Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-07-12
COUNTRY WARNED
PACKERS SOON To
CONTROL FOOD Of
THE WHOLE WORLD
Federal Trade Commission De-
CIares That Monopoly Is a
Certainty Unless Steps Are
Taken to Prevent It,
BIG FIVE SAID TO BE
MAKING BIG PLANS
Meat, Vegetables, Grains,
Fruits and All Other Varie-
ties of Food Said To Be
Involved in Scheme.
rsr MORNING JOURNAL SPECIAL LEASED wrsEl

Washington. July 11.-An ap-
preaching packer domination of all
important foods in the United States
and an International control of meat
products in foreign companies seems
a certainty, unless fundamental action
is taken to prevent it, the federal trade
commission declared today in part
one of its report to President Viii
son on the extent and growth of
power of the five packers in meat and
other industries"
"A fair consideration of the course
the five packers have followed and
the position they have already
reached" said the report, must lead
to the conclusion that they threaten
the freedom of the market of the
country's food industries and of the
by-products of the industries linked
herewith. The meat packer control
of other foods will not require long
in developing
Declaring the history of the pack
ers' " growth is interviewer with ille-
gal commissions, rebates and with un-
disclosed control of corporations,
the report urged the importance Of
full publicity of corporate ownership
for all industries.
'As to devices for securing control
there does not exist adequate law"
the report said. In its absence unfair
competition may run its course to the
goal Of monopoly and accomplish the
ruin of competitors without being
suspected, and consequently, without
complaint to the commission or inves-
nf &c
in jeopardy SO long as he has not the
knowledge of true ownership and the
publis is entitled to such knowledge"
Control 574 Companies.
Alleging that the big five" pack
ers-Swift & Co., Armour & Co, Will
son & Co, Morris & Co. and the Cud-
ahy company, Jointly or separately
WELD controlling interest in 574 COM
panies, minor interest in ninety-five
others and undetermined interest I'M
a total of 762 companies
and that they produce or deal in
some 775 commodities, largely food
products, the report gives this pic-
ture of growing packing invasion into
related and unrelated Industries
In addition to meat foods they
produce or deal in such divers COM
strings, leather and cotton seed oil,
breakfast foods, vinfiz, Curled hair,
pepsn, and washing powders. Their
branch houses are not only stationsI
for the distribution of meat and poul-
try, but take on the character of
grocery stores, dealers IN
various kinds of produce ana jobbers
to special lines of trade.
"They have interests large enough
to be a dominating interest in most of
the services connected with the pro-
duction and distribution of animal
foods and their by-products, and arel
reaching out for control, not only of
substitutes of animal food, but of sub
stitutes for other lines into which
the integration of their business hasI
led them They are factors in cattle
loan companies, making the necessary
loans to growers and feeders of live
stock, are interested in railways and
private car lines transporting live
stock and manufactured animal prod
ucts in most of the important stock |
yards companies-the public market
for the bulk of food animals; and in
livestock trade papers on which grow
ers and feeders rely for market news. |
Interested i'm Banks.
"They are interested in banks from
which their competitor packing hous- !
es borrow money; in companies sup-l
plying machinery, ice salt. materials.
boxes ETC., to themselves and their
they are principal deal
fContinued on Page Two)