The sun., 1917-06-07
VEGETABLES CHEAP:
NOT FOR CONSUMER
Wholesale Prices on Fresh
Produce Drop, but Retail
ers Want Big Profits.
JOHN j. DILLON PROTESTS
State Commissioner of Foods
and Markets Gives Some
Amazing Facts.

There is an abundance of nearly all
KINDS OF fresh vegetables In the market
and Wholesale prices in some instances
are very low, but the retailer Is stili
clinsins to the idea that he must keep on
charging the consumer high prices.
Vegetables are arriving in great
quantities." said John J. Dillon. State
Commissions of Foods and Markets,
Yesterday, and they are being sold
cheap at wholesale. They are costing a
good deal uptown at retail The same
thing 10 happening now that has hap
pened ever year. IL Is hard for tho
farmer TO get enough out OF some OF the
stun he sends to the market TO pay for
transportation.
II know OF a carload Of vegetables
corn. cabbage. tomatoes and cucumbers
that arrived here from Florida a few
days ago. The railroads bill for freight
on that carload amounted to s3ss. The
stun didn't bring enough TO pay for the
freight. The farmer had to hand up $50
to make UP the difference. That carload
of fins vegetables therefore was worth
TO him exactly $50 less than nothing.
Last Saturday lot of rswberries
came in. The railroad delivered the
shipment too late for the best market.
The strawberries should have brought s
OF . cents quart wholesale. but they
didn't get here on schedule time and
they we're sold late in the day at 4 and 5
cents a quart. That price didn't pay for
the freight. picking and packing, TO say
nothing OF the growing and labor. / be-
lieve this to be all wrong.
'Corn Ia selling at wholesale at " to
~ cents per ear. Yet you have to pay
retail at the rate OF Is cents for four
ears. Tomatoes are selling wholesale at
from II to IN cents apiece. The aver
age retail price 10 3 cents each. Beans
ere selling at 1850 to $1.75 per bushel
! The retail price Is I 8 cents quart. Cab
ba ges are selling Mt N 70 y cents per
pound. beets ct TO cents per puncn
nd carrots at . cents per bunch whole
sale.
"All this stuff Is selling so low ir
the wholesale markets that there IL nc
/ profit IN II for the producer. The rail-
roads are getting big rates. full rates
| People have to pay high retail prices
for these goods. that are cheap whole
| sale, because the cost Of distribution II
potatoes bring 50 a bushel in thi.
market wholesale. or at the rate OF
cents a pound. The farmer furnishes
| the seed, does all the work OF raising
for months. Yet the man In the city
who takes the potatoes from the whole
sale market three to four miles up town
| and sells them two or three hours later
| gets 10 cents per pound from the con-
! sumer. A system Of distribution ina,
will give the same return for two hours
, work that Is allowed to the farmer for
| a seasons work Is all wrong.
What right has any ore to ask the
farmer 10 raise potatoes as patriotic
duty In the face OF conditions like this?
| What right has the man who distributes
| to such big rewards for the service ne
contributes! The only thing that will
put n stop to this condition Of affairs
| Is publicity"
According to the reports Of Associated
Warehouse holdings. bS houses making
| returns. there were 6.05t,000 pounds OF
butter In cold storage plants on June I,
as against 4.275. 900 on June I, 1916.
an increase Of l.77s.o0o pounds And
yet butter is higher in price now than
a year ago.
Reports OF Sc warehouses showed g.
OF, 900 cases. or 1.0S6120.00 eggs. In
the refrigerators on June !. as com
pared with 2si?.000 cases on June /.
1915. an increase OF 10000 cases.