The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-10-09
WOULD LOCALIzINC
MEAT TRADE PAY?.
Senator Currie, Stock Raiser of
Nebraska, Makes Ex-
pertinent.

Meat is high; the packers admit it,
though they say that other foods are.
higher in proportion. The farmer says
he is not getting too much for his cat
| tie, in fact not enough, he says. How
about numerous local slaughtering
plants scattered throughout the com
munities of our country, or more di-
ect-from-farmer-to-c relation
ship?
There is almost sentimental attrac-
tiveness about the thought, like dreams
of ones bOyhood home. 1t looks so
simple. Indeed, it is simple after
fashion, and is the way most meat
was handled before the industry grew
to national and international proper
lions. But would it pay?
Tried to Build Up Local Market
Experimentation and testing is
doubtless the best teacher. And in
quiring minds have not hesitated to
dig into the matter. Senator F. M.
Currie of Broken Bow, Neb., himself
a stock raiser, relates a bit of expe-
rience of his own along this line.
He tried for years, he tells US, to
establish a market for fat cattle with
local butchers, invariably finding that
he could not meet the price made to
them by the packers.
"In other words" he says, "the pack
ers could pay us more for our cattle
OF foot, and sell the product to our
local butchers for less money than
they (the butchers) could pay us for
our cattle and slaughter the beef them
selves"
During the fore part Of the present
|. year he carried his inquiry further. He
shipped two carloads of cows to
Omaha, and they were sold to Armour
and Company for $3.50 per hundred
weight Among these was one cow
which he wished to have himself for
beef. This COW weighed $40 pounds
and therefore brought him $66.36. The |
animal was tagged and the Identical |
carcass was shipped to him by ex-
press to Thedford, Neb., and charged |
to him at the prevailing whole
sale price of such meat on that day in
Kansas City, Omaha and Minneapolis. |
The carcass included carrying charges |
of about $500, cost him S6O11, or
1928 less than he sold the animal for
in Omaha.
What Cow Would Cost Consumer.
"Now," continues the Senator, Sup
pose a consumer in Omaha had or
dered this meat direct from me. and |
had slaughtered the beef at the ranch
and sent the meat direct to the con-
sumner. Taking as a basis the price
received for this COW in Omaha, 1868
less the freight of 171s cents per hun
bred, it would make the cow\worth on
the ranch $65OO."
To this $4,000 he adds $500 for
slaughtering at home and $500 for ex-
press from Thedford to Omaha, and
he deducts $500 credit for the hide.
According to these figures the
dressed carcass of his COW would be
worth 5000 in Omaha, as against the
packers price of approximately $54.00
(Which is derived by deducting the ex-
press charges to Thedford, $500, from
the price the carcass was sold to him,
$60.1D.
Cheaper to Buy Than Kill.
after thorough investigation" the
Senator says, II am convinced that
it does not pay for us to slaughter
our own meat at the ranch; that we
would better ship our cattle to
Omaha, and buy our beef from the
packer. I have been engaged in the S
cattle producing business all my life; ]
there is no particular reason why (
should be friendly to the packers, but $
I am thoroughly convinced I am re- /.
ceiving and always have received
more for my cattle on foot, than il / /.
had been able to sell direct to the con-
sumer and consequently the consumer
has been able to buy my product for
less money through the packer than !
under any other system which is
known to business up to the present
time"