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Imperial Direct

In 1878 the surplus of bananas in the Canaries was such that they were used as animal
fodder. Thomas Fyffe was a coaling agent at Las Palmas and realised that ships calling there for
coal on their homeward journey often were empty and needed a return cargo. Experimentally he
began to ship green bananas. Fyffe, Hudson was not the only importer; Elder Dempster, the huge
African shipping company was their principal competitor. In 1898 Alfred Jones its principal
shareholder was persuaded by the Colonial Secretary Joseph Chamberlain that America in the form
of U.F.C. was gaining far too much influence in one of Britain’s major colonies. He sent Arthur
Stockley to Jamaica to see what could be done there. His report was not very optimistic, one of the
major problems being the 3,000 mile transit to the U.K. and how to keep the bananas from ripening
too quickly. Jones withdrew. A year later faced with the bankruptcy of the alternative investors that
Chamberlain had found he turned again to Jones. With the promise of a knighthood and a 10 year
contract worth £40,000 in the first year and £30,000 p.a. thereafter Jones accepted and formed the
Imperial West Indies Direct Line to Jamaica. Part of the deal was that Imperial Direct should
replace Royal Mail Steam Packet with the mail contract. There was strong objection from the West
Indian Colonies but it didn’t make any difference.
The two ships on the stocks ordered by the previous failed company were purchased and
named PORT MARIA & PORT MORANT, and shortly after they were joined by the PORT
ANTONIO and PORT ROYAL. A fifth vessel, PORT HENDERSON, was added in 1905, all of
them running to Avonmouth. However their forced air cooling systems were not adequate and
bananas too often arrived as mush or excessively chilled. In addition the trucks supplied by the
railways were totally unsuitable, and the prejudice of the British wholesale fruit market against
bananas proved very difficult to overcome. Nevertheless Imperial Direct ordered the PORT
KINGSTON, the most dramatically different steamer in the trade, to fulfil the contract obligations
concerned with the carriage of passengers to the West Indies. She was 7,500 gross tons, could do 15
knots carrying 50,000 stems of bananas together with 220 passengers in two classes. Between them
these vessels provided a fortnightly service to Kingston, with some additional banana business
elsewhere in the West Indies.
The terms of the contract were that Imperial Direct should carry the bananas at its own risk
and be responsible for their distribution. In 1902 this responsibility was shifted to the Fyffe business
and Elders and Fyffes was formed to alternate with Imperial Direct to provide a weekly service.
U.F.C took over Elders & Fyffes in 1907 and Imperial Direct ceased trading in 1911, having lost
£400,000 during the ten years of its operation, despite the subsidy.

THE IM PERIAL DIRECT W EST INDIAN rtA lL SERVICE CARD.
F l d e r . D e a p s t e r s - Q °