End of Fruit Ban Brings Relief, Much Confusion

Food suppliers and supermarket chains on Friday lauded the repeal of the government’s weeklong ban on Chilean fruits, but there was also some anger triggered by orders forcing companies to get rid of the grapes and other fruit they have on hand.

Meanwhile, many supermarkets had already begun destroying fruit. Officials said they were concerned how shoppers will react when newly inspected shipments of fruit from Chile begin arriving in stores next week.

“I think one of the major considerations is how badly damaged is the customers’ confidence in Chilean fruit,” said Jack H. Brown, chairman of the Stater Bros. supermarket chain.

The reaction of grocery shoppers in a half dozen supermarkets ranged from cautions about buying fruit to skepticism that a government ban was necessary in the first place.

A new opinion poll indicates that Americans supported the government’s action, but some consumers said Friday that they are not sure how their buying habits will change.

Rebecca Han, who was shopping in a Ralphs store in South Pasadena with her two young children, says she does not plan to buy Chilean products “at the moment. I have other alternatives,” she said. “I can buy bananas.”

In a Temple City supermarket, Jim Halladay, 41, said: “I wouldn’t hesitate buying them down the road. I don’t think it’s as big a problem as it’s made out to be.”

Shortly after the end of the 5-day-old ban was announced, importers, wholesalers and stores were busy trying to find details of new Food and Drug Administration guidelines.

Under FDA guidelines, Chilean fruit already at U.S. docks or in transit will be given increased visual inspection, with laboratory testing of all suspicious-looking fruit before it is released for sale.

However, the FDA says Chilean fruit that has been unloaded at U.S. ports and transported to wholesalers and retailers must be destroyed or exported to other nations that will receive the shipment.

“We’re thankful that finally the FDA has decided to release the hostages,” said Darrel Fulmer, vice president of marketing at Pandol Bros., a Delano, Calif., fruit importer. “But we’re disappointed,” he said referring to rules forcing the disposal of Chilean products.

Fulmer said the company will dump its Chilean fruits that have left port facilities instead of shipping them out of the United States, which would be an expensive and complicated process.

Industry Confused

“I think that’s a severe overreaction,” said Douglas LaLonde, a produce wholesaler who owns Valley Fruit & Produce in Los Angeles. “It’s going to be very costly. There are transportation and manpower costs and dumping charges.”

Food officials were also confused about the FDA regulations.

Andrew McDougall, vice president of Merit Steamship Co. in Long Beach, was waiting for more details before unloading 5,000 tons of Chilean fruit from a ship docked in Long Beach. “She’s been sitting there since Wednesday,” said McDougall of the cargo ship Canadian Reefer. “We might work on through the weekend unloading.”

Jeff Wait, plant manager at Pacific Cold Storage in the City of Industry, is holding millions of pounds of fruit for importers. “We’re just as confused as anyone. There is fruit that has to be dumped. As to where, how much, how much it will cost, we’re in the process of finding that out.”

Some retailers were waiting for more details. “We’re pretty much in a holding pattern right now,” said Kerry Hodges, vice president of produce at Ralphs. “We have signs that say Chilean fruit has been removed. It’s going to be the first of the week before we have new fruit.”

Local FDA officials were themselves looking for answers. “No one is quite sure how they are going to implement the program yet,” said Gordon Scott, an FDA spokesman in Los Angeles. “It’s a new thing for us.”

But many stores did not wait for the FDA. Alpha Beta employees threw grapes from opened containers down store garbage disposals. Vons and Stater Bros. supermarkets returned unopened cases of Chilean produce to suppliers and sent the rest to be buried in undisclosed landfills.

Low-Key Approach

Local landfills were receiving some inquiries Friday. “There have been a lot of people calling and asking to bring apples and grapes,” said Omar Rodriquez, who operates the scales at BKK landfill in West Covina, which is not allowed to take fruits and vegetables. “We tell them, we don’t take them.”

The food stores have been low-key about the disposal process, fearing they will be criticized for dumping food and having people dig up the grapes at the waste sites. “A lot of food has to be destroyed,” said one supermarket official. “They have to be as quiet as possible.”

Vons decided to destroy and return its grapes before the FDA announcement because the fruit would have been too ripe, according to Vons spokeswoman Vickie Sanders. “We have made a decision that we will not buy anymore Chilean fruit until we will get fresh supplies that have undergone FDA tests and Vons testing,” she said. “You will see some bare spaces” in the stores.

The food industry is now nervously eyeing consumer reaction to Chilean fruits, which will be available for about another month. “Everything is now dependent on how quickly the consumer accepts the fruit,” said LaLonde. “They need to be convinced that there is no danger whatsoever. I do believe the consumer will return.”

“We hope the public will support us like anybody would support a victim of a terrorist act,” said Fulmer at Pandol Bros.

Others were not as optimistic. “The consumer might say to heck with it and wait for the California grapes to come on the shelves,” said McDougall at Merit.

Some Still Nervous

At Bristol Farms, an upscale market in the South Pasadena area, Florence Sanders said: “I’m not going to buy any at the present time. I think it was kind of silly for two little grapes to cause this. But, who knows?”

A San Marino mother of six, who declined to give her name, admitted that she felt “a little nervous” about the furor over Chilean products. “I think it makes you wonder exactly what it is you’re feeding your kids,” she said. “I think I might wait.”

In Alhambra, postal carrier Bill Washburn, 53, said he thought that too much was made of the fruit scare. “I think they went a little overboard,” Washburn said. “I think the Chilean fruit is OK. I just think someone wanted to create a scare.”

It was unclear how much the ban and subsequent destruction of Chilean grapes and other fruit will end up costing.

“The economic impact will range from retailer to the wholesale to importer and then on back to the Chilean producers,” said Jan DeLyser, executive vice president of the Fresh Produce Council in Los Angeles.

The burden and cost of getting rid of the fruit apparently rests with the importers. “It’s up to the importer of record,” explained Curtis W. Keyes, president of Marine Management Insurance Brokers Inc. in Newport Beach. “Everything bounces back to the importer of record. He must promptly destroy or re-export the product.”

Times staff writer John Kendall also contributed to this story.

Main story, Part I, Page 1