USDA tells where r VASHINGTON, D.C. - The other 36 cents pay for? A fanner got six cents for a report released by the U.S. head of lettuce that cost 42 Department of Agriculture cents in 1974. What did the (USDA) answers that ■MVAniiiTioiqiHH Special Prices on Cattle Dust Bags, Fly Sprays, Jet Foggers, Golden Malnn Sugar Bait 5 lbs. $5.95, Sticky Fly Ribbons $9.95 per box 100. Farm Fencers 12 Volts & Electric models. BAYMIX CATTLE WORMER Why Not Try Our Livestock Medication Program & Special Prices Today. ANIMAL HEALTH SUPPLY Home Store Phone: 717-733-4466 RD4, Lititz, PA 17543 “Customers” .. We plan to see you at C. H Wolgemuth & Son Fall Farm Equipment Sale, Thursday, Aug 26, 1976. VAN-MAR FEEDS IN SHOEMAKERSVILLE - TURN WEST ON MILLER STREET ... CROSS BRIDGE TO VAN-MAR FEEDS. Bulk Bag & Pull Spreader Service DISTRIBUTING IN BERKS, LEBANON, SCHUYLKILL, MONTGOMERY & LEHIGH COUNTIES VAN-MAR FEEDS, INC. SHOEMAKERSVILLE BRANCH + West on Miller St. + Shoemakersville ZIMMERMAN'S (LEESPORT LOCATION DISCONTINUED) As Good As The Best & Better Than The Rest (215) 926-1230 or(215) 926-2121 food dollar goes question for lettuce and 15 other foods In your grocery basket, according to Paul H. Keeney Chairman of the Berks County ASC Com mittee. The 36 cents is the spread or difference between farm value and retail price. Each month, USDA estimates changes in farm-to-retail price spreads for a number of foods. The report from USDA’s Economic Research Service provides a basic understanding of what farm to-retail price spreads represent. It outlines the processing and marketing steps for each food and estimates how much each step contributed to the retail price in 1974. Although marketing costs have changed since 1974, the relative importance of the costs probably haven’t changed greatly for most foods. The report presents food cost components by marketing function and by cost items such as labor, packaging, or rent. The marketing functions include assembly, processing, transporting, wholesaling, and retailing. Of these, Order Your Fall Seeds Now assembly of commodities from farms took the smallest share of the 1974 retail prices. Processing costs for beef and pork, broilers, and fluid milk, which change little in form from farm to store, took less than 15 per cent of their retail prices. But processing costs made up about half of the retail price of catsup and canned tomatoes, and a third of the retail price for a loaf of bread. Labor and packaging materials represented half or more of costs for the processing function, labor was a major component for processing of beef, pork, and broilers while packaging was more expensive than labor for such items as eggs, catsup, and frozen orange juice. Perishability of fruits and vegetables, plus their long distances from markets, push up marketing costs for these items. Shipping charges for California let tuce and oranges averaged 10-15 per cent of retail prices, for example, while those for butter, eggs, and meats accounted for only about 2 per cent of retail prices. Wholesaling costs ran five to eight per cent of retail price for most items, but reached 25 per cent for bread, because several bakeries deliver to a single foostore, often more than once a day. The cost of retailing - in cluding profits - took up five to 43 percent of the retail Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 21,1976 Futures market goes unnoticed WASHINGTON - The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Advisory Committee on Trading Professionals recently reported that “members of the public have scant awareness of the vital economic functions per formed by the futures market, or of the impact of those markets on their everyday lives.” The Committee submitted to the Commission 54 pages of recommendations and sales price in 1974 for the 16 items. But, except for fresh oranges, potatoes, and lettuce, supermarket costs took up less than 25 per cent of the retail price. Labor was most costly accounting for about half of a typical foodstore’s costs. Rent took another eight percent of retailing costs. Single copies of “Cost Components of Farm-Retail Price Spreads for Selected Foods,” Agricultural Economic Report No. 343, are available free on mail request (please include your zipcode) from Publications Services, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Room 0054-South Building, Washington, D.C. 20250, or by telephone request (202- 447-7255). comments that pointed out aneed for increased public confidence and higher standards for professionals in the industry if the futures markets are to remain ac tive and healthy. The report followed several months of study under the chair manship of Commissioner Robert L. Martin. “A recurring theme in the Committee’s discussions of the role and responsibilities of futures professionals was the public’s lack of un derstanding and often misunderstanding of the commodity futures markets,” the Committee said in a foreword to its recommendations. “The image many people have of the industry is limited to the tumultuous activity of the pit. Popular myths about futures markets abound. “These misconceptions, when coupled with the deceiving sales tactics used by some members of the commodity futures industry, undermine the public’s confidence in the industry and in the integrity of the markets.” The Committee said the lack of public confidence in the futures markets exists notwithstanding the in creasing volume of futures trading. “If those markets are to remain active and healthy, that confidence must be increased; the raising of standards for professionals in the commodities industry is an essential step in achieving that goal.” The Committee said that while the main purpose of its recommendations was to protect the customers and clients of trading professionals, “these recommendations also have been formulated with a view to increasing the confidence in the futures markets.” Remember Fall lettuce FLEMINGTON, NJ - Home gardeners are so used to planting lettuce in the spring of the year they forget it can also be grown in the fall and enjoyed from mid* September until killed by a severe frost. Lettuce seed germinates best in low soil tem peratures. The seeds become dormant and fail to ger minate when temperatures reach 90 degrees or above. To enjoy lettuce during the fall months, varieties such as the Salad Bowl should be seeded in early August. It’s true you can’t change the weather but there are steps you can take to combat the extremely high soil temperatures u. August and minimize poor germination: A light cover of lawn clip pings on the seeded rows will help cool the soil; Water the row every other day; Sow seed thickly - then thin out excess plants. Perhaps the most foolproof method of starting lettuce seed in hot weather is to sow the seed in a flat or box, keep it in a cool place until the plants sprout and then transplant the seedlings in the garden. 87
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