelves .
The vill age s to reowner is o ft en helped by relatives and
friend s in the shop b ut paid help is not used .
S torekeeping
is n o t a f ull- t ime b us iness an d t he owners plant food garden s
for family c on s umpt ion and perhap s s ale , an�- may h ave o ther
irregular l o c al s ources of income . Village s t o re s s erve the
village in whi ch they are locat e d ; there may be three or
225
four s tores in a vill age , each with a c l ien tele fairly well
defined on kin ship lines . Even where a village is on a road
and the s t ore could att ract through t raffic t rade , this is
rarely sought an d is anyway minimal, in part be cause o f st o re
s chedules .
The s t ores are open f rom soon after dawn un t il
8am or s o , an d again from late in the afternoon unt il after
dark when the evening meal has b een e aten . During the day
the operator or his deputy may open the st ore upon reque s t
b ut dayt ime t rad ing is negligib le .
Many vi llage s to re s have errat ic t rading act ivit ies .
One reason is that demand for gro ceries and other purchas ed
goo ds is very e l as t ic . Villagers grow all required s t aple
foods and o f t en need t o buy on ly s al t , sugar , mat ches and
s omet imes kerosene . Flour , tea , canned mackerel and corned
beef , dry b i s cuit s , r i ce , b aking powder and cigaret t e s are
also pur chas ed b u t they are luxuries which are foregone
if cash or credit is unavailab le . Moreover , b ecaus e of cos t s
o f goods , transpor t co s t s and s ome t imes b us ines s inef ficiency ,
prices are o f t en con s i derab ly higher than in t owns an d even
in o ther n earby non-vill age shop s . Trips are rarely made
t o towns s o l ely for shoppin g , but fo o d and other s uppl ies
are pur chas ed on such trip s .
A factor further c on t r ib ut ing t o errat i c t radin g is
that the s t o re ope rator s are s omet ime s as adver s e to receiving
credit as suppliers are to gran t in g it .
Supplies are usually
purchased f rom whol e s alers , or from retail gro cery out l et s
in the l ar ger cen t res , only when there is adequate cash t o
cover purchases . Trading is frequen t ly in terrup t e d by per io ds
o f inact ivity while ext ra s t ore s ources are t apped t o raise
cap i t al to p ur chase addit ion al sto cks .
S to ck pur chased at
any t ime i s o f t en small enough ( perh ap s a couple o f carton s
o f goods ) t o b e t ran s ported t o th e village o n a p ub lic b us
or in a t axi . Village s t o re s r arely have s pe cialized s torage
space . Reco rds are kep t in frequen tly . Owners do not p repare
t ax returns .
Turnover of vil lage st ores var ie s in relat ion t o a number
of fact ors , in clud ing compet it ive out le t s , the general wealt h
o f t h e vil lage , an d the l evel and c ons is t en cy o f s t o cking .
In mo re remo t e areas where there i s l imit ed money in circu
lation and wh ere sup p l i es are difficult t o ob t a in , many
village s t ores have weekly gro s s t urnovers of les s than $ 2 0 ,
or aro un d $ 1000 annually .
Other s tores , part icularly thos e
servin g wage-earnin g populat ion s , as around the c i t y o f Suva ,
have e s t imate d t urnovers exceedin g $ 10 , 00 0 . The mean annual
226
turnove r o f vill age s t ores is prob ab ly under $ 5000 .
Village s to reowners are no t in an enviab l e commer cial
po s i t ion . As ide from b e ing poo rly educated , they rarely
receive commercial t raining and operate in a dis t inctly
non-commercia l ( or at leas t , a n on-competit ively commerc ial )
Cus tomer loyal t y come s f rom t ies t o the s t ore
environment .
own er but i f s t o ck is unavailab l e an other store is readily
pat ron i z ed .
There is no price compet it ion b etween s t o res
in a village . Not ions of cos t accoun t ing and pricing are
hazy .
In des cr ib in g how selling p rices are det e rmined ,
s t o rekeepers speak in t e rms of ad din g a cent o r two to
the purchas e p r i ce , in accordan ce with what they bel i eve
the market will bear . No fo rmal exercise is undertaken to
In rural village
compen sate fo r t ran sport and oth er cost s .
s t ore s , s to re pro ceeds are kept in the owne r ' s hous e , so
that what is not dis s ip at ed is used to purchase suppl ies as
It is un common t o en coun ter
s t o re s t o cks near exhaus t i on .
vill age s t o rekeepe rs who have f inanced cap ital developmen t s
o r who make s ub s tan t ial purchases with st ore p ro f it s .
Nonetheless , the re i s n o short age o f vil lagers operat in g
ret a il st o res .
I n th e Central Divis ion , there are 2 6 6
individual Fij ian s t oreowners comp ared t o 2 6 9 In dian and
9 6 Chines e s toreowner s . I t is neces s ary to examine
the mo t ives l eading to the es tab l ishment of village s tores
b efore i t is po s s ib le to unders tand why there are so many .
_
Mo tivat i on to operate a st o re is as much s e rvice-o r ien ted
as en t repreneur ial .
In one f o rm , it is service to the
commun i ty by p rovidin g a conveni ent s ource of purchased
goods . As one s t o reowner put i t ,
I e s t ab l ished the shop t o cater fo r the haphazard
way o f l i fe of the taukei s
they s it down to eat
and only then real i z e there i s no s alt , o r they
pour o ut the t ea and then s ee th ere is no sugar .
Of course the ch ildren are always s en t at once t o
b uy th es e ur gen t goods .
-
Another aspect of service is that if they do not make
money , at l eas t the owne r ' s f amil y , o r the b ro a d e r group
operating the shop , gets access to cred it by supp o r t ing the
shop . As the s toreowner quo t ed above said , one reason for
starting the shop was
to help the family out dur ing t imes o f diff iculty ;
for examp le , at any Fij ian gathe ring , when they
227
are ab l e t o take goods on credit . Or , if they
[ family memb ers ] are require d t o donate money to
s ome caus es , they normally borrow from the shop
and they pay l ater . At the moment the shop is
largely n o t pro f it-orien ted , but stands as a kind
of b ank or se curity for the s hareholders .
Factors affe c t ing vill age s t o re o perat ion are apparen t
in t h e followin g int erviews with two s t o reown ers from Lau
who have s t ores in villages a few kilometres from Suva .
Their s i t uat i on is tmusual relat ive to the experience of
people with s t o res in their own villages , and b ecause the
clientele is wealth ier than in mo s t rural villages , but
nonethele s s they do have much in c ommon with o ther village
s t o reowners .
Viliame Lomaloma an d h i s wife from Lakeb a , Lau , operat e
a shop in Walua village on land they have b een loaned through
t radit ional channels by th e villagers . Th e shop is success ful
in t erms of t rade volume and apparent p r o f it s .
S to ck is
that which is b a s i c t o Fij ian sho p s - canned mackerel and
corned bee f , evap orat ed and powdered milk , t e a , sugar , rice ,
flour , dry b is cuit s , edib le oil , dripp in g and bread , in
addit ion t o connnon non-food it ems . The shop was built eleven
years ago when Viliame came t o Suva for a vis it from Lau .
He int en de d t o leave the s tore with h is br others in Suva ,
plann ing that income would b e s en t regul arly t o h im in Lakeb a .
However , i t d i d no t work tha t way :
I was not e ducate d in any popul ar s chool . At home
I am t h e leader o f a mataqa li . Everythin g t o do
with th eir l ives was my res pon s ib ility .
I d id
everythin g I could t o improve my mataqali. , b ut
after that I left home to look for a business
[ opport tm it y ] , wh ich b rings me to wh ere I am now
I j us t came t o Suva , built the shop , lo aded it
with gro ceries and l eft it with my brothers whi le
I returned home . At the en d of every y ear for
seven y ears I came h ere and changed the s t o rekeeper .
This h appened for seven whole y ear s . Af ter those
seven y ears t here was no th in g worthwhile or o f any
value that came out o f the b us ine ss .
•
.
.
[His wi fe had re ceived a s imilar amotm t of formal
educat ion ( up t o cl as s 6 in primary s chool ) , but
even in Lau b e fo re she came t o Suva in 19 7 3 she had
] All I
As she s ai d
shown comme rcial init i at ive .
.
.
.
22 8
d id was to look for things that I coul d do for
s ale , l ike fishin g , weaving mat s and do in g o ther
thin gs that could b ring us some cash that could
be use d in the hous ehold
I learned how to s ew
clothes an d this meant we could stop b uyin g
clothes for the children . . . I b ought a pair o f
s c iss ors an d cut their hair at home - all in the
que s t of not spendin g money tmne ces s arily .
.
.
•
When I en tered the shop , our s e cond elde s t s on was
the shopkeeper . As he coul d not f in ish his s t ud ies ,
he s t ayed home and looke d after the shop . All that
was in the cash b ox was $2 . 00 and there was nothin g
l eft in the shop except s ix small packet s o f Omo .
We had l eft $ 30 with the eldes t son to put a depo s it
on the refrigerator , so I decided to t ake b ack that
money and b uy some items tha t I knew would be sold
quickly , like s ugar , salt an d k erosene . Af t er one
week of t rading I had back that $ 3 0 and a p ro fit
I used that pro fit the next week and
of $ 5 0 .
thin gs b e gan to grow . Af t er t hree months I was
s at is fied with what I had a chieved . By Chris t mas
all was rtmning well . E du cat ion fees had b e en met
an d $150 had been dep o s i t ed in the b ank . Then a
child go t s i ck , so I asked my husban d t o come t o
S uva and help run the b us iness f o r I could not d o
it alon e . H e arrived and soon w e ma d e u p a p l an
for our b us ines s . All I can s ay i s that al though
I am not well educated , j us t a village r , I have
b e en abl e t o b uild a b us iness righ t from rock
bot t om fo r only $ 3 0 .
[ Husban d an d wife have now operated the store for
four years .
Income from the s t ore has been adequat e
t o cover the educat ion expenses of their three
adopted children st ill at home and four grand
Viliame cont inues . . . ] My family is quite
children .
a b i g one , there a re n ine o f us alt o gether today
and the cos t o f s upport in g this family - you can
work it out - is s taggering . All money for the
family comes from this shop alone ; what I buy and
sell an d what we eat are all t aken from this shop .
Af t e r j us t one an d a hal f years I built myself a
goo d an d b eaut iful house that co st me $ 15 0 0 - that
was pos s ib le only through th is small room [ the
The furniture and everyth in g you see
shop ] .
aro tm d you are all direc t ly the pro duct o f this
229
small bus ine s s . We have mul t ipl ied the original
$ 3 0 by so many hundred t imes .
I ' m a b it har d on
people re ques t ing credit . Only those I can trus t
I may allow credit .
I don ' t even l ike to give
credit t o my b ro thers , the real one s , because if
things go bad it is on ly me who suf fers .
[ Goods are sought from wholesalers in Suva but
even i f the wholesaler doe s del iver , it is only
to the end o f the road , about 0 . 8km f rom the st ore .
Viliame himself has t o carry the goods , whi ch
include sacks o f rice , sugar and flour we igh ing
4 8kg and more , t o the s tore , somet imes thro ugh
knee-deep mud . Vil iame buys and prices art icl es
so that they move quickly . ] I b uy it ems , con s ult
my arit hmet ic tab le and t ry t o put a few cen t s
int ere s t on .
It mi gh t only b e 1 o r 2 cent s but
I have this small in crease b ecaus e I wan t to sell
quickly an d b ring in some mor e s t o ck .
I ' ll on ly
s t o ck with commo di t ies that I feel will be quickly
s old .
One mus t s uffer , sweat , b e go ss iped about . This
must come fi rst b efore we reap the fruit s : they
are th e root s of succes s - they may b e b it t er but
the sweetne s s of th e f ruit is wo rth mo re than any
pain .
The main reason fo r startin g the shop is
that now is th e t ime of busines s and progre s s .
To survive in this societ y , one needs money .
The
main foun dat ion o f success is gut s an d determin
at ion .
I f we s t art a b usiness with t his we will
succ ee d .
If we don ' t have this , we cannot hope
to have a b us ine s s . This work needs courage , a
manly s tan d , goo d j udgmen t , ab il ity t o take risks .
Now is the t ime for p ro gre s s . Everybody else has
move d , but wh at abo ut the tauke is ? We also can
be l ike them [ the other races in Fij i ] . We have
the s ame ab il ity . Why shouldn ' t we also b e able
to a ch i eve thei r goals ? We can if we t ry harde r .
Let ' s s t and up and walk hand- in-hand t o geth er .
Jone Yaqona ( al s o from Lakeba) i s a 5 1-year-old widower
who s t ays w ith his two son s at Laucal a village . Jone and
his son s do not have l an d for food garden ing and consequen t ly
are depen den t on the sons ' wages and income for food suppl ies .
Jone des crib e s how the s to r e came t o be e s t abl ished and how
he operates . it :
2 30
I us ed t o s t ay in the vill age [ in Lau ] in a rented
hous e with some relat ives . Both my chil dren had
left home to come to Suva an d as there was no one
t o look aft er me in my s ickne s s [he is part ly
cripple d ] , I de cided t o come t o Suva . Here the
rent was t oo great so I asked my s on s to t ry for
a privat e house .
That ' s how we built this house .
Las t y ear we s t ar t ed t o plan this shop .
One after
noon I asked my chil dren if they were will in g to
leave some money aside for a shop . As the result
o f this conversat ion , by 31 March 19 7 6 we had built
this shop . The plan came ab out when I told my s on s
that I ' m we ak an d can ' t be engaged in an y paid
j ob s .
So I ' m dependin g on them here in Suva where
everything mu st be paid fo r . Befo re having this
shop , I not iced that mos t o f my son s ' wages were
spent an d that only a very small port ion was b e in g
b anked . Mayb e if w e had a shop , I thought , the
money will make thin gs a b it bet t e r .
So when they
de cided to set one up we b uilt thi s on e . I t co st
$ 1 8 7 to b uild an d s upply .
I only s to ck the it ems for daily consumpt ion . that
are most needed by those people livin g aro un d h ere .
I buy the s e it ems f rom other shop s . My cus t ome r s
I
are only tho s e p e o p l e s t ay in g h ere aro un d me .
s ell r i ght f rom morn in g t ill n i ght but i f I ' m t ired
I might call the children to come an d help .
To get
the s t o ck I go around f rom shop to shop [ in Suva ]
and only b uy from wh ere the needed items are cheap
as this s to re has j ust s t arted and o ur cap ital
s t ren gth is very weak . Aft er I b uy the commo d it ies
I sear ch fo r a t axi t o t ran sp o rt my ar t icles here .
Taxi fares vary .
Some char ge $1 . 2 0 and others
$ 1 . 10 . . . Tran sport at ion is difficul t . The main
road is a b it far o f f and if boys carry the
commodit ies from the road they ' ll deman d t o be paid .
I f we j ust ask them in t radit ional s t yl e , they
ref use .
About the nuis an c e o f credit . Yes , some of t hem
[ cus tomers ] are goo d but o thers are very bad . When
I tell them to pay fo r th eir credit they refuse b ut
when in t rouble they come back . But some o f them
are t rue - they pay for their credit at the r ight
t ime .
Only afte r b e ing three or four weeks overdue ,
will others come and pay .
I tel l them, ' Do you
2 31
th ink I ' m going to s t e al it ems from the companies ?
If you don ' t pay , I won ' t b e able to get mo re s t o ck ,
so I ' ll s t op givin g you credit . '
The ent i re daily runnin g o f this shop is done by
none other than this old man [ h imself ] . No educat ed
person is runn ing it , the smal l thin g of a foolish
man .
I n ever at t ended school . I on ly do what my
min d th inks fit . For example , i f mackerel were t oo
I would turn to
expens ive , I would not b uy it .
other cheaper art icles .
So i b uy s t o ck in small
amo un t s .
I could b uy mo re b ut be cause I do no t
know an y ar ithmet ic I might los e .
I really want t o
expan d t h i s shop , b u t I ' m un educat ed and I mi ght
run at a lo s s if I exp an d . Another reason is that
the mo st e s s en t ial thin g for busine s s , it s ' mother '
[ money ] is l acking .
Since I first s t arted th e
shop , I haven ' t known any problem . Mayb e it ' s
b e cause the bus in es s is s o small ; maybe after
another year o r two I might not ice s ome p roblems .
But if money con t inues t o come in p roperly th ere
will be no problem. Up t ill now th ere ' s no p rob lem ,
b ut with a lack o f money I may en d up in real b ig
t roub le .
Co-op erat ive s o cie t y s t o res , the ret ail out let s of
consumer and con sumer-market ing co-ope rat ive so ciet ies , are
an important feature of ret ailing in rural areas .
In some
ways the s to re s are s imilar t o store s op erat ed by individual
Fij ian s .
S t o ck t ends t o b e main ly gro ce ries and basic
househo l d re quiremen t s . The s t o r es tend to be p a s s ive
' service d ep o t s ' for the connnunity rathe r t han a ret ail
outlet act ively t app in g non-local t rade . Mo s t shops are
locat ed out o f urban areas and serve exclus ively F ij ian
customers .
Co-operat ive society s t o res differ from vill age
s to res in that they have acce s s to the s e rvices of the
Departmen t of Co-op erat ives , in cluding t rain in g , general
advice on connne rcial prac t i ce , s emi-regular audit ing of
acco un t s and access t o co-op erative who lesal e fac il it ies .
In 19 7 4 there were 1002 regis t ered co-operat ive s o c iet ies ,
includin g 4 30 consumer and 3 75 consumer-market in g so cie t ies .
Of these 805 so c iet ie s that ope rat e s t o re s , l e s s t han 600
appear to b e act ive . 4 3 F inanc ial s uc ce s s of s o c iet ies has
dist in ct spat ial features ( Tab le 3 . 2 5 ) . -�4 Wh ile one- fifth
of so c ie t ie s make a net t radin g l o s s , the proport ion var ies
:i,etween J,.1 . 2 p e·r cen t o f societies in the Eastern Divis ion
232
Jab l e 3 . 2 5
Trade p e r f o rmance of consumer and con s umer-marke t in g
co-operat ive socie t ies
Lo cat ion ( Divis ion )
Cen t ral
We s t e rn
Northern
(138)
995 . 6
1 52 3 . 3
(103)
758 . 1
9 75 . 2
( 12 7 )
7 80 . 4
1149 . 9
( 169)
1 01 1 . 6
2 04 1 . 3
81 . 4
79 . 1
62 . 7
88 . 8
( 11 4 )
16 . 35
5 . 71
4 . 13
(91)
16 . 83
6 . 56
4 . 46
( 79 )
31 . 2 3
9 . 06
6 . 84
(151)
30 . 5 6
9 . 58
6 . 15
(2 6 )
12 . 12
2 . 67
3 . 12
(2 4)
12 . 0 6
3 . 22
3 . 09
(47)
9 1 . 60
12 . 62
1 7 . 99
(19)
2 9 . 45
5 . 98
6 . 50
Eas t e rn
a
S ale s /mon th
(Number of cas e s )
Mean ( $ )
S t an dard deviat ion
($)
Pe r cen t societ ies with net
prof i t
Societ ies w i t h n et p ro f it
(Numb e r of cas e s )
Maximum p ro f i t (%)
Mean p r o f it ( % )
S t andard devi at ion ( % )
b
Socie t ies with n et loss
(Numb e r of cas e s )
Maximum l o s s ( % )
Mean l o s s ( % )
S t andard devia t ion ( % )
Society with acco un t s
incomp let e c
Inactive so ciet i e s
d
b
3
13
3
2
12
28
14
9
a
Calculated ove r mo s t recen t ava i lab l e accoun t s period of each socie ty ,
which averages 12 . 5 (Eas t ern Divis ion ) t o 1 4 . 1 mon ths ( C en t r al ) ,
generally durin g 19 7 4- 7 5 .
b
Exp r e s sed as p ercent age o f gro s s turnover dur ing account p e r iod .
c
U sually without p eriod of accoun t s ; exc luded from average sales and
p ro f i t / lo s s c alculat ion s .
d
N o accoun t records ; assumed inac t ive .
Sour ce :
Depar tment of Co-ope rative s , Suva .
233
and 3 7 . 3 per cent in the Northern . M�n thly t radin g volume
al s o varies by region .
It is great e s t in the Eastern Divis ion
( $1012 ) wh ere cons umer-market in g socie t ie s dominate re tail
t rade , and lowe s t in the Wes t ern Divis ion ( $ 7 5 8 ) .
Comparab l e t rading volume and pro f it /lo s s accoun t ing
is not avail ab le fo r F ij ian-owned s t o re s ( o r fo r any other
ownership gro up ) , but as co-op erat ive s tores operat e in
s imilar econ omic and so c ial environment s and , as ide from
input s from the Department of Co-operat ives are run much
like Fij ian shop s , t rading data are sugge s t ive o f aspe ct s of
Fij ian shop operat ion .
I t is likely , however , that a larger
proport ion of Fij ian shop s do not make a net pro f it , · tbat
t urnovers are con $ iderably les s and t hat the s t o re s do not
survive as l on g . 4 5
When a co-ope rat ive soc iety i s e s t ablished in a village ,
o ther ret ail out l et s , at least tho se operat ed by the so ciety
memb er s , usually cl ose . Gre ater capi tal reserves and ins t i
t ut ional s upport con t r ib ut e t o re sil ience of co-ope rat ive
s tores b ut the ir f un ct ion remains s imil ar to that of village
s t ores - t o operate as a min imum-pro fit connnun ity p an t ry .
A not un typical cons umer co-operat ive s o ciety i s that at
Waisere , a village with thirty res iden t s n e ar Serea in
Naitas iri Provin ce . The s o c iety has t en memb ers . Between
Octob e r 19 7 6 and January 1 9 7 7 the store bad s ales of $ 2 6 3 ,
one- third in the month o f Decemb e r . Ab out 10 per cen t of
s ales were t o non-memb ers . In the same period , $ 87 wo rth
of s t o ck was pur chased , four- fifth s who le sale from the
nearby Wainimal a Co-op erat ive As sociat ion and the remainder
ret ail from a Suva supermarket .
Tren ds in retailing
Ret ailin g in Fij i is not as s t at ic as the above review
of t ypes of o ut let may sugge s t . Two main t ren d s are under
way that have and are alterin g t he nature of gro ce ry ret ail in g .
On e is t he change in the lo cat ion an d form of outlet s . The
other is the increasin g involvement o f F ij ians as s t oreowners as e ither in dividual s or t hrough the co-op erat ive movement .
Pro ce s s ed food retail out let s were in it ially est ab l i shed
when in ternal connnun icat ion s were not well developed an d
con sequent l y they were widely dispersed in areas of sett le
men t . Mos t connnuni t ies were s e rved by bro adly- s t o cked
general s t o re s ; there was l i t t le f un ct ional special iz at ion ,
2 34
even in town s . With improvement in t ran sport an oppo s it e
In areas acce s s ible t o servi ce cen t res
t rend i s app aren t .
the small general s t ore is becomin g l e s s common , and wh ere
In rural areas
it does exi s t it serves a mo re l imited role .
people make o c cas ion al t rips to towns , o f t en in conj un ct ion
with p roduce mark et ing o r to ob t ain bas i c services , on wh ich
some gro cery ne eds are pur chased . Near and in towns , general
s tore t r ade is in creas in gly of ' b re akfas t t rade ' items ;
o ther gro ceri e s , in cludin g s t aple s , are pur chas e d in cen t ral
shopp ing areas . Through aggres s ive ret ail ing pract i ces an d
b y t akin g advan t age o f improved connnunicat ion s , expatriat e
an d lo cally owned s upermarke t s are expan ding the ir t rade
hinterlan ds .
The s e con d t rend i s the in creas ing involvement o f Fij ians
in re t ailin g .
Co-op erat ive s o ciety s to res repre s en t a maj o r
new type o f outlet in t erms o f organ i z at ion al s t ruct ure ,
mot ivat ion o f e s t ab l ishment an d lo cat ion .
Over 1000 co
operat ive s o ciet ies have b een es tab l i shed s ince 1 9 4 7 , abo ut
three- quarters o f whi ch oper at e general ret ail shops .
It is
envis aged t h at ano ther 2 00 or s o primary s o c iet ie s will be
creat ed , many of whi ch will be c on sumer o r con sumer-market ing
s o ciet ies ( Fij i , Departmen t of Co-op erat ives 19 7 5 : 3 ) .
Co
operat ive s tores have flo urished s ince the early 1 9 5 0 s when
a b an was placed on t rade in green co conut s which e f fect ively
des t ro yed the b as i s o f t rade of the many Ch ines e s t o re s
lo cat ed in Lomaivit i and Lau .
In the ir place came co-operat ive
s t o re s , e spe c ially in the E as t e rn Divis ion wh ere hal f the
ret ail s t ores are operated by co-operat ive s o c iet ies ( Tab le
3. 4) .
As sociat e d w ith the rise of co-op erat ive so c iety s t o res
has b een the in creas in g involvement o f F ij ians in the p ro
ces sed foo d t rade . Throughout Fij i , 30 p e r cen t o f ret ail
If co- op erat ive s t o re s
foo d s t o re s are operated b y Fij ian s .
are t reat ed as F ij ian - consumer soc iety memb ership i s l ar gely
Fij ian - almo s t one-hal f of ret ail shops are F ij ian-own e d
an d o p er ated .
Many co-operat ive s o c iety and Fij ian shops h ave repl aced
with drawing Chin es e and In d i an t r ade rs , b ut o t h e r s have b e en
e s t ab l ished in area s no t previously served by re t ail shop s .
Comprehens ive dat a on long- t erm t rend s in the number o f
l i censed ret ail o r whol esale-ret ail out let s are no t availab le .
It do es appear from the l imit ed informat ion avail able , however ,
that the n umb e r o f o ut let s in some areas , such as Navua t own
235
an d di s t r i ct , in creased rap idly th ro ugh the 1 9 6 0 s to at t ain
a level that has s in ce been main t a ined .
Much o f the expan s ion
in s tore numb ers in Navua is accounted for by the es tablishment
of Fij ian o ut l e t s .
In o th er areas , esp ecially where there
is a cons iderab l e Indian p opulat ion , the numb er of outlets
has been rel at ively con s t an t .
In the t en years s ince 1 9 6 6 ,
in the Naus o ri district fo r in s t an ce , the number of ret ail
s to res ave raged 2 7 7 , ranging be tween 2 44 ( 19 6 9 ) and 2 9 8
(19 73) .
The in creas ing part icipat ion o f Fij ian s in ret ail act i
vit ies re focuses at t ent ion on a theme of this s tudy : the
different ial role of the race s of Fij i in food dist ribut ion .
Thro ughout the s tudy of the retail gro ce ry sys t em , as well
as els ewhe re , at t en t ion is drawn to d if ferent forms of part i
cipat ion by F ij ian s , Indians , Ch inese an d European s .
It is
u se ful to clo s e the an alysis of the retail s y st em by expli cit ly
examin in g the place of ra ce in ret ail ing , part icul arly o f
Fij i an s .
Race and t rade
Th roughout the ab ove an alys is of the pro ces s ed foods
dis t r ibut ion sys t em , the key organ iz in g c on cept s of the form
o f bus ine s s o r ganiz at ion , that is upper an d lower c ircuit s ,
an d race o f part icipan t s have b een ever presen t cons idera t ion s .
The value o f the upper/lowe r circuit .dichot omy in analys in g
fo rms o f o r ganiz at ion is app arent , e spe c ially a s it has
s t ron g racial co rrelat ions . Upper circuit act ivit ies are
almo s t exclus ively the realm of European firms .
Indian
and Chines e t raders are common in the lower c ircui t , but
also occupy an ' int ermediate ' circui t .
It app ears , however ,
that an inab i l i ty or unwill ingnes s to delegate key managerial
p o s i t ion s t o n on- family members l imi t s t he developmen t o f
Indian , and t o a les ser ext ent Chines e , bus ine s ses t o this
circuit .
Fij ian a c t ivit ies are almo s t exclus ively within
the lower c ircui t .
Fij ian part icipat ion in the pro ce s sed food t rade is
almo s t all in ret ail in g in rural areas ( see Tab l e 3 . 4 ) .
Lo cated in Fij ian -· res i den t ial areas , usually vi llages , Fij ian
s t o res primarily supply the daily foo d an d bas ic househol d
requiremen t s o f a local , exclus ively Fij ian client ele . En t ry
requiremen t s can b e minimal ( Tab le 3 . 2 6 ) .
The s tore may
operat e from a hous e o r a building cons t ructed by family
labour for ins ignificant cost by us in g lo cal s urplus mat er ial s .
236
Tab l e 3 . 2 6
Amoun t and source o f in it ial capital o f Fij ian and In dian re t ai l shop s
Year shop
e s t ab l ished
Fij ian shops
1957
In i t ial
cap ital
( $)
124
19 7 1
Source of cap ital
Bo rrowed from within
family .
Connnen ts
Fo r stock; s al e s f rom home .
Son working overs eas .
1972
70
Trucking and han d icraf t
b :1sin e s s .
Fo r s t o ck ; s a les f rom home .
19 7 3
30
Savings .
Building already e s t ab l ish
e d ( p rev . shop had ceased
t radin g ) .
19 7 4
2 , 000
Savin gs and sale o f
cooked food in market .
For buil din g and s t o ck .
?
1975
197 5
1 , 300
197 6
187
Indian shop s
1944
Cap ital used to add a room
on to house and for st ock
Family savings an d fund
rai s ing a c t ivit ies among
rela t ives .
$ 5 0 0 for building , $800 f o r
s t o ck ; soon aft e r , an o t he r
$ 9 0 0 f o r two freez ers .
Wage-earn in g s on s .
To build room on to house
and for s t o c k .
S avings f rom employment
and hawking .
Conve rted house veran dah ;
lat e r expansion wit h s t o re
generated funds .
1955
6 , 000
Savings ( $ 1000 ) and cornmercial bank loan .
Bui lding and s t ock .
19 5 7
5 , 5 14
Own and family s avings ;
connne rcial bank loan .
$ 314 for s t o ck ; s t o re
buil din g and land purchas ed.
Savings f rom employment
and family loan s .
Room added t o house .
Family ( s old property) .
Buildin g .
Savings .
Renovation o f family build
in g ; cost of s t o ck not
availab l e .
Savings from employment .
Fo r s t o ck and building ren t
( $ 3 0 0 /month ) .
Own and f amily loan .
Buil din g mat erials f rom
wage and hawking income ;
$400 bo rrowed f rom b rother
t o purchase s t o ck .
1967
19 69
12 , 400
1971
2 , 7 50
19 7 5
1975
Source :
?
4 0 o+
In t e rvi ews w i th s t o reown ers in the Cen tral Divis ion .
237
A retail lic ence , i f purchas e d a t all , cos t s no mo re than
$12 for shop s in rural areas . Fifty dollars or so buys an
adequate b a s i c s t o ck . Re s to cking is conducted on the bas is
of what sells we ll an d the amount o f cash at hand .
F ij ian r e tail sales t e chnique s are pas s ive . There is
no adve r t i s in g , no p rice war s ; if it were not for the require
men t s of the Prices and In come s Board , prices on b as i c
commo dities woul d prob ab ly n o t b e marked .
Stores are usually
es tab l ished and operat ed to generate inc ome or to provide a
conven ien t s ource of groceries for the lo cal commun ity .
Little att empt i s made to expand t rade t hrough imp rovin g
service s o r s t ock or by relocat ion to mo re profitable s it e s .
The s t ore is o f t en the on ly commercial in t eres t of the owner ,
apart from a l it t l e in come from agri culture , but a st ore is
not regarded as vit al to the own er ' s econ omi c survival .
Stores are o f t en e s t ab lished t o ' t e s t ' involvemen t in business .
Nece s s ary income su ch as s chool fe e s may b e generat ed by a
s t ore but failure to do so is not d is ast rous ; th e family
survives , and prob ab ly with much less worry and ef fort than
accomp an i e s the operatin g of a st ore . F ij ian st ores are
rarely the source of cap it al for o ther commerc ial ent erpris e .
N o cases we re en coun t ered whe re a Fij ian owned mo re than on e
shop ) although a few had small t rucking bus in e s s e s an d similar
en terprises in add it ion to a store .
It is n o t that there are no suc ces sful Fij ian retailers .
Measurin g success in terms of n et profit , per s is tence of
en terprise o r even t rade expan s ion , there are s ome .
Invariab ly ,
however , succe s s ful Fij ian retail ers are no t op erat in g in
their home c ommun i ties but in areas wh ere they have weak
s o cial t ie s . Refle ct in g the general pat t ern s of int e rnal
migra t ion , many of the suc cess ful s tore operators are from
Lau and Lomaivi t i and are located in the greater Suva area .
Precise info rmat ion on the role of ' non-lo cal ' Fij ians in
re t ail in g is no t availab le , but on e sugge s t ion of the ir
domin an ce come s from our efforts in select in g Fij ian s t ore
owners fo r in terview . Eight F ij ian retailers operat in g around
Suva were s elected f o r int e rv iew at random f rom a l i s t of
the l i s t was comp iled from business li cence
twen ty- f ive ;
re cords .
I t turned out that six o f the eight had migrat ed
from Lau and one from Ro tuma ; the e ighth was a d e s c endant
of the Solomon I s land s plantat ion labour force that was
b rought to F ij i at the end of the last cen tury . The Lauan
s to r ekeepers and Lauan farmers on r e s e t t l ement s chemes
in the Central Divis ion , describ e thems elves as ' the Indians
2 38
o f the Fij ian s ' , mean in g that t hey must suc ceed in commerce
as t hey have lit t le to go b ack to in Lau an d l imit ed acce s s
to garden land s in the ir new homes . The Solomon I s l ander
des cended s to reowner des crib ed his peop le ' s plight and the
mo t ive fo r e s t ab l ishin g a shop :
We have ab o ut s ixty- s ix more y ears to go on our
land leas e . We do no t lm ow wha t wil l happen to
They [ the land-owne rs ] might t urn around
us then .
and s ay , ' Oh , you had b e t ter f ind ano ther p lace . '
But we have no money . Unless we have j ob s and
are work ing in towns and get money to look after
our fami lies , the on ly p l ace for us t o get money
is t o t ry to run a busin e s s . And so we [ the
b ro thers in the family ] teamed togethe r to do
s ome thing for our fut ure p eople , espec ially our
children .
Not al l Fij ian shops ope ratin g away from the owner ' s
home are succes s ful . The eight shopkeepe r s in terviewed had
been opera t in g for an average of 5 . 4 years : an equal numb er
of Ind i an s who we re also in t e rviewed averaged 12 . 9 y ear s .
The Fij ian s toreowners did n ot have a his t ory o f ent repre
neurial act ivity .
Or ganizat ion o f thes e ' non-lo cal ' F ij ian
shops doe s not differ greatly from o ther F ij ian s t ores .
Having few s o c ial t i es with the area in wh ich they operat e ,
however , they do not face con s i s t en t or unrefusable p re s sure
from cus tomers for cred it . Al s o , the feelin g of dependence
on s t o re income , or at least on mon et ary in come ., is a force
for pers everance .
Fij ian s t o reowners face s ign ifi can t mo t ivat ional and
a t t i t udinal impedimen t s .
It is con trary t o F ij ian cus t om
to deman d payment for goo ds or to refuse credit .
' Credit
p roblems ' , one s t o rekeeper said , ' are largely the result of
the Fij i cus t om by which we canno t t urn away people empt y
Th ere is l it t le prest ige in owning a s tore and a
hande d ' .
s toreowner open s himself to j ealousy and gos s ip for ' un-F ij ian '
behaviour .
In spit e of the d i f f i cult ies , Fij i an s own a l a rge n umb er
of shops . Almo s t one-third of the retail gro cery shop s o f
Fij i are owned b y F ij ians and another fifth are co-ope rat ive
s o c ie t y s t or e s ( see Tab le 3 . 4 ) . By share of t rade , however ,
th e con t ribution o f Fij ians is not great . In the Cent ral
Divis ion , it is l ikely that con s iderab ly les s than 10 per
cen t of the gro cery t rade is handled by F ij ian shop s ;
239
co-operat ive s o c iety s t ores would accoun t for a s imilar
share .
In o ther words , almo s t 5 0 p er cen t o f retail and
wholessle-retail gro cery sho p s in the Divi s ion are Fij ian
or co-opera t ive s ociety s t o res but these handle under 2 0 per
cen t of the grocery trade . The Fij ian share o f the c omb ined
gro cery who lesale and re t ail t rade would be cons iderably
le s s than this one- f i f th o f trade , and Fij ians do no direct
imp ort ing - apart from the Fij i Co-operat ive As so c iat ion ,
if i t is t reated as Fij ian .
The disproport ionately small share o f t r ade in Fij ian
hands rais es s ome impo rt ant que s t ions . Why , for in s t ance ,
aft e r thirty ye ars o f act ivit y and the tm.den iab le en trepre
neurial in terest o f in dividual F ij ian s , do co-operat ive
s o c ie t ies have such a small share o f the gro cery t rade and
essen t ially no share in non-a gr i cultural commerce ? The
explanat ion may in part be mot ivat ional and at t itudinal ,
b ut equally b as i c are s t ructural cons id e rat ion s .
A mo s t s i gnif icant t rait o f F ij ian connne rc ial act ivity
is i t s isolation . While exi s t ing in the s ame commercial
sys t em as the retail and who lesaler int eres t s of Indian ,
Ch inese and expatriate f irms , the Fij ian is in may ways
very much apart . Fij ian re tail shop s are usual ly located
in isolated rural areas . Not only have Fij ian shopowners
not had connne r cial t rain in g , unles s perhaps they have worked
fo r a co-op erat ive so ciet y , b ut al s o they are very unlikely
to l earn even rudiment ary b us iness prin ciples by operating
a village s t ore . The l imi t ed t rade act ivity in villages
and general ab s en ce of commercial compet i t ion o f fer no
incen t ive fo r t rader s t o innovate , let alone to b ecome mo re
aggre s s ive . As t rade is ent irely with Fij ians - mo s t of
whom are relat ives o f the s t oreowner - who have largely
p redictable and un changin g demands , commercial in it iat ive
In
is further inhib it ed .
I s olat ion is f el t in o th er ways .
terms o f s up ply , Fij ian s to res are set apart from o thers .
They are rarely vi s i t ed b y salesmen or wholes alers , even
when they are located on roads . Mo s t s toreowners t ravel
to supply centre to pur chase foods , usually for cash s ince
wholesalers are o ft en unwillin g t o gran t credit and many
In add it ion ,
Fij ian s toreowners are unwil lin g t o receive it .
s torekeepers are al l but i gn o red by governmen t , t rain in g o r
fundin g agencies .
As well as aiding Fij ian e conomic progres s , the co
operat ive movement has contrib u t ed to the crea t ion o f the
Co-operat ive societ ies were promo t e d as
pre s ent s i t uat ion .
240
the avenue o f Fij ian en t ry in t o connne rce . Thro ugh their
is olated rural l o cat ions , connnun ity servi ce role an d the
po s s ib il it y they af ford for the denial of ind ividual respon s
ib ilit y , many have b e come community p antries f o r nece s s ary
pro cessed foods tuf fs . Fij ian demands for more e f f e c t ive
in tegrat ion in to the economy can b e defle ct e d with the an swer
that co-op erat ive societ ies exi s t to this end . Wh ile it is
t rue t hat the Departmen t o f Co-operat ives and s o c iet ies are
regarded as Fij ian , they do not appear to have helped Fij ian
in dividual s to advan ce e conomically , an impo rt an t aim for
many as the ir involvemen t with s tores sugges t s . The view that
Fij ian s shoul d ' advan ce ' th rough co-operat ive s o c iet ies
effect ively curtails any ass istance that mi ght be given to
ind ividual F ij ian en trepreneurs .
Chinese and Indian bus ine s s es involved in the gro cery
trade s tand apart from Fij ian commerc ial en terprise but this
is no t the only common feature they share . Both are involved
at imp o r t ing , whol esal ing and retail in g l evels .
Ind ian and
Chinese grocery retail es t abl ishmen t s c omprise a range o f
forms and s cales o f operat ion . Condi t ions o f en try a r e no
mo re rigo rous than for Fij ian and many commenc e trad ing on
a s imilar scale ( Table 3 . 2 6 ) , but there are d ifferences .
While Chin ese and Ind ian ret ailers are ignored by the
governmen t as much as are ind ividual Fij ian t raders , they
have a s tronger commercial trad i t ion , and al though many
Ind ian and Chinese shops do net expand b eyond the s cale o f
mo st village s tores , vert ical and hor i zon t al exp an s ion i s
more charac ter is t ic .
The b us ines s organ izat ion of the smaller Indian and
F ij ian shops does n o t differ great ly . Lab our and other
input s are family-b ased and credit is an import ant feature
of s ales pol i cy ; inves tment and workin g capit al are great er
than for F ij ian shop s , but are s t ill o f t en l imit ed .
Great e s t
dif feren ces o ccur i n the mo t ivat ion o f s t ore o perat ion . For
mo s t Indians , the s t o re is a full- t ime b us ine s s - if not for
the owner , who may farm or hold another j ob , for o th ers in
S ales
the family who will keep it open thro ughout the day .
pract ices may be as pas s ive as tho s e o f Fij ians , but mo st
are mo re than s ervi ce outle t s fo r the connnun it ies in wh ich
they are l o ca te d . Many are l ocated on roads an d have s ome
through-t raf fic t rade . Few Fij ian st o re s s el l much more
than basic requiremen t s , b ut In dian gro cery s t ores are o ft en
general p urpo se out let s , carryin g a b as i c range of homeware
and drapery . Many Indian shop s in town s have n on- gro cery
fun ct ion s . Whereas ret ailing is pract ically the only
2 41
commercial act ivity of F ij ian s toreown ers , it is often j ust
one o f a range o f act ivit ies o f Ind ian families . Ret ailing
usual ly remains the bas is o f b us ines s , with t axi s ervice s ,
car repai rs , wholesal in g , market and other selling ,
commercial agr i culture and wage lab o ur of t en b e in g carried
on by memb ers o f the one family . Expan s ion out of food
retailing in to o ther act ivit ie s can s tret ch family resources
b ut rarely to the ext en t that o rganiz ation p r in c iples chan ge .
F inance for expansion i s generated by the other act ivit ie s ,
although s uc ce s s ful Ind ian ent repreneurs do gain access t o
b ank loans . Lab our r emains intens ive and fami ly�b as ed ,
and income cont inues to b e saved and inves ted rather than
consumed .
Chinese gro cery ret a il ing is in s ome ways s imilar t o
that of Indi an s . Operat in g l ar gely out of rented premises
in urb an and peri-urb an areas , Chine s e retailing is based
on family labour and in ternally- generat ed capital . Perhap s
reflect in g mo re cen t ral s to r e locat ions and more act ive
cl ientele , Chinese st ores o f t en carry a wider range o f s t o ck
than Indian shop s , and cert ainly more than Fij ian shop s ,
although gro ceries remain the maj or i tem.
Chines e ret ailers
us ually expan d b us ine s s by moving to a more cent ral lo cat ion ,
in creas ing s t o ck range o r ext end in g vert ical ly in to whole
s al in g . Th ere is less development into an cillary operat ion s
t h an o ccurs among Ind ian t rader s , a main reason b eing the
depen denc e of Chine se on family lab our . Non-Chinese are
never employed s ave in menial t asks where help i s warranted
by volume o f bus ine s s .
Chinese involvement in the ret ail and wholesale-ret ail
t rade of t he Cent ral Divis ion is but a shadow of previous
levels , even though they own 13 per cent o f the s t ores and
probab ly s t ill handle about on e- f i fth of the b us ine s s .
Chinese shop s , on ce predominan tly rural in l o cat ion , are
now heavily urban : 1 35 of 1 7 8 Chinese-owned retail an d
whole s ale-re t ail sto res in Fij i are in urban areas . Many
Chinese s to reown ers moved from rural lo cat ion s as the ban
on green co conut trading and the r i s e o f co-opera t ive soc iety
s t o res cut int o the ir trade . The Chinese populat ion has
decreased great ly in re cen t dec ades through emigrat ion s o
that many f ami l ies to day have in suf f i c ient memb ers to support
current act ivit ie s , let alone expans ion . More than in any
o ther racial group , Chinese male children are en couraged to
wo rk in the family b us iness .
242
Commercial act ivity in Fij i i s s t ron gly in fluen ce d by
fact o r s o f lo cat ion . Fij ian endeavour is s everely handi
cappe d by spatial isolation , . and the s t ren gth o f Indian ,
Chinese and exp at riat e European act ivity i s part ly due t o
location al advan tage .
Given the spat ial charact eris t ic s o f
the nat ional economy - st ron g rural /urb an dichot omies an d
the conc ent rat ion o f wealth in urban areas and the sugar
p ro duc ing region - the fut ure of rac ial involvemen t in
c omme r ce t akes on a certain air o f inevit ab il it y .
The numb e r
o f Fij ian shops may inc reas e in response t o populat ion
growth , but whils t Fij ian shop s remain in rural ar eas
s erving Fij ian communi ties , the Fij ian share of the re tail
trade will decline and there is l i t t l e pos s ib ility of entry
into wholesaling or importing . Bus inesses in urb an centres
will cont inue to cont rol a la rge share o f the gro cery trade
at all level s , as well as o f o ther commerce , in _ which
al ready th er e is negl i gib le Fij ian involvemen t . Wit hout
s ign i ficant change in the s pat ial feature s o f the e conomy
o r the location o f Fij ian en terpri se , Fij ians are un likely
to achieve s ign ifican t involvemen t in commerce . There are
maj o r dif ferences in e conomic for tunes and commercial ac t ivity
b e tween sub- racial group in g s that are a s much a product o f
spat ial fac t o r s a s is the p ligh t o f Fij ian connne rce � the s e
difference s , however , are beyond the s co p e o f this rep o r t . 4 5
Con clus ion
Three ob j ec t ives of the s t udy as they relate to the
p ro ce s s ed foo ds d ist ribut ion sy stem - del ineat ion and analys is
o f th e s ys t em, the role of ind i genous an d non-ind igenous
people in it , an d government policies rel at ive t o the syst em have been cove re d above an d require no re st at emen t .
The
fourth obj e c t ive o f reviewin g the implicat ion s o f government
pol icy on ind igen ous involvemen t , however , is an appro priate
con clusion t o thi s chap t er .
The gove nunent o f Fij i , apparently , has two chief
con cerns relat ive to the d i st ribut ion of p r o ce s s e d foods :
( a)
t o ens ure that prices p aid by c onsume r s are
reas on ab l e an d inflat ion in these is minimal ;
(b )
t o b roaden the part icipation in the dist ribut ion
sys tem by all ' lo cal ' people , but part icula rly by
Fij ians .
243
These con ce rn s are pursue d throughout the commercial sect o r ,
includ ing the groc ery trade , and a review of government
policy in this latter field is a case s tudy of broader
pol icy .
The con cern of l imit in g cos t s to con sumers an d dampen in g
in fl at ion is handled through the act ivit ie s of the Prices
and In comes B o ard ( P IB ) . The P IB has been effect ive in
e s t ab l i shin g prices fo r b as ic commo di tie s , but it has not
achieved a s e con d obj ect ive of count erin g p er ce ive d mon opo
lis t ic t rend s in c ommerc e .
In deed , p ri ce con t ro l s in gro ce ry
import in g an d wholesaling appear t o have encourage d monopo
lis t i c t rends in the s upply o f b a s i c connno dit ies .
If the
t rend t owards the withdrawal by me rchan t s from whole s al ing
p r i ce-cont ro l l e d commodit ies cont inue s , it might be n e ce s s ary
for the government it self to b ecome invol ved in wholesalin g .
In the light o f this deve lopment , there i s some urgen cy
that the con sequen ces of al lowab le price markups on b as i c
connno d it ies b e examined .
One d i f f i culty with pri ce con t ro l s on imported b as i c
commo d it ie s is that a crit i cal s t age o f p ri ce det erminat ion
t ake s pl ace out s ide Fij i . The ext ent t o wh i ch ext ernal
pricin g pract i ces af fect the co s t s of goo ds in Fij i is not
pre c is ely known . As it is l ikely that knowledge o f the
ext e rnal sy stem ob t ained by an en quiry or even through an
ongo ing government office will b e incomp lete and dated ,
one p o s s ib l e way to minimi ze negat ive consequences of such
practices is to es tab lish a para-governmental buying house .
Th is would s e rve t h e dual purpo se o f famil iariz ing the
government on an on go ing basis with internat ional t rade
pract ices and would al s o , if o p erated e f f i c i ently , provide
meanin gful compe t it ion for th e larger impo rters . The Fij i
Co-ope rat ive As s o ci at ion coul d be a foundat ion for such an
o r gan iz at ion , b ut to b e effect i ve it woul d need t o o p erate
on a mo re compet it ive connne r c ial basis than at present and
also to exp an d it s trade , perhaps b y servi c in g non-co
operat ives , in order to obt ain quan t ity d i s coun t s s imilar
to tho se re ce ived by its potent i al compet itors .
In rel at ion t o the se con d concern o f in creas in g ind i
genous involvement in connne rce , specifi cally in the p ro cessed
foo ds trade , three p o in t s can b e made . Firs t , the main
avenues fo r en couragin g Fij ian p art i c ipat ion in connne rce the Departmen t o f Co-operat ive s , the FDB and t he Fij i an
Bus ines s Oppo rtun ity an d Management Advisory Servi ce - have
not develo pe d exten s ive F ij ian p art i c ip at ion . The role
244
given by t h e government to the co-op erat ive movement , for
in s t anc e , as the mean s of Fij ian part icipat ion in connne rce
has in fact con tributed to the isolat ion of Fij ian connne rcial
endeavour and has compounded the lo cat ional d is advan tages
that Fij ian s face in success fully ent er in g commerce . Alter
nat ive s teps to promo t e F ij ian par t i c ipat ion in commerce
could inc lude :
(a)
in c reasing Fij ian part icipat ion in crit ical areas
of commerce by en co uraging the lo cation of Fij ian
commerce in urban areas and th e involvement o f
Fij ians in gro cery impor t in g an d wholes aling a s
well as i n non-grocery t rade .
This could b e done
by reserving p ar t icular connne rc ial fun ct ion s for
Fij ian s an d in st allin g Fij ian s in s trategical ly
located shop s with f inance and , as needed , in it ial
managerial as s istance from the F ij ian Developmen t
Bank or a s imilar ins t i tut ion ; and
(b )
recogn iz ing that co-operat ive consumer s o c ie t ies
serve a par t i cular ftmct ion - that is , the low-cost
supply o f e s t abl ished consumer demands o f Fij ian
vil lagers - an d cann o t b e expec ted t o mee t the
economic asp irat ions of all Fij ians . Other equally
val id forms of ec onomic ac t ivity ( s uch as retail
s tore ownership ) ought t o b e s upported with easy
access t rain in g p rograms and bus in e s s support
s ervices s imilar to tho s e received by c o-operative
so cie t ies .
Second , wh ile increased invo lvemen t o f Fij ians in
connne rce is a prime nat ional prior i ty , s i gnificant d if ferences
in economic s t atus within all rac ial group s should not be
overl ooked ; nor the fact that , as a group , grocery r e t ailers
earn much les s per person than people in mo st o ther commerc ial
o ccupat ions .
Improved economic c ond ition s for all people
invo lved in the grocery t rade could be achieved by plac ing
emphas is on comme rc ial and bus iness courses at secondary
s choo l leve l an d by estab l i shin g connne r c ial courses for
o thers , which could inc lude taking b a s ic bus iness in s t ruc t ion
to the commun i t ies where s to rekeepers are act ive .
Finally , expat riate European firms dominate gen eral
importin g an d whol es al in g and are very s ignif icant in
retailing . As l ong as t rade prac t ices are fair , bus iness
effic ient an d profits not excess ive , there i s n o thing
inheren tly wrong w ith over s eas involvemen t in connne rce .
245
However , the people of Fij i could be safeguar ded by the
government buying in to the ma in companies .
In this way ,
the governmen t would gain a degree of overs ight of company
operat ion s and reasonable finan c ial re turn s on the inve s tment
and the compan ie s would n o t suffer unduly by having a
s i gn i f ican t governmen t shareholding .
Appendix
A Fij ian pe rmanent vendor at Suva market :
an e d ited vers ion o f an in t e rview with
Vika Bain imar ama by Tevita Ba , 2 0 Feb ruary 1 9 7 7
[ Vika B ain imarama f rom Mokan i , Tai levu, i s on e o f t he more e s t ab
Af t e r leavin g s chool at
l i shed Fij ian pe rman en t vendors at Suva market .
Class 8 l evel an d marrying a man from Rewa , Mrs Bain imarama worked for
seven y ears as a �ous e- girl in Suva , for a short t ime as a wait ress and
She s t ar t e d s e l l in g in
t hen at home s ewin g it ems to s e l l to neighbours .
the market in 19 6 8 .
He r husband re t ired from h is j ob a s a carpen t e r in
19 7 2 and has devo ted his t ime s in ce then t o opera t in g a carrier f rom Suva
market and a mo tor-powered punt in the Rewa del t a area , b o th of which
we re finan ced la rgely f rom Mrs Bainimarama ' s market earn in gs .
Both her
husband an d s on , who is j ust comp l et in g second ary s chool , as we l l as a
number of relat ives , help Mrs Bainima rama in the market f rom t ime to t ime . ]
I had b e en wat ching the f o re igners [non-Fij ian ] vendors in the
Then
market and how they s t ayed t he re without too much moving around .
one day I decided t hat I woul d give it a t ry . . . � he first thin g I was t o
s e l l was foo d .
I cooked some foo d then wen t and sold it t o women I knew
Th e food did not last an hour b e fo re it was
at the market as a t r ial run .
all f inishe d .
They told me , ' Cook again for tomorrow ' .
And s o I cooked
again and it was then that I real i z ed that there is a good l i f e at the
market with no one to boss us around except o urs elves .
Af t e r one who l e
y ear o f s e l l in g cooked f o o d I s t arted s e l l in g c r o p s b e cause I w a s alone
with no on e to help me cook o r sell foo d .
That was in the y ear 1 9 6 8 and
At that t ime I was in s ide the market ,
I have cont inued to sell up t o now .
ove r at the s id e near the f ish market where there was no roo f .
We t ied
s acks to s t o p the h ea t of the sun .
Then in 1 9 7 3 the place had a ro o f and
then I moved o ut s ide .
I moved out b e cause I was s e l l in g wat e rmel on s .
They were always p iled out s ide so I came out and b o ught them f rom the
growers from Nad ro ga .
That ' s why I move d o ut an d have a t ab le out s ide the
marke t .
When I s t arted sel l in g there were a few Fij ians
They t ol d me many thin gs for advice :
s e l l ing whom I knew p ret ty we l l .
l ike the work depends on pe rsonality - t alk well with cust omers and then
they ' ll care for you and your t ab l e ; if we are always l ookin g angry n o
on e wi l l dare come and b uy .
Many th in gs l ike that t h e y advi sed me .
I had few cust omers at first , which was rather dis couragin g .
But when I s t arted to meet people and t o know them, mo re and more custome r s
f l o cked to b uy f rom my s t al l .
It t ook qui t e a b it o f t ime t o know and t o
But things t urned out right and became
att ract cus tomers in t o my s t al l .
p romising as the y ears went by .
Firs t ly ,
I al s o found it h ard to adapt mys e l f to t he mood o f s e � l in g .
I knew very l i t t l e about s e l l in g .
Se condly , s e l l ing was a new
246
247
act ivity with r egard t o my culture .
I had this a t t i t ude of shame towards
the j ob .
I used
I was also ashamed t o meet people , especially Fij ians .
This also us ed
to think that s e l l in g was a lowly-re garded kind of j ob .
t o b e the gene ral at t i t ude o f Fij ians t oward s e l l in g , e s pe cially sellin g
at t h e market .
B u t thi s at t it ude i s improving n o w as more Fij ians are
involved in s e l l ing at the market t od ay .
My mo s t d i f f i cult p rob lem was that about arran gin g with farmers
for the it ems I wan t e d t o b uy f rom t hem.
I was not well acquainted with
farmers at f ir s t .
Hence I found it d i f f icult to con t ac t the right farmers
who wo ul d supply me not on ly wit h the commo dit ie s that I was int e rested
in but also t ho s e it ems that were b es t to s el l .
When I came to know
f armers f rom Nadro g a , Tailevu and Nai t as ir i , my p rob lems we re eased .
Al so the long hour s s t anding in the market and especially on
the concret e f l o o r have adverse e f f e c t s on my health .
S omet ime ago I had
swollen legs that caus ed me to l imp b adly .
I learnt f rom experience s e l l ing t e chn ique s and the b es t it ems
to choo s e to s e l l .
The p rice t o impose on each item sold depends on the
cost prices .
I f I b ought cert ain it ems at cheap prices , I wo ul d set my
selling p r ices fo r these it ems at lower rates t oo .
The it ems I b uy at
higher p rices f r om farmers are expected to have higher sel l ing price s .
I do not set a t arget t o
My pricin g would depend o� my cos t pric e s .
achi eve i n one day .
I would rather make sure t hat I get b ack t h e amo un t
o f money I s pend each day t o b uy my connno d i t ie s from farmers and to get
reasonab l e p ro f i t s f rom the sale of t h ese connno d it ies as wel l .
Some f armers imp o s e un reasonab ly high cost price s .
Th ese are
us ually inexper i enced farme r s .
Th ese types of f arme r s us ually cause
p rob lems to ven dors .
Th ese s ame f armers would come with poor quality
commodit ie s .
They do no t even t ake great care in sel ect ing the b est it ems
and in making de cen t b undles and ar rangemen t s o f t he it ems in baske t s so
that they are at t ract ive to look at .
However , the exp e rien ced f armers
are quite hel p f ul in that t hey us ual ly make the i r commodit ies in good and
att ract ive o r der , and their prices too are usually reasonab le .
Somet imes I expe rience l o s s es in my busines s .
Th is has b een
caus ed by poor quality it ems which we re packed unnot iced in b ags I
ob t a ined from f armers .
Somet imes I expe rien ce l o s s e s on it ems l ike rourou ,
b e le and cas s ava which do not l as t lon g .
I f t he s e it ems are n o t sold
after one day , i t is obvio us that I would exp erien ce l o s s e s with them
be cause they would s t and very l i t t l e chan ce to be s o l d on the n ext day .
It ems that can last long are dal o , wild yam , sweet p o t at o , and ivi and
frui t s .
S omet imes people , especially the farme rs ,
d e al ings with
me .
are dishonest in the ir
Th is is mainly regar d in g the s ale of their poor it ems
to us .
For in st an ce , when they s e l l cas s ava in b ags , they p ut in at the
b o t t om poo r , small and even bad c as s ava .
Th i s we would not see but the
b i g, goo d ones at the t op .
Only at t he t ime we s t art s e l l in g , then we
real i ze that much of t he cas s ava canno t b e s o l d as it i s bad or of poor
qualit y .
Thus , this woul d b e a s t raigh t out lo s s t o my b us ine s s .
There are many advantages in th i s j ob .
We get more money and we
rece ive ' cen t s ' every day .
In o t he r j ob s it depen ds on payday - l ate
during the week or fo rtnigh t l y o r 100n thly , n ot l ike in the market where
248
you may b e get t in g i t every d ay .
Al s o , in ot her paid j ob s we are b o ssed
In the market , al tho ugh there are the market
aro und as we have b o s ses .
mast ers , all they want is t he p r i ce o f the t ab le - then al l the rest is
up to you - whe ther you go fo r a s t ro ll , sell o r go t o s leep , all that
is up t o you.
But with other paid j ob s , i f I come l at e I woul d expe c t
Buy your p roduce ,
some h arsh words .
Here , y o u come and d o what y o u want .
leave it at your t ab l e .
Your life and death is en t irely in your hands .
No one in the market will t alk ab out what you do - it is your own bus in es s .
I am real ly in tere s t e d in the bus ine ss and I am t ry ing hard t o
e xpand it as much as po s s ib l e .
Meanwhile my husb and and I are working
Apart f rom s e l l in g , we are runn ing a
to gethe r to expand the bus ine s s .
t ruck and an outb oard boat , b oth o f which are get t in g encouraging return s
by way o f money in to o u r b us in e s s .
Even n o w w e a r e p l ann in g t o s t art a
shop .
In th e mean t ime my s on is mo s t in t ere s t ed in my b us iness at the
On occas ions he comes to h el p with s el l in g .
He al s o helps his
market .
fathe r in o ur plantat ion at Sawani and the t ruck and outb oard bus ines s .
My son reali ze s that the b us iness at the market will provide him with all
his f inan c ial requirement s .
But I will let him de cide for himsel f with
regard to his paid j ob .
I my s e l f woul d l ike him t o t ake a we l l-paid j ob ,
but o t he rwise he can j o in me in running our busin e s s here at t he market .
My husband is very in terested in my b u s ine s s .
Through this
s e l l in g , he has also been ab le t o purchase a ' carrier ' , an outb oard and
has built our house .
P ro f it f rom my b us iness at the market has helped
t remendously to ob t ain thes e it ems .
In fact my bus in e s s has b ran ched out
as part of it is that ' carrier ' an d o utboar d , both of which are do in g
busine s s a s we l l .
The numb e r o f Fij ian vendors in t h e market i s in c reas in g s t eadily .
Th e numb e r o f vendo r s j o in in g the s e l l in g b us in e s s in the marke t , Ind ian ,
Ch ine s e an d o thers all have increase d , b ut the great e s t in crease is t hat
of the Fij ian vendo rs .
Many Fij ians who come to b uy in the market have
b een real i z in g that t he co s t s at which these commo d it ies are s o l d in the
market have b een giving goo d ret urn s to the s e l lers .
Many more who vis it
the market are b e in g moved b y t he wo rk we are do ing and through d i s cu s s ion s
with us t hey are now real i z in g that s e l l in g in the market is a worthwhile
j ob as it i s mo s t rewardin g in that it quickly an d quit e eas ily b rings to
us that money wh i ch we wan t and n ee d .
Al l peo ple in t own , t o o , more o r
le s s , must b uy food f rom t h e marke t .
In this s en s e t he market vendors
are do ing great s ervi ce t o the peopl e .
Hen ce s e l l in g in the market i s
both a worthwhile an d a re spectab le j ob .
Many Fij ian s are now aware o f
t h e s e u s e s o f s e l l in g i n t h e market .
Thes e aspect s , o f course , are
Many are even
ch an ging t he Fij i an ' s negat ive at t it ude t o s e l l in g .
en courage d to j o in the group already in the market .
There were fewer Fij ians in the market in the l a t e 1 9 6 0 s and
early 1 9 7 0 s than to day .
Con sequen t ly , the few Fij i an s who were s e l l in g
a t t he market wou l d re gard their busin e s s act ivit ies t hen t o b e a t their
peak .
Th i s wa s b ecaus e we we re rece iving many customers , many more than
we are ge t t in g t o day .
The more cus t omers we had , the more it ems we had
t o p ro vi de for them.
This usually re sul t e d in big s al e s each day an d we
got en coura ging profit s from t hem.
Today , there are more Fij i an s s el l in g
in the marke t .
This h as affe cted t h e s t r in g o f my r e gular cus t o mers .
Mo s t of t hem have to go and b uy f rom Fij i an vendors they are relat e d t o
249
or whom t hey know p er s on al ly .
So t o day , mo st of our cus tomers are our
own relat ive s or people who know u s p ersonally .
The t yp e an d quan t ity and qual ity have al so imp roved and
in creased s in c e I s t arted s e l l in g .
This may have b een the resul t of the
Of course the
increase in the n umb e r o f people do in g farming act ivit ies .
p r i ces o f t he i t ems when bough t f rom farmers have al s o in creas e d .
And
so the re t ail p rices we impose have in creas e d .
Notes
Chap ter 1
1
2
Food impor t s as a p er cen tage of to tal impor t s by value for
o the r Pac i f i c coun tries are : Papua New Guinea 2 0 . 1 ( 19 7 17 2 ) , Fren ch Polyn e s ia 22 . 2 ( 1 9 72 ) , Fij i 2 2 . 3 ( 19 7 3 ) ,
Ameri can S amoa 2 3 . 5 ( 1 9 7 1- 7 2 ) , New Caledonia 2 3 . 8 ( 19 7 3 ) ,
New Hebrides 2 4 . 4 ( 19 7 2 ) , Solomon Islands 2 7 . 4 ( 19 7 3 ) , Cook
Islands 2 8 . 0 ( 19 7 0 ) , We s tern Samoa 32 . 5 ( 19 7 2 ) , Ton ga 35 . 2
( 19 7 2 ) , an d Gilbert and E llice Is lands 3 6 . 8 ( 1 9 7 3 ) .
Comp arat ive 19 7 0 figures for Aus t ralia and New Zealand are
3 . 1 and 5 . 1 (McGee 19 7 5 : 14 ) .
3
4
5
Reviews o f t he fun c t ion o f market ing in economic developmen t
in c lude Moyer ( 1 9 6 5 ) and Moyer and Hollander ( 19 6 8 ) .
Fo llowing local nomenclature , ' Fij ian ' , ' Indian ' , ' European '
and ' Chinese ' are used throughout the repor t in an e thnic
o r racial sen se to refer to people of such origin s living
in Fij i .
Save where qualified as ' expat riate ' , thes e
p eople may b e t aken to be c it izen s of Fij i .
' crop area ' should n o t b e confused with ' cult ivated area ' .
In crop area , areas under mixed crops are mul t i- coun t ed
and tho se wi th seasonal crops are adj usted to refle c t t o t al
annual product ion .
See Cas ley 1 9 6 9 (which al though dated
an d in parts difficult t o c omprehend , is the only available
broad survey o f agr iculture in Fij i) .
sugar and coconut s have for long dominated export-orien ted
c onnn e rc ial agricult ure ) bu t a t present t he p roduc t ion of
both is in flux . Produc t ion of sugar declined 13 . 8 p er cen t
in the period 1 9 6 5 -7 5 . The quant ity o f sugar exported fell
2 5 . 2 p er cen t from 19 7 0 to 19 7 5 al though the value increased
1 9 7 . 7 pe r cen t . The in crease in value was largely due t o
high returns in 19 7 4 and 1 9 7 5 : value of export s from 1 9 7 0
to 1 9 7 3 in c reased only 7 . 7 per cen t while expo rt quan t ity
fell 18 . 5 per c ent (Fij i , Bureau of S tatist ics , 1 9 7 6 ) . The
future of the sugar in dust ry is unc ertain . New areas being
opened for sugar p roduc t ion are t o b e op erated in par t by
corporat e e s t at es ( in con t ras t t o p resen t reliance on
250
251
smallholder con trac t f armers ) .
Competi t ion from o ther
sweeteners could have radi cal con sequen ces on the in du s t ry .
6
7
8
9
The p roduct i on o f co conut p roduc t s i s in a s lump . Copra
produc t ion declin ed by almo s t one-th ird be tween 19 65 and
19 7 5 and the amoun t of c o conut o il produced in 19 7 5 was the
s ame as in 1 9 6 5 .
The export of co conut produc t s ( o il , oil
seed , cake and meal ) fell 2 3 . 1 per cen t from 1970 t o 19 7 5
while the value o f expor t s declined 2 . 1 per cen t (Fij i ,
In some coconut growing areas
Bureau o f S t at is t ics , 1 9 7 6 ) .
d ivers ifi ca t ion is under way b ased on root crop and l ive
s t ock p ro du c t ion for the local marke t .
Unless othe rwis e acknowledged , s t at is t i cal in format ion in
this sect ion is from F ij i , Cen t ral Plann ing Off ice , 19 7 5 ;
Fij i , Bureau of Stat is t ic s , 1 9 7 6 ; and Fij i , Pri ces and
Incomes Board , 19 7 5 , n . d .
The 1 9 5 9 and 1 9 6 5 surveys are on ly roughly compatible with
the two o th er surveys . For survey methodology and resul t s
s e e Ward 1 9 7 0 : 6 7- 8 and F ij i , Bureau of S t a t is t ic s , 1968 ,
19 7 4 .
For p opulat ion f igures for urb an areas s ee Table 2 . 3 .
1 9 7 6 population data are p reliminary re turn s of the 19 7 6
populat ion census a s publ ished in The Fiji Times , 7 Oc tober
19 7 6 and 21 May 19 7 7 .
10
For each group of foods t uffs , range of purchas e frequen cy
between th e four income quar t iles was calculated as a
percen t age o f the average expenditure .
11
studies were conduc t ed over one week in July 1976 in
commun ities selec ted primarily on the basis o f racial com
pos i t ion and locat ion in relat ion t o Suva .
The surveys
were designed to inves t igat e the relat ive frequen cy with
which dif feren t foods were con sumed . No at t empt was made
to meas ure the amoun t o f food consumed or the amoun t spen t
o n dif feren t foods ( or o n a l l foods ) .
Only main foods
consumed were recorded ; that is , sp ices and s eason in g vege
tab les like onions and ch illies we re discount ed .
Survey
resul t s are no t s t rictly comparab le with con sump t ion p at t ern s
revealed in the urb an household income and expenditure surveys ,
but it i s p o s s ible to comp are result s with urban findings
and t o ext rap o late to o t her rural areas , so long as it i s
ac cep t ed that differen t in c ome levels , availab il i ty o f home
grown food an d access to s upply cen tres , are j us t some o f
the many factors affe c t ing consump t ion pat t erns . Takin g
the se factors in t o accoun t , more reveal ing in ferences c an
2 52
be made than from th e availab le data on apparent food
con s ump tion an d aggregate nat ional nut rit ion al in takes
( Fij i , Cent ral Plann in g Office , 19 7 5 : 63 ) .
In each connnuni ty the enumerators , all s t uden t s at the
University o f the South Pacific , randomly s elected ten
It was planned to record during s even conse
hous eholds .
cutive days the frequencies with which foods were consumed
in each household . As it eventuated , one connnun ity was
surveyed fo r six days and fewer than ten households were
mon it o red in three cases . Me thodology and resul t s of the
survey are recorded in Michael Baxter , ' Food p referen ce
pat t erns in the Cen tral Divis ion , Fij i ' , CASD , USP ,
Octob er 19 7 6 . Wo rks relative to the survey methodology
are Belshaw ( 19 5 7 ) and Finney ( 19 6 5 ) .
Chap ter 2
1
2
The Departmen t o f Agricul ture calculated in 19 6 3 that the
proport ion of food grown for home ( sub s is t en ce ) con s umption
was 9 5 per c en t o f root crop s , 81 per cen t of vegetables
an d 77 per cen t o f fruit ( Biggs n . d . : 4 ) . More recen t data
are no t available .
offi cial rural marke t s are operat ing at Laqere , a Suva
suburb , and Dreke t i in Macuata , Vanua Levu .
It is planned
t o e s tablish o ther s at Nabouwalu ( Bua ) , Seaqaqa (Macuata) ,
and Gau and Kero in Lomaivit i by 1 9 8 0 ( Fij i , Central Plann ing
Off i ce , 19 7 5 : 22 7 ) .
3
4
Even the arrangements for export marke t s were for long left
largely in the hand s of pro ducers . An attemp t by growers
t o e s t ablish overseas out let s resul t s in the e s t ab l ishmen t
of the F ij i Plan t ers ' and Fruit Grower s ' Co-op erat ive Agen cy
Company , Limited in 189 0 . The company aimed to sell i t s
memb er s ' agr icultural produce in Aus t ralia and elsewhere ,
forward p roduce o f memb ers , make loan s t o memb ers for the
s torage an d sh ipment o f p ro duce an d purchase o f agricul tural
mach ine ry on b ehalf of memb er s . There i s no record of what
the o rganizat ion achieved or how long it survived .
See
Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Fiji Planters '
a:nd Frui t Growers ' Co-operative Agency Company, Limi ted
( G . L . Griffith s , Suva , 189 0 ) .
The Nausori market was quickly developed to meet mil itary
p roduce requi rement s by expand ing the p roduct ion and market
act ivity o f a large number of small growers through the
253
5
6
7
8
9
supply of seed , fer t i l iz er and in sec t i cide s , fixed-p rice
purcha s e agreemen t s , and co-ordin at ion of produce collect ion
and tran spor t . Marke t ing arrangement s were handled largely
by the Fij ian Co-op erat ive Market ing As soc iat ion ( founded
in 1942 wit h a paid-up cap i t al o f £5 000 .
rn format ion on early marke t s is s carce but some may be
c leaned from the annual r ep or t s o f governmen t bodies .
In format ion on the e s tab l ishment of Lautoka market is from
the 1952 Annual Repor t s o f Dis t r i ct Connn i ss ion ers , Le gis
lative Counci l Paper , 19 of 19 5 3 , p . 34 .
Annual Report ( 194 9 ) , Connni s s ioner of the Cen t ral Divis ion ,
Legis lative Counci l Paper , 1 o f 19 5 3 , pp . 1-5 .
Reason s for failure o f co-operat ive market ing societ ies
included poor admin i st rat ion and members ceas in g to sell
through the ir society , e i ther becaus e b etter prices were
availab le elsewhe re o r becaus e they b au lked at paying a
connn i ss ion on sales . Market ing co -op era t ives were fo rmed
largely in reac t ion to middleman trade :
the Nadroga-Navo sa
Co-op erat ive As soc iat ion Limited was created in 194 8 ' to
free the Fij ian farmers from the middleman ' ( Departmen t of
Co-operat ives , Annua l Report , 1949 , p . 15 ) . During the ear ly
1960s , some mar ke t ing co-op erat ive s in Lomaivit i appo inted
full- t ime agen t s in Suva t o sell their p ro duce , parti cularly
yaqona . Few s chemes survived as yaqona could invar iably
be so ld for higher prices , and for cash , to middlemen on
the islands an d b ec aus e soc iety overhead s were high . Today
there are a numb er of marke t in g co-op erat ives that deal in
produc e , b ut while they are s ign ifican t out lets for some
p roduc ers , they have a minimal role in p roduce supply in
general .
The involvement of the Fij ian Admin i s trat ion in economic
act ivit ie s and par t icularly the ac t iv it ies of the Economic
Development Off icers is examined b y O . H . K . Spate in his
' The F ij ian People : economic p roblems and prospe c t s ' ,
Legis lative Counci l Paper , 13 o f 1 9 5 9 , e spec ially pp . 40-7 .
Annual Repor t s o f District Connni s s ion
e r s , Legis lative Counci l Paper , 1 of 19 5 3 , 1 9 of 19 54 .
10
rn 1 9 6 7 i t was dec ided that weather and s o il condi t ion s ,
nematodes an d b un chy top disease were ob s t acles too severe
for succe s s ful b anana product ion at Lomaivuna so a mixed
economy was adop t ed . Today , the minimal Lomaivuna banana
product ion is fo r int ern al marke t s .
11
see Couper ( 1 9 6 7 : 2 43-5 ) for details o f the Beqa- Suva and
see the 1 9 5 1 an d 1 9 5 4
254
12
Yasawa-Laut oka trade in 19 64 . Today the t rade of Beqa
producers is largely to Navua market rather than to Suva .
13
The experts were Manuela G . Maramba , a nut rit ion o f fi cer
who wro t e ' A plan of operat ion for a market s tudy to be
done in the Colony of F ij i ' (MAFF , f ile 2 / 1 4 0 ) b as ed on a
1960 visit , and the agr icul tural economis t , D . R . N . Brown ,
who se report was ' S tudy of the economic s and marke t ing o f
cer tain agricult ural conmo di t ie s in t h e Fij i islands Progress report , July 1 9 6 4 ' (MAFF , f i le 6 2 0 / 2 / 3 9 ) .
The
market o f f i cer was t ran s ferred to other dut ies one y ear
after app o in tment and no t replaced .
sect ion 2 of the Suva (Market s ) By-laws , 19 3 7 , s t ated ' The
marke t s shall be for the use of the general pub l ic for the
purpos e of s ellin g vege tables , fruit , f ish , tobacco , l ive
poul t ry and such o ther connno dit ies as may from t ime to t ime
b e p ermi t t ed ' . Unlike current regulat ions , the By- laws
encouraged non-pro ducer trading by giving a fee reduc t ion
( 4 d p er day as oppo sed to 6 d ) to vendors who p aid one week ' s
fees in advance . The By-laws left room for l icensed hawkers
t o sell p ro duce in towns . Lat e r legislat ion has defin ed
goods that may be han dled by hawkers as excludin g p roduce
s old in market s , e . g . Suva (Hawker s ) By-laws , 1 9 6 6 .
14
under the Markets Ordinance , p roduce s ales could b e p ro
hib it ed within three mile s o f market s , but two miles was
the distance adop ted by the Market Regulation s ; t own s sub
sequen t ly adop ted restrict ion s ' within town boundar ies ' .
The Regulat ion s p rohib ited s ales o f f ish within one mile .
15
A s eparate ' market ' for handicraf t dealers has b een built
( July 19 7 7 ) in Suva ; it is in tended that the handicraft
vendo rs who are pre sen tly in the marke t will op erate from
the new building . Further c onflict b e tween food and non
food ven do rs in Suva market has been avo ided , an d p robab ly
even that b e tween producer and n on-producer sellers has
been part ially d e fused , as mo re selling space should be
avai lable for p ro ducer s .
16
0ne of the f ew de tai led accoun t s o f marke t ing p rior to the
mid-1 9 6 0 s refers to Lautoka marke t . There , in 1 9 5 9 , approxi
mately 44 s talls were o c cup ied during the week , 29 of which
we re held by s ix pe rman en t s t all holders ; over 130 s t alls
we re oc cup ied on Saturday s when there were ' Fij ian people
who c ome from Sigat oka and elsewhere [who ]
b ring s to cks
o f bananas an d other things .
They spread them out s ide
[ the marke t bui ld ing ] , an d the marke t char ge s them by the
s quare foot [ of space ]
' ( Colony of Fij i , Legis lative
•
•
.
•
.
•
255
17
Counci l Deba tes ( 1 9 5 9 ) , Ses s ion of 1959-19 6 0 , pp . 6 9 5 - 7 0 7 ) .
Couper ( 19 6 7 ) reported on asp ec t s o f in teTI1al marke t ing
in 19 64 .
As gove rnmen t market ing o f f icer , Josevata N . Kamekamica
organized a survey of more than 4 7 00 market vendors at all
market s in Fij i in 1 9 6 2 - 6 3 . The report of survey findings
( ' Report on a survey o f lo cal market s in Fij i , 1 9 6 2 - 1 9 6 3 ' ,
unpub l ished ) cann o t be locat ed . A brief accoun t o f local
produce marke t ing b ased on the survey mat er ial (Kamekamica
19 6 6 ) is the only remain in g record o f the research .
18
Biggs noted that middlemen (non-producer vendor s ) were mo s t
numerous a t Suva marke t wh ere there were 6 6 ( B igg s n . d . :
57) .
In 19 7 6 there were more than doubl e this number .
19
charges at Suva market wh ich were amon gst the highe s t in
Fij i s ugge s t the in tricacy o f fee s chedules . From 1 January
19 7 7 fees were : produce s t al l s , $ 1 . 05 or 5 2 c p er day or
$ 31 . 5 0 or $ 15 . 5 0 p e r mon th ( depending on s ize and lo cat ion ) ;
curio , kava and t ob acco s t alls , $ 1 . 30 o r 68c per day , $39
o r $2 0 . 40 per mon th ; mo s t shell fish , seaweed , s ea urchins ,
et c . , 6c p er basket o r bundle ; mussels , c lams , mud crab s ,
et c . � $1 . 0 5 p e r s ack ; fre sh water p rawn s , 6c per bun dle ;
s ea prawn s , lOc per pound , crab s , turt le , smoked fish , 6c
per pound .
20
Cus tomer p a tronage at the fift een o f ficial urban market s
was examined in a ser ies o f survey s in January 1 9 7 6 . An
accoun t of survey f ind ings is in Raj e sh Chandra , ' Market
buyers and their purchas e b ehaviour in Fij i : a prel iminary
analy s is ' , CASD , U SP , Decemb er 19 7 6 .
21
In addit ion t o general obs ervat ion , in format ion on urban
produce market s an d vendors is from three surveys conducted
by the Dist r ibut ion Sys t ems Proj ect .
The main source of
in format ion is a week-long survey conducted in the fift een
main marke t s over the week c o11ID1en c ing 2 6 January 19 7 6 .
In the January surveys , dat a were collected b y teams o f
in terviewers , mo s t of whom were s tuden t s at the Univers ity
The teams varied in s i z e relative
of the South Paci fic .
to the day o f the week an d the numb er o f vendors in each
marke t ; in mos t marke t s the numb er o f interviewers was at
least doubled for Friday an d Saturday . Two dif feren t
que s t i onnaires were us ed . On e sought b as i c socio-economic
informat ion about each vendor . The f irst day during the
survey week a vendor came t o marke t , a ' p ersonal dat a
record ' was completed . As s is t ants t o vendors were n o t
in t erviewed . The second que s t ionnaire dealt with the
256
produce each ven dor had for s ale and was comp l eted each
day a vendor came to marke t . I t was in t en ded to cover all
vendors an d their p roduc e for e ach day of th e s urvey week .
In the smaller marke t s t h is was done , allowing for a small
number of vendors who completed s elling and lef t the market
b e fore bein g interviewed : 90 p er cent or better coverage
was achieved in Raiwaqa , Korovo u , Tavua , N avua , Levuka ,
Savusavu and Vaileka market s ; coverage in Nausori , Lautoka
and Labasa was around 80 p er cen t ; in o t her marke t s it was
le s s .
Coverage was lowest in Suva , the busiest market ,
where le ss than one-hal f of ven dors were int e rviewed . In
all market s , Monday- to-Thurs day coverage was close to com
plete but great increases in vendor numb ers on Friday and
Saturday made it impo s s ib l e to main tain high coverage on
these day s in some market s . Con sequently , the sign ificance
of pe rmanent and non-producing vendors relat ive to non
pe rmanen t producing vendo rs , mo s t common on Friday and
Saturdays , i s ove r-est imat ed for marke t s where there was
not complete coverage . A p rov i s ional report of the f indings
o f the January surveys is Baxter , ' Marke t vendors and their
p roduce in F ij i : a t en tative ana lys is ' , CASD , U SP ,
November 19 7 6 .
Othe r surveys of market vendors were con ducted in Jtlll e and
Novemb er 1 9 7 6 . The purpo se o f these surveys was to check
the general validity of the January result s and to examine
s easonal variat ion in marke t b ehaviour . The surveys cen tred
on th e vendor ' s race an d o ther person al charac teri s t i cs ,
p lace of res iden ce , place o f p ro duct ion and type o f goods
sold . The Jtlll e surveys were c on duct ed in Suva , Nausori an d
Navua marke t s o n a Wedn e sday , Friday an d Saturday o f one
week : 7 1 8 vendors were in tervi ewed in Suva , 42 6 in Naus ori
an d 152 in N avua . In Novemb er , all vendors p re s en t in Ba
and Labasa market s were in t e rviewed daily for one week .
In Ba , 3 2 3 vendors were int erviewed and in Labasa 2 81 : b o th
thes e f igures represen t ab out 90 per c en t coverage . Where
no dat a source is given in this s ec t ion , i t may be assumed
the in fo rmation is derived from the January 1 9 7 6 survey .
22
The study of F ij ian producer-vendors in Suva market was
conducted durin g Sep temb er and Octob er 19 7 6 and con t inued
Fin d ings are part ially r e p o r t e d in J enny Bain e s ,
in 19 7 7 .
' Fij ian vendors at Suva market ' , CASD , U SP , Decemb er 19 7 6 .
Dat a on non-producer vendors in th is s ec t ion are from
Baines ' paper .
23
nat a on price markup s and non-producer-vendor income are
from studies tlll d ertaken in Suva marke t , 7-11 Sep temb er
257
24
19 7 6 . Every purchas e an d sale o f produce b y 3 0 vendors
was recorded for at least three cons ecut ive days and for
mo s t ven do rs for f ive days ( Tues day t o Saturday ) .
nurin g the January 1 9 7 6 market surveys , dat a were collec ted
on the produce handled by all interviewed market vendors .
In c on s idering the dat a , allowance should be made for survey
metho do logy , p ar t icularly the exten t o f cove rage ( s ee Note
21 above ) and seasonal var iat ion in pro duce availab i lity .
On the first day a vendor was in terviewed , a ' daily produce
reco rd ' was made o f the produce b rought t o , or bought at ,
the market that day and a s imilar record was completed
each sub sequent day o f th e week th e vendor was at marke t .
The quan t it y and s el l ing p rice o f each type of produce ,
pro duct ion locat ion and the source o f produce - the vendor
or his f amily , an o ther grower , a non-grower or an importer were noted .
In f o rmat ion is mo st complete f o r produce handled
by produc er vendo rs as it was relat ive ly easy t o re cord
the to tal amount of produce they b rought t o market .
Permanen t vendors make mo s t purchases early in the day but
may buy dur ing the day : it proved d i f f icul t to record these
later purchase s .
25
Main produce cat ego r i es ( and s ome typ i cal it ems in each)
re ferred t o in this report are :
Nat ive S taples - t aro ( al l varie t ies ) , cas s ava , sweet
p o t at o , green b anana , c ookin g b anana , plan tain , breadfruit ,
dry coconut ;
Nat ive Ve get ables - o t a , rourou , b ele , duruka , pumpkin
leave s ;
Indian S taples - Irish potat o , on ion , garli c , carro t , rice ,
puls e s , dry spices ( e . g . cumin ) , pumpkin , marrow , j ackfruit ;
Ind ian Ve ge t ables - okra , eggp lan t , bean s ( all s ave ' Fren ch ' ) ,
gourd , chill ies , ginger , sago heart , b itter cucumber ,
angled loo fah �
In t roduced Vegetab les - let tuce , tomat o , Fren ch bean ,
Chinese and Engli sh cabbage , bell pepper ;
Fruit - pawpaw , banana , lo cal c i t rus f ruit , guava , Polyn e sian
apple , soursop , ivi , man go , wat ermelon , p ineapp le , green
c o conut ;
Imported Fruit - app le , pear , grape , p lum , sultana , peach ;
Tob acco , yaqona ;
Oils - coconut , s oyb ean , ' salad ' and p eanut o ils ; ghee ;
An imal Produc t s and Sea Food - poultry , fowl eggs , crus
tacean s , mol lus c s , dried and smoke d f ish , b eche-de-mer,
seaweed , tur t le .
Cap it alized produce group s in the text ref er t o the above
catego r i es .
258
26
nata were c omp iled from the res idence- to-market dis t an ce
of producer- so ld p r oducts recorded in the January 197 6
surveys . Vagueness about the p ro duct ion locat ion o f p ro duce
sold by n on-pro duc ers made it necessary t o d i s coun t thi s
produce from cal culation s . Resu l t s o f surveys conduct ed
at Suva , Nausori and Navua marke t s in June 1 9 7 6 generally
suppo r t product ion lo cat ion da ta recorded in January .
Pro
duct ion dis t ances for p roducer- so l d produc t s at Suva market
in June and January are : dalo 3 6 . 9 km ( 2 3 . 2 in January ) ,
cassava 32 . 8 km ( 16 . 3 ) , d ry co conut 3 9 . 6 km ( 34 . 8 ) , banana
2 0 . 8 km ( 2 0 ) , rourou 34 km (2 8 . 5 ) , okra 1 7 . 7 km ( 4 6 . 4 ) ,
eggplant 15 . 6 km ( 14 . 5 ) , chill ies 3 8 . 2 km ( 2 7 ) , Chinese
cabb age 14 . 3 km ( 9 . 3 ) , cucumb e r 2 0 . 1 km ( 2 0 . 7 ) , p awpaw 2 8 . 7
km ( 19 . 2 ) and lemon 45 km ( 11 . 6 ) .
27
The development o f vertical l inks in the t rade o f mar ine
and fresh wate r produc t s is a good example o f the conse
quences o f resource con t rol on p roduct supply and p r i c ing .
The riverin e , e s tuarine and coas tal environment s o f mollus c s ,
c rus taneans , edible s eaweeds , et c . are more or les s
exclus ively con t ro ll ed by Fij ians , who exp lo it the resources
much as sub s i s t ence-c ommercial f armer s do their . produc t s .
The p roduc t s are not wholesaled to non-producer vendors ;
amo un t s brough t to marke t are l imited and prices relat ively
inf lexib le .
In con t ras t , sea f ish en ter ing the marke t s
are caught ma inly by Ind i an s an d much is s o ld t hrough non
fi shing in termediar ies ; although by law fish can only b e
sold by li cen sed fishe rmen o r reta iler s . Prices o f f ish
are more respon s ive to supply an d demand trends than are
o the r seaf o o d p r ice s . Aspect s of s eafood product i on an d
supp ly in Suva , B a and Labasa market s were examined in
November and December 197 6 .
28
carriers are p rivat ely-owned t rucks hired by an in d ividual
or a group for a specific j ourn ey or which collect fare
paying pass engers along a par t i c ular route .
29
A que s t ionnaire survey was conducted over one week in Suva ,
Naus ori and Navua market s on 2 1-2 6 June 1 9 7 6 and in Labasa
and Ba market s on 2 2 -2 7 November 19 7 6 .
It was in t ended to
cover all b oa t s an d vehicles other than buses used to bring
p ro duce t o market ove r the survey period ; thi s was generally
achi eved with the excep tion of early (before 7am) arrivals
at all market s but Suva . Upon arrival at market , vehicle
and boat operato rs wer e ques t ioned about the vehicle ' s
owne rsh ip and j ourney o r igin and nature .
In format ion was
also c ompiled on the vehicle ' s s iz e , et c . and form and
In all , 3 3 0 d i fferen t vehicles making
s our ce of cargo .
259
30
5 32 j ourneys ( Suva 352 , Nausori 68 , Labasa 2 4 and B a 82 )
and 2 9 d ifferen t boat s (Navua 2 4 , Labasa 5 ) making one
j ourney each we re c overed . A preliminary ac count of the
June survey is Baxter , ' Specialised tran sport of produce
to Suva , Nausori and Navua marke t s : a ten t at ive analys is
of a surve y con ducted in June 1 9 7 6 ' , CASD , USP , Novemb er
19 7 6 .
carriers are important for p ro ducer-ven dor t ran spo rt when
s i gn i f ican t supply areas are poorly served by bus ( e . g .
in the We s tern Divis ion and at Navua an d Lab as a ) . The
t ran sport survey revealed that while the f requency with
which vehicles are u sed by the ir owner remains fairly
con s t an t b e tween market s , there is cons iderable variat ion
in the rate o f use for hiring and for collec t ing individual
fare-payin g passen gers and their pro duce . Surveyed market s
with good bus l inks t o thei r hin t erlands ( l ike Suva and Ba)
have a low incidence o f carriers collect ing in dividual
passen gers . Poo r bus connections b etween produc ing areas
and Nausor i , Navua an d Labasa encourage the use of carri ers
to colle c t fare-pay in g individuals rather than the ir hire
for a specific j ourney .
31
rn addi t ion to th e numb er o f ven dors or vendor-day's ,
ano ther guide to the share of t rade by race is the amo un t
o f s elling sp ace o c cup ied . Because they account f o r almos t
all permanent vendor s , Indian sellers o ccupy 5-10 p er cen t
mo re sellin g space than the p roport ion of vendors they
accoun t for on any par t i cular day . On Saturday 2 7 Novemb er
19 7 6 at Ba marke t , for ins t ance , 35 per cen t of vendors
were permanen t vendors who o ccup ied 51 per cen t of sell ing
space . On the s ame day , 81 p er cent of vendors were
Indian s oc cupyin g 86 p er c en t of selling space .
32
Few Guj eratis sell in th e market ( on ly 9 were enumerat ed
in the January 19 7 6 market survey ) but their sell ing
b ehaviour i s markedly d i fferen t from that o f o ther Indian
vendors .
In commerc ial exper i en ce and family b ackground ,
dependence on marke t sales for income , dis tance of res idence
from an d mean s o f t rave l t o marke t , a s s i s t an ce in selling
and the type of produc e sol d , Guj erat i vendors have mo re
in connnon with Chinese than with o ther vendo rs .
33
.
. . ian
.
quo t at ions are f ram in t e rviews
wit
.
. h f ive
pe rmanen t
F iJ
·
34
·
vendors at Suva market conduct ed in January and Feb ruary
19 7 7 by Tevita Ba . Fo r an ed ited ver s ion of one in terview
see Append ix .
0ne Fij ian non-producer-vendor saw reliance on Fij ian
2 60
suppliers in t his way :
' Fij ian s who sell in the market
[ as non-producer vendors ] encourage Fij ian farmers to work
hard and grow mo re food crops , as the farmers know that
there will b e Fij ian friends and relat ives in the market
who will t ake an d buy the ir commodit ies without b ecoming
involved in any problems regardin g nego t ia t ion , purchase
and p ricing . '
( Int erview by Tevita Ba , Feb ruary 19 7 7 . )
35
The NMA was e s t ablished within the Min i s t ry o f Connne rce ,
Indus t ry and Co-op erat ives but was t ransferred to the
Min i s t ry o f Agricul ture , Fo re s t s and F i sheries in June
The quotat ion of the Authority ' s aims is f rom
19 7 2 .
Sect ion 5 of the Act . The f irst b oard o f the NMA i solated
the fo llowing obj e c t ives :
( a ) T o p rovide a guaranteed market f o r specific primary
produce at p redetermined prices for dif feren t pro
duc t ion z on e s ; the range o f pro duce t o b e widened as
quickly as market s , in f rast ruc ture , s t aff an d o ther
res ource cap ab ili t ie s allow .
(b ) To main tain a s t ea�y flow of reasonably price d , high
qua l ity pro duce to marke t s .
( c) To a s s i s t in Gove rnmen t ' s drive t o comb at inflat ion
by dampening upward s p irals in produce price s .
( d ) To work in con cert with a l l organizat ion s and agen cies
involved in rural developmen t t o ens ure that p ro
duc t ion an d market ing plans are in te grat e d .
( e ) T o co- o rd in at e cl osely with ext ension s ervices t o
ensure that p ro duct ion and market in g plans are
in tegra t ed .
( f ) While n o t int en ding to b e a p ro f it-mak in g body ,
neverthele ss , it should a c t connne rcially an d aim t o
d o no wors e than a b reak-even po s it ion overall .
( g) Where marke t in g bodies or o rgan izat ion s already exis t ,
they will b e encouraged an d as s is t ed p rovided they
are ful filling a use ful role .
(h ) Where no market in g infrast ruc t ure is p re s en t , to aim
to set one up e i ther by it s el f or in a s socia t ion with
o ther agen cies .
( i ) To vigo rously inve s t igate addit ional an d / o r alternat ive
market s b o th locally and overseas in the interest s of
main tain ing local price an d sup ply s t ab il ity .
(j ) To c on du c t res earch in t o ma rke t in g chara c t e r i s t ics o f
var ious p roduce s o that deman d and product ion pro
j e ct ion s can be made with a greater degree o f accuracy .
( ' Nat ional Market ing Authority Report for the years · 1 9 71 ,
19 72 and 19 7 3 , Par liamentary Paper , 3 o f 19 7 5 , p . l ) . The
obj e c t ives o f the NMA are not nearly as b ro ad as s uggested
2 61
dur in g deb ate ove r the Market in g B ill . The Minister for
Commerce , Indus t ry an d Co-op erat ives in movin g the b ill ,
for in stance , claimed that areas of act ivity woul d be
pro duce , cat t le and handicra f t s dealing , warehous ing and
s t orage .
Other s pe aker s saw the chance of the NMA earn ing
t he profit s then made by middlemen .
(Parliamen t of Fij i ,
Par liamentary Debates , S e s s ion o f 19 7 1 , Part 1 , pp . 32 - 5 9 ,
62-7 0 0 )
36
· h in
· · i· are th rough NMA
· d ivi
. · d ua 1 consumers w it
s a 1 es t o in
. p iJ
s t alls at some market s . That in the Suva market had a gro s s
monthly turnover in 19 7 6 o f around $ 3 000 . When the NMA
e s t ab l ished the s t all in 19 7 3 , permanent vendors in the
market feared that it would be used to undercut their
price s .
Concern was so great that a deput at ion from the
Suva Market Vendors ' Ass o c iation propo s ed that non-producer
vendors would purchase all the ir suppl ies from the NMA if
the Author ity ceased selling re tail in the market (NMA
f ile 2 2 / 1 ) . The NMA s t all has had a negl igible effect on
market t rade , in p art due to its poor locat ion , thus feeling
again s t t he Autho rity has sub s ided .
37
NMA file 2 0 / 2 .
38
NMA file 12 / 4 . Numerous s imilar cases are en count ered
among producers and in NMA record s : at Koro in 1 9 7 6 , for
in stance , the Author it y refused t o b uy dalo from anyone
o the r than three named ' reliable ' s uppliers . When estab
l i shed , i t had b een the in t en t ion o f t he NMA t o make
regular shippin g runs t o the is lands t o coll ect produce
( The Fiji Time s , 14 Sep t ember 1 9 7 1 ) .
39
Market ven dor s ' feelin gs o f not b e in g adequately served
are seen in th e following examp le .
In Ap ril 19 72 , 105
Suva market vendo rs , who we re predominan t ly Fij ian producer
vendors , p et it ion ed the Suva City Coun c i l fo r a reduc t ion
of market fees , provis ion o f s l eepin g fac ilit ies at the
market for out-of-town vendors , reduced marke t fees for
vendors coming from long di s t ance s , the convers ion of the
market ' s kava saloon to a restauran t , c o-op t ion of p roducer
vendors to the Council ' s Market Connni t t ee , and the provis ion
of shelter fo r s talls and t ables out s ide the market buildin g .
Council rej ected all but the l as t two reque s t s and ac ted
only on the final i t em (MUDHSW f ile 7 4 9 / 2 6 / 2 , 13 April
1 9 72 ) . An in di cat ion o f the prob lems be tween vendo rs and
council is that for at leas t the f ive y ears s ince 1 9 7 2 ,
Suva market witnessed various confl i c t s involving the
council , police and p o l i t i cal act ivi s t s ; there have been
s imilar problems at o t he r market s .
2 62
40
Only a very small pro
MAFF file 5 4 / 1 , 2 7 Novemb er 19 7 5 .
port ion o f p roduce handled by middlemen is in fact imported .
Chapt er 3
1
2
As noted at the b eginn ing o f Chap ter 2 , some foods sold in
produce marke t s ( ghee , coconut o i l , some dried an d smoked
seafoods and ready-to-eat snacks ) are proce s s ed , and some
p ro duce is sold in shop s , b ut o therwise there is l i t tl e
overlap in produc t s handled between t h e p ro duce and p roces s ed
foods dist ribut ion sys t ems .
3
An out l ine o f the Min is t ry ' s curren t int ere s t in connne rce
is in Fij i ' s Seven th Developmen t Plan ( F ij i , Central Plann ing
Off i ce , 19 75 ) , espec ially pp . 162-3 . The r elative p lace of
connne rce in development p lans may be j udged by the fact
that while over 4 0 pages in the P lan are devo ted t o agri
cult ure , fore s t s and fishe r i es , only 11 are given t o connne rce ,
indus t ry and co-op era t ives ( 2 , 7 and 2 pages , respect ively ) .
The b road long- t erm obj ect ives o f the Co-operat ive movement
in F ij i have b een def ined by the Department o f Co-op erat ives
( 1 9 7 5 : 2 - 3 ) as :
( a ) T o provide co-op erat ive t radin g facilities b o t h in
the ret ail and in the whole sale f ield .
To p rovide a
greater var iety o f goods and thus s t imulat e the des ire
t o in crease produc t ion for the purp o s e of acquiring
wealth t o p ro cur e mat er ial comfor t s .
(b ) To p rovide co-operat ive s aving and cred i t f ac il i t ies
par t icular ly in the rural cane areas of the coun t ry .
To s t imulate saving in o rder to enable s ign i f ican t
produc t ive lending thus lead in g t o in creased p ro duct ion .
( c ) To as s i s t individual producers o r fragmented group s o f
producer s o f copra an d o ther agr icult ural p roduce t o
exp l o it their ind ividual pro duc t ive and f inan cial
resources so as ind ividually , an d as a connnun ity , to
benefit from the ext ent t o which the ir influence can
be f elt in th e market ing f ield .
To
in f luenc e an upgradin g of qual i ty o f local p roduce
(d)
a s t he r e s ul t o f in s i ght in t o the c on s ume r ' s
(e)
(f)
requi remen t s .
To ass i s t in the t ran s it ion from a sub s is t ence to a
connne rcial economy by propagat ing modern and economic
met hods of cul t ivation .
To ensure that the maximum re turn is comin g back in to
the hands of local producers , thus providin g in cen t ives
2 63
(g)
(h)
(i)
4
for rais ing the ir own living s t andards .
T o p rovide a s t atus symbol an d sen se o f personal
and l o c al ownership in the local p eople .
To p ro vide the opportunity for developing people in
the lower educat ional range to translate the ir acquired
knowledge in to practi cal commercial value .
To t ra in the people in the appli cat ion of demo crat ic
prin ciples to he lp them to build the ir own de s t iny .
Trading figures are from the Departmen t ' s 1 9 7 4 Annual
Report ( in pres s ) . Trading f i gures are no t for a twelve
mon th perio d bu t fo r the in ter-aud it period , which averages
almo s t fourteen mon ths . A large numb er o f socie t ies are
inact ive . S ee ' Retailin g ' (below) for fur ther d is cuss ion
of co-op era t ive s oc i e t ie s .
5
An o f f icial accoun t o f the op erat ion s of the Fij ian Bus iness
Oppor t un i ty and Managemen t Advisory Service is not availab le .
The j udgment o f the Servi ce ' s suc c e s s is from sources both
within and out s ide the Service .
6
The annual l icence fee under the Bus in e s s L icence Ac t , that
i s , appl icab l e out s ide gaze t t ed town s and c ities , fo r a
commis s ion agent ( the app licable cat egory) is $ 5 0 .
In Suva ,
the fee is $ 100 and $ 5 0 for a manufacturer ' s rep resen tat ive ;
elsewh ere , commis s ion agen t l icence fees are generally $50 .
7
r t is likely tha t there are a few inden t agen t s in Nadi
and perhap s also in some o ther t owns in ad dit ion to Suva
and Lautoka .
In addit ion t o the ' independen t ' agen t s , the
expat ria t e European-own ed firms have their own in den t
depar tmen t s ( a s do a coup le o f lar ger local firms , like
Rab i Holdin g s Ltd ) that indent goods only for the firm .
These ' t ied ' in den tors are not t aken into account in this
dis cuss ion .
In format ion on indent agen t s is derived from
in t erviews with a small numb er o f indent agen t s in Suva
and Lautoka and a March 1 9 7 7 telephone survey o f all con
t ractable ' indent ' o r ' commiss ion ' agent s and ' manufac turer ' s
representat ives ' lis t ed in the 19 7 6-7 7 Suva telephone
direc tory .
8
Some snack- food , aerated water and non-food manufacturers
in Fij i have appoin t ed exclus ive ' manufac turer ' s represent
atives ' to repre sent the ir int eres t s and solicit cus tom in
F ij i . The t rend t oward s exc lusive lo cal dist ributorship s
is s t rongest amon g non-food lines , a t least one of wh ich
has s t arted a sub s idiary to market it s product s .
9
In a survey of retail s t ores in the Cen t ral Divis ion (MayJune 19 7 6 ) storeowne rs n amed 12 7 different companie s as
2 64
supply sources , mo s t of which op erate in the Suva-Nausori
area . Only 3 3 o f these companie s , however , were l i st ed as
s uppliers for five or mo re s t o re s . The 3 3 mos t f requen t ly
named suppliers account ed for 80 per cen t o f the 7 5 5 named
supplier s ( inc luding rep eated supp lier s ) . Morris Heds t rom ,
Burns Philp , a Chinese company in Suva and two Indian com
panies in Naus o r i accounted for 36 p er cen t of named
supp liers ; Morris Heds t rom and Burn s Philp to gether account ed
for 22 per c en t .
lO
The on ly f igures availab le on who lesaling returns are for
Regional Co-op erat ive As s o ci at ions ( Tab le 3 . 2 ) . Trad ing
result s o f c o-operat ive s o ciet ie s are not rep resen t at ive
of o the r who le salers because co-ope ra t ive societie s have
s e rvice rather than profit mo t ives , receive un charged
support services from the Depar tmen t of Co-op erat ives and
a degree of ' cap t ive t rade ' from so ciety memb ers , and o f t en
operate in a non- compet it ive environment . Neverthele s s ,
co-op erat ive who le sale t radin g re sul t s are useful in that
they do sugges t re turn s fo r on e form of wholesal in g : four
o f s ixt een a s s o ciat ion s made net l o s s e s and two broke even ;
the average return o f associat ion s with a net p ro fit was
4 p er cen t o f gro s s sales .
11
Goods handled by co-op erat ive s o c i et ies are b as ic gro cerie s
( canned f ish , s al t , flour , r i ce , sugar , dry b is cuit s , e t c . )
and o ther ' es s en t ial s ' l ike soap , mat che s , cigare t t e s ,
kero sene and confect ionery . A number of association s have
app lied for a li cen c e to sell liquo r . A p roposal to open
FCA branches in Laut oka and Labasa or Savusavu is being
con s idered w ithin the Dep artment of Co-operat ive s .
It is
unclear whether the proposed branche s would op erat e as
independen t imp orters and purchasers o f lo cal supplies or
would be suppli ed, at l east in imported goo ds , from the
Suva head of fice . Informat ion on co-opera t ive wholesale
act ivit ies is from int erviews wit h s taff of the Department
of Co-op erat ives in Suva , FCA and a number of re gional
who le sale associat ions in Vit i Levu , in addit ion to Fij i ,
Cen t ral Plann in g Of fice ( 1 9 7 5 ) and Fij i , Dep artmen t o f Co
op erat ive s ( 1 9 75 ) .
The FCA is only one in a l ine of c entralized impo r t and
wholesale schemes that have b een a s s ociated with the co
operat ive movemen t sin ce it s earl ies t y ears .
In 194 9 , for
in stance , the Fij i Co-op erat ive Purchas ing and Di stribut ion
So cie ty was f o rmed to allow memb ers to buy in b ulk and so
obtain di scount s .
( In 1951 the s o c ie ty was deregis tered
b ecause it was ' unsuited to co-operat ive con t ro l ' .
Department o f Co-operatives , Annua l Report , 1 9 5 1 . )
2 65
12
13
14
Pri cing pract i ce s are reputedly mo s t arb it rary in the
islands beyond the ef fe ct ive control of P IB in s p ectors .
For in s t an ce , in early 19 7 7 the Lakeba Regional Who les ale
Ass o c ia t ion was put t in g a 10 p er cen t markup on all grocery
line s i rrespect ive o f p ermi ss ible price con t ro l markup s .
0ne European-owned imp o rt ing who le saler-retailer who
impo rted all food lines was act ive in Suva in 197 5 - 7 6 .
The busin e s s has s ince b een drast ically curt ailed and today
the firm ' s gro cery t rade ( s t ill all in imported items ) is
primarily retail and i s on ly a small part of it s t o t al
busine s s .
Burn s Philp ( South Sea ) Co . L t d i s a sub s idiary o f Burn s
Philp and Company Lt d o f Sydney who s e op erat ion s are
who lesale merchan t s ; shipp in g , t ravel and general agen t s ;
impo rter s , p lant at ion owners ; t rustee s ; f in ance > s t eel ,
gla s s and l iquor merchant s , mo tor dealers ; ho tel owner s ;
d i s t r ibutors of dr ink dispen ser machin es ; electrical
who lesalers an d manufa cturer s ; min ing inve s to r ; o f f ice
machinery d i s t ribut o r . The company has 1 6 0 sub s idiary
compan ie s , 12 6 o f which are in corpo rat ed in Aus trali a , 1 7
in Papua New Guinea , 7 in Fij i , 5 in the New Heb rides and
the remain in g 5 in the UK , USA, Hong Kong and New Zealand .
In 19 7 6 , t o tal s ale s o f Burn s Philp and Company Ltd and
s ub s idiari e s were $ 3 4 3 million with a gro s s t rading p ro f it
o f $ 15 . 1 m ill ion ( $ 9 . 5 million p o s t - t ax) ; net operat in g
was $ 7 . 5 mil l ion , 7 6 p e r cent o f which came from sub s idiary
companies .
Total a s s e t s were valued at $ 339 mill ion and
ove r 12 , 000 people were employed by the company and s ub
In
s idiaries . Dividend for the y ear was 15 p er cen t .
addit ion t o act iv it ies o f Burn s Philp ( South Sea) , the
Fij i sub s i diaries are involved in s ales and s ervice o f
mot o r vehicles an d o ff i ce equ ipmen t , glas s , wrought iron
and s t eel manufacture , manufac turer s ' repre s en t at ion and
impor t ing s ervice s . Ninety per cent of the 19 7 6 operat in g .
profit o f $ 0 . 9 9 6 million o f the Fij i sub s idiaries came
from Burns Philp ( South Sea) and mot o r vehicle ac t ivit ie s .
Tradin g pro f it o f Burn s Ph ilp ( South Sea) f o r the year
ended 30 June 19 7 6 was $ 1 . 894 mill ion b efore t ax an d
$ 1 . 335 mill ion after t ax ; net operat in g profit was $0 . 5 6 5
mill ion .
Burns Philp ( South S e a ) i s involve d in who lesalin g ,
reta ilin g , motor vehicle d i s t ribut ion , shipping and travel
agencies , manufacturing , agricul t ure , f in ance and inves tmen t
and operat e s through 14 locat ion s , in clud ing 3 in Ton ga ,
2 in Samoa an d 1 in N iue , in addit ion t o tho se in Fij i .
One o f the Fij i out let s , at Ba , ceased op erat ion s early
266
15
in 19 7 7 .
In format ion on performance of sub-company b ranches
or divis ion s is not availab l e .
Over 7 00 people are employed
in the merchand i s in g divis ion in Fij i , which company s ource s
claim did no t make a p ro f it un t i l mid-19 7 6 .
Source : Annual Reports for
( Cur ren cy is $ Aus t ralian .
year ended 30 June 1 9 7 6 of Burn s Philp ( South Sea) Co . L t d ,
and Burns Philp and Company Lt d . )
Mo rris Hed s t rom Lt d is a sub s idiary company o f W . R . Carpen t e r
Holdings Ltd o f Sydney .
The hol ding company h a s 7 2 s ub
s idiaries , 2 7 in corp orated in Aus t ralia , 1 9 in Papua New
Guinea , 16 in Fij i , 4 in the New Hebr ides , 2 in the UK an d
1 each in t h e U S A , the Bahamas , New Zealand and Wes tern
Samoa .
The group ' s t radin g pro f it for the year endin g 30
June 19 7 6 was $10 . 4 million on t rading revenue o f $160
million . Net operat in g profit o f the group was $ 8 . 1 mill ion ,
80 . 2 per cen t of whi ch came from sub s id iary compan ie s ,
1 3 . 6 from W . R. Carpen t er Ho lding s Ltd , and 6 . 2 per cen t
from equit y compan ie s . The F ij i sub s idiarie s had a net
pro f it o f $ 3 . 9 mill ion and tho se in Papua New Guinea , $2 . 6
mill ion ; Aus t ral ian s ub s idiarie s had a ne t lo s s o f $0 . 3
mill ion . The three equity companies o p erat in g in F ij i
( Carlton Brewery ( Fij i ) L t d , Wailekutu Meats L t d , and Fij i
Pain t s Lt d ) had a net pro fit o f $ 2 64 , 000 . Principal
act ivit ies o f Carp ent er sub s id iaries in Fij i are merchandise
wholesal in g an d re t a il in g , aut omot ive an d h eavy earth
moving equipmen t sales and service , ren t al cars , co conut
o il manufact ure , copra produc t ion , s t eel f abr icat ion ,
fo undry ele c t roplat ing , ship and barge con s t ruct ion and
repair , p ro perty developmen t , insurance , elect rical con
t rac t in g , j o inery , upho l s t ery , shipp in g , s t evedorin g ,
brewery , paint manufa cture , but chery and small goods manu
facture . Elsewhere , group activit ie s comprise illuminated
s ign s an d l ight in g , f in an ce and property developmen t ,
in surance , t ext iles , vineyards , inve stmen t , merchandise
inden t in g and conmiodity market in g ( in Aus t ral ia ) ; merchan
dise wholesaling an d retail in g and aut omo t ive retailin g
( in Tonga and Wes t e rn Samoa) ; cocoa , copra , tea and c o f fee
pro duct ion , coconut oil manufact ure , merchandise who le
saling an d retailing , sh ipp ing agenc ies , l iquid gas dis
t r ib ut ion , paint manufact ure an d in surance ( in Papua New
Guinea ) ; and mer chandise inden t ing , connno d it y ma rke t in g
and insurance ( in the UK an d New Heb rides ) .
Mo rris Hedst rom Lt d , the company ' s chief mer chandise
wholesale-ret a il outlet in Fij i , made a net profit of $ 1 . 6
mill ion from 11 outlet s in Fij i ( one o f wh ich has s in ce
closed) and 6 in Wes t ern Samoa and Tonga . Woo lworths L t d
267
16
17
had a declared net pro fi t o f $ 3 8 3 . Half ( $ 2 mill ion ) the
net pro fit of Carpen t er sub s id iar ie s in Fij i came from
Carpen ters Fij i Lt d , a company deal ing in land developin g ,
finan ce act ivit ies and services a t normal connne rcial rates
for o ther Carpen t er sub s idiarie s .
( Currencies is $
Aus t ral ian .
Source : W . R. Carpenter Holdin gs Limit ed ,
Annual Repor t , 19 7 6 . )
The chief relat ed a c t ivit ies o f the proces sors are : p ro
duct ion o f sweet b i s cuit s , co conut o il , edible oils ,
margar ine and fat s ( for in dus trial users ) , soap , detergen t s
and plas t i c product s by Cope Allman ( South Pacific) Ltd ,
one of the two dry b is cuit p ro ducers ; op erat ion of a b ake ry
by the other b is cuit manufacturer (Lee ' s Trading Co . ) ;
product ion o f animal fee d by Vis ama Rice Mill Lt d ; Punj a
and Son s in Laut oka p acks t ea and o il and mil ls rice in
addition t o bein g involved in general re tailin g and who le
s alin g , s o ap man ufacture , hot e l ownership , t ran sport and
o ther ac t ivitie s .
.
F S C sell s s ugar ( an d r i ce f rom the governmen t-owned Rewa
Rice Limit ed mill ) o n credit t o cane farmers b y deliver in g
orders to produc ers a t sugar s e c t o r o f f ic e s but otherwise
p lays no act ive part in the int e rn al dis t ribut ion o f sugar .
The co s t o f s ugar , rice an d company-supplied farm input s
are deduct ed from the farmer ' s next cane crushin g income .
18
19
Altho ugh F S C apparent ly advis e s wholesalers that s ack
con t en t s are app roximately 2 2 4 lb , s acks are not weighed
Some
or repacked by wholesalers b efo re sale t o ret ailers .
retailers are under the impress ion that each s ack is 2 2 4
lb net .
In fact , net weight is o c cas ionally 1 0-12 lb under
22 4 lb .
Fo r the 1 9 7 7 s eason , sugar at Penang mill was t o
be sold in sacks marked 5 0 k g n e t weight .
Irregular s ack
weight s have b een a t t r ibut ed to inadequate we ighing f aci
lities .
In s t all at ion o f more effic ien t s cales at Penang
S imilar s cales
has made accurat e sack weight po ss ible .
will be in s t alled in other mills in 19 7 8- 7 9 .
r t is claimed that the mill ' s produ c t s in fact are con s ider
ably more exp ens ive than imported product s . Early in 1 9 7 7
when the mill ceased ope rat ion s for a short p eriod to
undertake exp ansion , s ome wholesalers and bakers were
gran ted lic ences to import flo ur from Aus t ralia . These
importers we re landin g bake r ' s flour in Fij i at $2 6 4 a
tonne ( cif ) , when the mos t recen t FMF ex-mill p rice was
$ 33 0 .
In May 1 9 7 7 , the ex-mill p rice o f flour was dropped
to $ 2 4 3 aft er the company announ ced a sub s t an t ial 1 9 7 6
op erat in g profit an d then withdrew it s account s . The
268
20
governmen t appo inted an independent au ditor t o p repare a
set of accoun t s and conrrn en ced enquir ies in to the company ' s
ac t ivit ie s .
.
n ai· 1y mi" 11 capacity
o f 158 tonn es was to b e in
. crease d to
220 tonnes by Apr il 19 7 7 . Prior to expans ion , the mill
was able to meet local demand . Approximate p re-expan s ion
mon thly p roduc t ion was : sharp s , 1 6 5 0 tonnes ; baker ' s flour ,
600 ) o rdinary flour , 600 , b ran , 400 ( in clud ing 350 for
export ) ; pollard , 300 ; and about 130 tonnes of s emo l ina ,
brown at t a , wholemeal fl9ur and whea t germ.
21
The compe t ito r , Lee ' s Trading Co . , actually ceased produc t ion
in May 1 9 7 7 over a d i spute concernin g the recogn i t ion o f
an emp loyee ' s un ion .
I t i s unknown when t h e company will
resume b i s cui t p roduc tion .
22
The dairy ' s ' long-life ' milk is marke ted by con trac ted
supp l iers who use trucks and o ther equipmen t suppl ied and
main tained by Rewa Dairy . Butter sales are largely ex
fac tory , a 5 p er cen t price dis count app ly ing on purchases
over 2 4 00 lb , the min imum purchase un it being one 6 0 lb
case .
23
cap . 154 ( Licences ) , S . 1 7 , The Laws of Fiji ( r ev . ed . ) ,
1945 .
24
The Nausori (Hawker s ) By-Laws , 1 9 7 3 , are typ ical o f hawker
legislat ion in their defin it ion o f hawker ( ' a p erson who
sells goods from a handcar t , box , b asket , tray and the
l ike , or from a boat , horsedrawn vehicle , b icycle , mo tor
vehicle or any o ther type o f conveyance ; but does n o t
inc lude the ho lder o f any l icen ce under the Licence Ordi
nance o r any employee o f such holder s elling or s upplyin g
goods in respect of which such l ic ence is held ' ) and
de limitat ion of goods that can be s old :
' (a ) Any food or drink other than l iquor ; (b ) c igarettes ,
c igars , tobacco and mat che s ; ( c ) curios and handicraf t s ,
in c ludin g mat s , baske t s , fan s , art icles made of s t raw and
gras s skirt s ; ( d ) plan t s , f en1 s and cut f lowers ; ( e )
j ewelle ry , ornamen t s an d souven irs ; ( f ) l ive poultry and
eggs , ( g ) ( i ) b ooks , ( i i ) filigree j ewellery , imitat ion
j ewe llery and lad ies even ing b ag s , ( i i i ) dolls dres sed in
trad it ional Fij ian costumes or portraying Fij ian police
of ficers ; ( iv) po s t cards ; (v) fruit and vegetabl es ; (vi )
s carves , cushion covers , beaded p urs e s , men ' s belt s , with
the word " F ij i" thereon the outs ide thereof ; (h) ware s o f
o the r P a c i f i c is lands o rigin , b u t not in cluding any p roduce ;
article or thing made , manufac tured , prepared in , or
269
25
originat in g from any terri tory outs ide Fij i , wi th the
excep t ion of the ar t icles specified in paragraph ( g ) o f
th is defin it ion . '
Outs ide gaz e t t ed town and c ity boundaries , hawkers are
licen sed under the Bus iness Li cen ce Ac t , 1 9 7 6 , for $5 p . a .
Elsewhere , the annual li cence c o s t s up to $15 (as it does
in Nausori ) .
About 2 3 per cent o f shop s in Suva s ell s ome groceries .
In Nausori t own , 6 8 retail licences were is sued in 1 97 6 ,
21 for shop s dealing in foo ds tuf f s . Ten of the n ineteen
retail-who lesal e l i cences issued in Nausori were he ld by
merchan t s sellin g foods tuffs .
In Navua , one-half o f the
31 retail licen ces and b o th the retail-wholesale licen ces
were for grocery shop s . All bu t one o f the twelve retail
licence holders in Korovou s old s ome grocer ie s .
26
Memb ership of co-operative so c ie t ie s ( espec ially consumer
and market ing societie s ) is predominan tly Fij ian .
In the
Cen t ral Divis ion , one rural consumer co-op erat ive with an
exclus ive Indian memb ership was located . The racial com
p o s it ion o f memb er ship of urban so c ie t ies is more diverse
than that o f rural s oc i et ies , but Ind ian , Chinese and
European p ar t icipat ion is slight .
27
Es t imates o f s hare of re t ail trade were der ived from a
number of sources for each ' s tore-type ' (primarily the
s t udies and data reported in Tab le s 3 . 2 4 , 3 . 2 5 ) and then
extrapolated to the t o tal number of s t ores ( Tab les 3 . 4 ,
3. 5) .
28
The retail s tore survey sought basic informat ion about the
locat ion , nature and fun c t ion of retail food s tores in the
Central Divis ion with the general hyp o thesis in mind that :
' Variat ion in food re t a il ing through stores in the Central
Divis i on is in part related to s t o re ownership features ,
part icularly the race o f proprietors, form o f bus in e s s
op erat ion and ac ces s to supp ly s ources . '
The survey was conduc ted with a que s t ionnaire that covered
s tore lo cation , ownership , workforce , s i z e and nature of
s to ck , and s ources of supp ly . Quest ion s on turnover and
pro f it rat es were not inc luded as it was felt b e t t er indi
cat ion s o f these could be ind irectly gained . Also , i t was
p lanned that a later s tudy of a small numb er of selected
s tores ( c f . Table 3 . 2 4 ) would inve s t igat e the top ic more
adequately than would be pos s ible in the survey . The
que s t ionnaire con si s t ed o f two par t s . The first deal t
with s tore es tab lishmen t , owne rsh ip , lo cat ion , and phy s ical
form and gen eral s t o ck comp o s it ion and s upp ly , as well as
2 70
29
personal in forma tion on the own er . The second was a
det ailed inven tory o f all foods tuffs on disp lay and in
s t orage .
S tore s with re tail-who lesale licences were
excluded from the s amp le in Suva city , but elsewhere were
inc luded . Two two-pe rson in terview teams vis it ed selec t e d
s tore s in May an d early J un e 1 9 7 6 . The interviews were
held with shop own er-op erators (or man agers wh ere app ro
priat e , a s in co-op erat ive soc iety s t ore s ) . I f the own er
was not available or the s tore closed , an e f fo r t was made
to return later : apart from s tores that were n o t readi ly
acces s ible , shops where there was no ini t ial contact with
the owner were vis i t ed twice .
If the in t erview could no t
be conduct ed on the second vi s it , a nearby s tore was sub
s t ituted . A p rel iminary report o f the survey resul t s is ,
Michae l Baxt er , ' A s urvey of retail food s tores in the
Cen tral Divis ion , Fij i ' , CASD , USP , November 1 9 7 6 . Unless
o therwise no ted , all data on Cen tral Divis ion retail gro cery
s tores are derived from the survey .
30
. g
. terviews
As i. d e f rom in
.
. h s tore owners ( wh o s e recoun t in
wit
of long-previous bus iness ac t ivit ies is no t always ac curat e ) ,
a useful source on s t ore hist ory is the bus in e s s l icence
regis t ers . However , each regi s t er covers about t en y ears
and completed regi s ters are soon dis carded . At presen t ,
few regi s ters coverin g the period before the mid-1 9 60 s are
availab l e .
Local gove rnment bodies have j urisdict ion over hours o f
bus in e s s act ivity . The Suva Shops Clo s in g Order ( 8 July
1 9 6 6 ) , for ins t an ce , e s t ablishes maximum hours of shop
operation wi thin Suva as 6am t o 6pm, excep t lpm clo sure on
a weekly hal f-ho l iday and 9 pm closu re on Friday . Exemp tion
Orde rs excus e gro ce ry and s ome o ther sho p s f rom compliance
with the regulat ion s .
31
For the purpo se o f the retail s t ore s urvey , con fe c t ionery ,
i ce-cream and s o f t drinks were no t regarded as foo d s t uf f s .
It is l ikely tha t the 2 2 shop s enumerated as s e ll ing ' on ly
foodstuff s ' als o sold s ome of th ese i t ems .
32
A ' food typ e ' is a generic food group ing without reference
to variety , s uch as ' canned meat ' , ' cann ed f i sh ' , ' t ea '
and ' s auc e ' . A ' food i t em ' is th e connnon s e l l ing un i t o f
a food (a can of mackerel , e t c . ) . Produc t s s tores in bulk
and broken in to smaller unit s for sale are convert ed t o
the numb er o f comp o s i t e connnon selling un i t s to determine
the number o f food i t ems .
For in s t an ce , s in ce rice i s
usually purchased b y the pound , a 1 0 0 lb sack o f r ice is
1 00 ' food i t ems ' . Dry goods p re-packed in un i t s l arger
2 71
than on e pound - a prac tice connnon on ly in supermarke t s were converted to on e poun d un i t s for enumerat ion as ' food
i t ems ' .
33
' Local foo ds ' are t aken as fro z en chicken , bot tled milk ,
but ter , ghee in 2 6 o z or smaller containers , canned tuna ,
local f ish , dry bis cuit s , sugar , b read , co conut s , yaqona
and a range of local frui t s and vegetab les l ike bananas
and e ggp lan t .
Some of the s e foods are occas ionally
imported , e . g . butt er , eggs and lar ger containers of ghee ,
and others are manufac t ured lo cally from impor ted ingredi
ent s ( d ry b is cuit s and b read) .
' Basic foo d s ' are beef , mut t on , mackerel , milk , drippin g ,
edible o i l , ghee , flour , sharp s , dry b iscui t s , sal t ,
sugar , tea , po t at oes , on ion s an d garlic .
Some other foods
that are b asic to diet ( such as dalo ) , are in s ignifican t
in s tore t ran s ac t ion s .
34
Facto r s other than d is tance f rom Suva and acce s s ib ility
affect the s iz e and compo s it ion o f grocery s to cks ( e . g .
dis t ance from ac t ual s upply cen tre , rural /urban locat ion ,
and clien t ele ) , these have n o t b een analysed .
35
of the surveyed privat e s tore s , 5 4 . 6 p er cen t were owned
by Indian s , 2 4 . 2 per cen t by Fij ian s , 20 per cent · by Chinese
and 1 . 2 per c en t by part-Europeans . The 14 club s t o re s
and 6 8 co-operat ive s oc iety s tores a r e regarded as Fij ian .
Ownership of the 4 companies was d ivided equally be tween
Chinese and Indian f irms .
36
In the retail s t ore s urve y , p ersonal dat a of s toreowne rs
were collec ted only for ind ivi dual owners o f private s t o re s
or , where appl icable , the domin an t member of a par tnership .
Valid res p on ses were ob tained from all but 3 of 2 6 3 surveyed
p rivate s t o res . Occas ionally a s tore is li cen sed under
one name but is ope rat ed by ano th er p erson ( usually a
member of the l icence-holder ' s family ) . In the survey ,
p ersonal data were col lected for the l i cen sed owner unles s
it was clear that it was a n omin al p roprieto rship .
37
urb an b ias in s ample sele c t ion , racial
represen tat ion among the surveyed s t o res i s sl ightly more
In the Cent ral
Indian and Chinese than for all food shop s .
D ivis ion , survey and t ot al repre sen t at ion by race is :
Fij ian 41 . 2 p er cen t o f s t ores s urveyed , 4 8 . 7 per cent o f
all s t ores in Cen tral Division ; Indian 42 and 3 3 . 4 p er
cen t ; Chin e s e 15 . 1 an d 12 . 4 per c en t .
38
Patron age o f the supermarke t s and shop p ing cen t res was
inve s t igated in Jtme 1 97 6 . In the three shopp in g c en t res ,
Be caus e o f a s l ight
272
844 cus tomers we re in terviewed over s ix con se cut ive day s .
In terviewers worked in teams that sy s t emat ically covered
all t radin g p eriods ( from b e fore 7 am unt il 6 . 3 0 o r 7pm) ,
Monday to Sa t urday midday . At the supermarke t s , 82 4 int er
views were c onducted durin g con s ecut ive periods (mo rn in g ,
midday , af t e rnoon , mo rn ing) from Wedn e s day t o Saturday in
Informat ion reco rded at b o th s upermarket s and
on e week .
shop p in g centres in cluded the cus t omer ' s re sidence locat ion ,
race , p o s it ion in hous ehold , employmen t o f hous eho ld head ,
an d a l i st o f purchased items , p rice paid and method of
payment . A p reliminary report o f f indin gs o f the super
market survey is Mi chael Baxter , ' Pat ronage of supermarket s
in Suva : repor t of a survey con ducted in June 19 7 6 ' ,
( CASD , USP , February 19 7 7 ) . Dat a from the shopp in g cen t re s
s tudies have been pro c e s s ed b u t not writ t en u p apart from
the bas ic data in Table 3 . 2 3 . Unless noted , informa tion
on superma rke t an d s tore cus t om is f rom the pat ron age
s urvey s .
39
Me at p ro du c t ion
. g were n ot examlll
. ed
, import
lll
.
.
. g an d mark et in
in detail .
Informat ion here is f rom general ob servat ion
and enqui ries made with t rade and governmen t s ources .
Butchers in Fij i deal in lo cal pork , goat and fish a s wel l
as imported fro z en ( an d l e s s commonly , chilled) b ee f , mut t on ,
lamb , goat ar1d fish . Aside from the exp at riate super
marke t s , but chers are the only ret ail outle t s for n onfroz en meat . At least two but cher chains who lesale meat
t o re t ail s t o res . The bulk of poul t ry supplies are in the
hands of lo cal producers who p ro ces s and freez e b irds prior
to s ale to re tailers .
One o f th e but chers , Wailekutu Mea t s
L t d i n Suva , is 5 0 p e r cen t owned by W . R . Carpen t e r
Holdings Ltd . I t is expected that the meat supply of
Woo lwo r th s and Morris Hedst rom at least in the Cen t ral
Divis ion , wi ll be met by Wailekutu Mea t s .
40
. .
. g
concernin
. f o rmat ion
.
an d o t h er in
Data on s a 1 e s act ivity
the shop des crib ed here , an d others that follow , come from
two sources .
The mo re impor tan t is a s tudy of the sales
a c t ivity o f twelve shop s in the greater Suva-Nausori area
conducted in early Dec emb er 1 9 7 6 . Over s ix con secut ive
days all t ran s act ion s were mon it ored for b etween 60 and
80 p er cen t of th e t ime the shops op erated , the periods
being selec t ed so that all phases o f daily ac t ivit ies were
systemat ically covered .
In each t ran sact ion the item pur
chased , amo un t paid , form of p ayment an d the gen eral
res iden t ial locat ion of the cust omer (neighbourhood ,
connnun ity or p as s in g regional t rade) were noted . With such
coverage , s t atemen t s about the n ature and volume of t r ade
2 73
ove r the week could be made as could proj ection s o f trade
to annual rate s . The p o s s ible un iquenes s of the mon itored
week should be kep t in min d . The s ec on d source of data is
a series of int ervi ews with the owners of the twelve st ores .
In terviews fo cus ed on t he mo t ivat ion and sources of cap i tal
for s t o re e s t ab l ishmen t , sub sequent op erat ion s and the
en trepren eurial ac t iv i t ies of the storeowner . In format ion
that might enab le iden t ifica t ion of s to reowners has b een
omi t t ed ( al though mo s t s aid they would not obj ect to being
iden t ified ) : names are f i c t it ious . Trade characteris tics
o f the twelve mon itored sho p s are sunnnar i z ed in Table 3 . 2 4 .
41
Krishna in i t ially in tend ed to keep his j ob an d have his
It b ecame
wife look af ter the s hop while he was working .
apparent , however , that his wife could not manage the shop
( she was ' too shy ' ) , and so he re s i gned .
42
0ne reason Krishna s tarted his shop in the face o f e s t ab
lished oppo s it ion was that some cust omers , in cludin g his
own family , had found the o ther shopkeeper ' a difficul t
man ' . Krishna thought he could cater to the rej ected and
disp irited cus tomers . The o ther shopowner t ried to t alk
Krishna out of s t ar t in g a shop , and later accused him o f
' s teal in g cus t omer s ' .
Some p eople buy a t both shops but
cus tomer alle gian ce became fairly well defined within a
year or so af t er the open in g o f Krishna ' s store and has
not changed greatly s in c e .
43
so c iet ie s were con si dered act ive if recen t ( 19 7 3- 7 6 )
audited accoun t s records are main tained b y the audit
sect ion o f the Department o f Co-op eratives in Suva . In
addit ion t o consumer and con sumer-market in g societ ies , in
19 7 4 there were 14 7 thrift and credit , 5 market ing and 45
' o the r ' (mainly land an d hous in g) so cie t ie s ; there were
als o 93 ' unregis tered ' ( ' p robationary ' ? ) societies .
44
Tradin g f igures are for all trading o f s o c ie t ies ( i . e . for
s tore and market in g activity ) . The proport ion o f societies
with stores that are consumer soc iet ies ranges from about
4 per c en t in the No rthern an d Eastern Divis ion s to 7 6
and 9 8 p e r cent in the Wes t e rn and Cen tral Divis ion s .
The 1 9 7 3- 7 6 accoun t s period s aw good prices for copra , the
main item market ed by the Eastern an d Nor thern consumer
market in g s o c ie t ie s , thus their tradin g volume and profit /
loss rat es are probab ly b et t er than usual .
45
. 1 s ource o f
. ters are a poten t ia
B us in e s s l icence
reg is
"
in format ion on per iod o f s tore op eration as licen ce fees
are paid quarterly . However , registers more than about
t en y ears old were not located . One indication of the
·
274
per s is t ence o f s t ores come s f rom the Cen tral Divis ion ret ail
s t ore s urvey . The average operat ion p eriod of all s t o re s
is j us t o ve r 12 years .
Surveyed co-operat ive s o c iet ie s
s tores had b een in exi s t ence an average of 8 . 3 year s an d
F ij i an s t o re s , 5 . 1 years .
Re f e rences
( e d . ) , 1860 .
A Cruise in t h e Pacific, from t h e Log of a Nava l
Office r ( 2 vo l s ) , London , Hur s t and B lacke t t .
Aylme r , F .
Be lshaw , C . S . , 1 9 5 7 .
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the Economic and Social We lfare
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Ke gan Paul .
B i ggs , H . C . , n . d .
Report on the Marke ting of Agricul tural Produce in
Fiji , London , Min i s t ry of Ove rseas Developmen t .
Bl ackie , W . J . , 1 9 4 9 .
' Agri cul t ural research and policy in Fij i ' , Fiji
Agricu l tura l Journa l , 2 0 ( 4 ) : 9 8-12 0 .
Brews t e r , A. B . , 1 9 3 7 .
King of the Cannib a l Is le s .
A Ta le of Early Life
and Adven ture in the Fiji Is lands , London , Rob e r t Hale .
Brookfield , H . C . and Har t , D . , 1 9 7 1 .
Me lane sia .
A Geographica l In ter
pre tation of an Is land Wor l d , London , Methuen .
' Report of the commis s ion
Burns , A. , Wat s on , T . Y . and Peacock , A. T . , 1 9 6 0 .
of in quiry in t o t h e n atural resources an d populat ion t ren ds of the
Colony o f Fij i ' , Legis l a t ive Council o f Fij i , Counci l Paper 1 , 1 9 6 0 .
Calver t , J . , 1 8 7 0 .
the Canniba ls
Fiji and th e Fijians; and Mis s ionary Labours among
( 3 rd ed . ) , London , Hodder and S t o ughton .
Casley , D. J . L . , 1 9 6 9 . ' Report on the cen sus of agri cult ure 1 9 6 8 ' .
lat ive Co uncil o f Fij i , Counci l Pape r 2 8 , 1 9 6 9 .
Co oper , H . S . , 1 8 80 .
Cora l Lands
Le gis
(2 vol s ) , London , Richard Ben t ley .
Coupe r , A. D . , 1 9 6 7 .
The i s land t rade :
an analysis of the envi ronmen t
and operat ion of seaborne t rade amon g t hree island groups in the
Pac i f i c .
Ph . D . thes is, Aus tral ian Nat ional Univer s i ty , Canberra .
Fij i , 1 9 6 7 .
The Laws of Fiji
Prin ter .
( rev . ed . , 10 vol s ) , Suva , Government
' A prel iminary re port on the 1 9 6 8
Fij i , Bureau o f S t at i s t i cs , 1 9 6 8 .
urban hou s ehold income and expendi ture survey i n Fij i ' , Suva ,
Bureau of S t at is t ics .
' A repo r t on the urban household income and expenditure survey
1972 .
in Fij i 1 9 7 2 ' , S uva , Bureau of S t at i s t i cs .
' Fij i household income and expen di t ure survey 1 9 7 3 ' , Suva ,
19 74 .
Bureau o f S t at i s t ics .
197 6 .
Curre nt Economic Statis ti cs , Octob e r 1 9 7 6 ,
275
Suva .
276
Fij i , Cen t ral Plann ing Of f i ce , 1 9 7 5 .
Fiji 's Se ven th Deve lopmen t Plan
1 9 76- 1 9 8 0 , S uva , Cent ral Plann in g O f f ice .
' Po l icy and deve lopmen t p l an
Fij i , De partment o f Co-operat ive s , 1 9 7 5 .
f o r co-opera t ive s 1 9 7 6 - 1 9 8 0 ' , S uva , Department o f Co-op erat ive s .
Fij i Deve lopment Bank , 19 7 6 .
19 7 6 ' .
' Annual report for y ea r ended 30 th June
' Info rmation re gar din g comme rcial and indust rial loan s t o
n . d.
Fij ians ' .
Fij i , Parl iamen t o f ( annual ) .
' The Trade Rep o rt ' .
Par liamentary Paper .
Fij i , Prices and Incomes Board , 1 9 7 5 .
Fighting Inflation in Fiji .
An
Account of the Work of the Prices and Incomes Board During Year
ended 3 0th June 1 9 74 , Suva , Government P r int e r .
n. d.
InfW. tion in Fiji .
A Further Account o f the Work o f the
Prices and Incomes Board, Suva , Prices and Incomes Board .
' Economi c change and diet ary con s equences among
Finney , B . R . , 1 9 6 5 .
the Tahit ians ' , Microne s ica , 2 : 1-14 .
Gee rtz , C . , 1 9 6 3 .
Peddlers and Prince s :
Social Change and Economic
Modernisa tion in 'I'wo Indon esian Towns , Ch icago .
Harvey , C . , 1 9 4 3 .
' A further note on the Nausori Fij ian co-ope rat ive
market ' , Fijian Agricu ltural Journa l , 14 ( 2 ) : 36 .
In t e rn at ional L ab o ur Organ isat ion ( ILO) , 1 9 7 2 .
Employment, Incomes and
Equa lity :
a Strategy for Increasing Productive Employment in Kenya ,
Geneva , ILO .
Kamekamica , J . N . , 1 9 6 6 .
· Market ing o f Fij i ' s agri cultural p roduc t s ,
M . Comm. the s i s , University o f Melb ourne .
' In praise o f t radit ion :
McGee , T . G . , 19 7 3 .
t owards a geo graphy o f
an t i-deve lopment ' .
P ap e r delivered at the 4 5 th ANZAAS Con gre s s ,
Perth.
' The p er s i s t ence of t he prot o-prol etariat :
19 7 5 .
o ccup a t ional
s t ruc t ures an d p lann in g for the fut ure of t h ird wo rld c i t i e s ' .
Seminar paper , Department o f Human Geography , Research S chool o f
P ac i f i c S t udie s , the Aus t r al i an Nat ional Un ive r s it y , C anb erra .
Mo s s , F . J . , 1 8 7 0 .
A Plante r 's Experience in Fiji .
Being a Concis e
Account o f the Coun try, i t s Pre s ent Condition and i ts Prospects a s
a Fie ld for Emigration , Auckland , Jon e s an d Tomb s .
Moye r , R. , 1965 .
' Marke t ing in economic developmen t ' , Occasiona l Papeps
in In ternationa l Busines s , l , Graduat e S chool o f Bus in e s s Adminis
t ra t ion , Mi ch i gan S t ate University , East Lan s in g .
and Hollande r , s . c . (ed s ) , 19 6 8 .
Markets and Marketing in De ve loping
Homewood , I ll in o is , Richard D. Ir,win .
Economies .
277
P a t t e r s on , D . D . an d Do dds , K . S . , 1 9 4 5 .
' Re c ommendat ion s for the re o r gan
isat ion and e f fe c t ive ope rat ion of the Departmen t of Agr i cult ure ,
Fij i ' , Legis l at ive Coun cil of Fij i , Counc i l Paper 2 9 , 1 9 4 5 .
Pe chy , W . C . , 1 8 7 0 .
Fij i Cotton Cu l ture and Planters ' Guide to the
Is lands , London , Jarrold and S on s .
' Spat ial o rganisat ion in the Th ird Wo rld :
San t o s , M. , 19 7 3 .
the two
urban fie l ds ' .
Seminar p ap e r , Departmen t o f Geo graphy , Unive r s i t y
o f To ron to .
Shephard , C . Y . , 1944 .
' Repo rt on agri cul t ure pol icy f o r Fij i and the
We s t e rn P a c i f i c High Commi s s ion t e r r i t o r i e s ' , L e g i s l at ive Coun c il
of Fij i , Coun ci l Paper 2 4 , 1 9 4 4 .
' The Fij ian people :
Spate , O . H . K . , 1 9 5 9 .
economi c p rob lems and p r o s p ec t s ' ,
Le gis lat ive Coun c i l o f Fij i , Counci l Paper 1 3 , 1 9 5 9 .
S t o ckdale ,
F. ,
1938 .
' Report . . . to the S e c re t ary o f S t ate for the
Colonies on his visit t o Fij i in 1 9 3 8 ' , London , Colonial Office .
' A n o t e on Lawaqa market ' , Fiji Agricu l tural
Surridge , H . R. , 1 9 4 0 .
Journal , 1 1 ( 2 ) : 32 .
Thoms on , B . , 1 8 9 6 .
Fiji for Touris ts , London , The Canadian -Au s t ral ian
Royal Mail S t e amship Line .
Thur s t on , J . B . , n . d .
Fiji,
The Navigat i on and Trade 1 8 74 - 5 .
Ward , M. , 1 9 7 0 .
The Nationa l Income and Balance of Paymen t Acco un ts of
Fij i , Suva , Bureau o f Stat i s t i c s .
' Fij ian s and c ivil i z at ion ' , The Victorian Re view ,
Webb , A. J . , 1 8 84 .
July 1884 : 2 4 7- 5 5 .
2 79
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D i stri bu ted by A N U Press
M i chael Baxter h as researched and worked on a variety of
Au stral i a
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I S B N 0 909 1 50 0 3 6
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i ssues i n r u ral sma l l p rod ucer devel opment, partic u l a r l y J n
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Fiji on com pl et i o n of the study reported h e re, he h as bee n
empl oyed by the Worl d B a n k i n Wash i ngto n ,
works on ru ral devel opment top ics.

Food in Fiji: the produce and processed foods

Transcription

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