—Lancaster Farming. Saturday. December 31,1977
70
Report explains differences between consumer/producer costs
WASHINGTON, D.C. -
The farmer’s share of what
the consumer pays for a
pound of choice beef is about
half the cost of the cut. For a
can of frozen orange juice, a
third. For a loaf of white
bread, only 12 per cent.
Differences between what
the consumer pays and the
farmer receives-the farm
to-retail price spread-thus
vary widely by food item.
These differences reflect
what happens to various food
products between the farm
and the grocery checkout
counter.
Course on grain
crops available now
UNIVERSITY PARK -
Penn State University is
offering a correspondence
course on gram crops and an
accompanying 1978
agronomy guide to Penn
sylvania farmers.
Dr. Robert P. Pfeifer,
associate professor of plant
breeding, includes in
formation in the course on
uses and importance of the
most common cereals or
grains, including corn,
wheat, oats, barley,
soybeans, and rye. Methods
of seeding, harvesting,
storage, and marketing are
RULES STRICT ON
OFFICES IN THE HOME
Here’s timely tax advice
on offices m the home If you
plan to take a tax deduction
for an office in the home, you
should be prepared to sub
stantiate, among other
things, that it was used
regularly and exclusively for
the convenience of your
employer Congress, IRS
and the courts have all
grown so strict on this, that
the employees, the deduction
is virtually elmuted.
A public service of the
Pennsylvania Institute of
Certified Public Ac
countants
BETTER BIU
Call Toll Free 1-800-447-5684
New Dealerships Now Available
THE PEARSON BROS C
Box Z Galva. Illinois 61
ADDRESS
CITY
STATE
ZIP
dH interested in a
I s hr-
A new report, released this
month by USDA’s Economic
Research Service, examines
cost components-processi
ng, packaging, tran
sportation, and instore
handling costs-that made up
the farm-to-retail price
spread for 16 food
items in 1975. Although retail
prices and production and
marketing costs have
changed smce then, the
relationships between cost
components haven’t
changed drastically.
The farm-retail spread is
relatively low for beef
given. Pennsylvania’s 1977
commercial hybrid corn
tests report is included as
well as a listing of pesticides,
herbicides, insecticides, and
fumigants for various crops.
Particular attention is
given in the course to un
proved varieties, seed
selection, and care, methods
of seedbed preparation and
fertilization. The author also
discusses adaptation of
seeds to soil conditions and
the effect of climate on
yields.
The course is available for
$4.50, from Penn State. To
order, write “Grain crops,”
Box 5000, University Park,
16802. Make checks payable
to Penn State.
m-'-'
SAVE Vi OF
THE COST OF
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PHARES S. HURST
RDI, Box 420
Narvon.Pa 17555
215 445-6186
a. < . 'A - , . m
Better Bilt
Arch Tab
iq r am
because the processing
function-mamly slaughten
ng-is relatively simple and
inexpensive. Also, tran
sportation costs are low
relative to the value of the
product.
But for bread, processing
involves mixing, baking,
slicing, and wrapping, and
costs for these functions are
substantially higher than the
value of the wheat, oil, eggs,
and other farm ingredients
in the bread. Transportation
costs are relatively high
because they include the
salary of the truck driver
whose work also involves
stocking the store’s bread
shelves.
Processing and packaging
costs are also fairly complex
for frozen orange juice. But
the cost of the supermarket’s
refreigerated display case
also contributes
significantly to the dif
ference between what the
Why sweat out another
season with worn out
When you try to make obsolete equipment do for “one-more-season”, you’re asking for
trouble. Like inefficient operation, endless repairs and costly down-time. New equipment
takes money, but this need be no problem for you
Farm Credit loans are readily available ... at reasonable rates of interest . . . with repay-
ment scheduled at times most convenient to you. See Farm Credit for financing the equip-
ment you need today.
consumer pays and what the
Florida producer receives.
The ERS report also
examines how in-store
handling costs break down
as a share of food prices. In
1975, labor costs averaged
about half of the retailing
p/VT winpo
NEWTON, lOWA 50208
v_As Write today for more information
machinery ?
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Tractor Driven
Alternators!
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costly power failure. Buj
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MARVIN HORST HITHER TOWARDS 808 SWANSON
Lebanon, Pa
717-272-0871
VI
VOIIR LOCAL COUNTY OFFICE.
margin for the food items
studied, while rent made up
only seven per cent.
Single copies of “Cost
Components of Farm-Retail
Price Spreads,”
Agricultural Economic
Report No. 391, are available
Ephrata, Pa
717-733-6618
free on mail request i
include zip code)
Publications Service
Department of Agric
Room 0054-South Bi
Washington, D.C. 20!
by telephone requesi
447-7255).
Kennett Square, Pa
215-444-5610