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Box
https://search.heritageburnaby.ca/link/museumartifact89918
- Repository
- Burnaby Village Museum
- Accession Code
- BV019.6.1
- Description
- box; to ship and sell mandarin oranges; rectangular, corrugated cardboard box; single piece of cardboard, folded to form box; locking tab lid; oval cut outs in sides and lid for air circulation and for carrying; interior is plain brown cardboard; exterior has white, orange, and green text and illustrations beneath a wax coating. Colourful illustrations of mandarin oranges on sides and lid of box; text on front, back, and lid reads: "CHINESE / MANDARIN / ORANGES"; text on one side in French and other side in English reads: "THE ORIGINAL CHINESE / MANDARIN / CHINA NATIONAL CEREALS, OILS & FOODSTUFFS IMPORT & EXPORT CORPORATION / PRODUCT OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA / [text in Chinese] / MINIMUM 31 PCS. PER BOX"."
- Object History
- As a produce buyer for Kelly Douglas, Cecil Lee worked closely with local farmers along Marine Drive and in the Fraser Valley. The Burnaby company was one of the largest food distributors in Canada. In the mid-1970s, Lee was asked to oversee the import of Chinese mandarin oranges into Canada. Until that time, mandarin oranges had come from Japan and were sold in the winter, especially at Christmas. When the Japanese market could no longer keep up with demand, Kelly Douglas looked to China. The company relied on Lee’s cultural knowledge to build this very profitable part of their business. Lee designed the cardboard Chinese mandarin orange box to replace wooden containers. The iconic design required no glue or staples, making it possible for farmers to assemble and pack the boxes as they picked the oranges.
- Reference
- For other records in this collection see: Business records series of Julie Lee and Cecil Lee family fonds
- Category
- 04.Tools & Equipment for Materials
- Classification
- Food Processing & Preparation T&E - - Food Storage Equipment
- Object Term
- Box, Food Storage
- Subjects
- Agriculture - Fruit and Berries
- Container - Box
- Occupations - Agricultural Labourers
- Occupations - Grocers
- Names
- Lee, Julie Cho Chan
- Historic Neighbourhood
- Central Park (Historic Neighbourhood)
- Planning Study Area
- Maywood Area