Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1919-10-17
FINDS BIG FIVE HAS GRASP ON
 GROCER LINES
200 Other Food Products, h. cluding Meat Substitutes,
 Are Being Sold.

of the claim that the five big hack. ing companies of Chicago bid fair to dominate the wholesale proce,,v trade and already handle more than 200 foods unrelated to the meat packing industry, many of them di- rectly competitive as meat substi- tutes5 is made in part of the federal trade commissions report on the in dustry, published today.
 The extent to which the hacker should be permitted to enter unre- lated food lines (even assuming legi- port said, lis matter which the timate competitive methods), the re- public interest alone should deter mine."
 Two questions, primarily economic are involved:
 "Does this widening of activity result in additional economics of pro- duction and distribution
 "Does it result and will it continue to result to the public in lower prices and better quality of product and service?
 "A third question not here discuss ed relates to the ultimate effect of such vast and powerful organiza- tions on the political and social fa bric of American institutions"
 Included in the list of commodi ties said to be falling under control of the "big five" are poultry and game, dairy products lard and but ter substitutes, canned and dried and frozen fish, cocoa, coffee, mo!as vegetables and fruit, canned cured ses and cane, corn and maple syrups. In addition, Armour and company. one of the five, is said to be handling extensively soda fountain prepara tions and utensils.
 Owing to the maze and secrecy of the packers methods of conduct ing much of his business" it adds. "exact statistics on many of these commodities are not available for the country as a whole, which will show just how far the packers control has reached.
 Profit in Grain.
 Many companies manufacturing or handling these commodities are controlled by packer interests no hint of which are disclosed by the names under which they operate and even thorough-going examination may. fail to uncover the packer con- nectlon in every case"
 Four of the packers, Swift, Will son, Armour and Cudahy, the report states through their subsidiaries. are not including family controlled companied, handled in 1918, 49.5 per cent of the estimated total of shippeo dressed poultry and 33 per cent of shipped eggs.
 The same four handled 49 per cent of all factory made,,c cheese in 1918, the report says, and adds:
 That the big five are in no- sltion to control 75 to 80 per cent of the cheese of the state (Wisconsin) IS generally conceded"
 The Armour Grain company. factor in the cereal and breakfast food business, reported surplus un- divided profits for the year, 1917, of S5,426,830, after deducting 78 per cent dividend on capital stock, the report says, adding:
 The years earnings amounted to $2,908,912, or 29O per cent on the capital stock and 67 per cent of the net worth of the company including capital surplus and undivided prof. its as reported at the close of the fiscal year, 1916."
 
 substitutes by the five packers dur ing the first six months of 1917 was placed at 49.4 per cent of the total, ana oleomargarene at 51 per cent.
 Complete figures to show the packer interest in canned foods, such as fruits and fish, were not available, the report says, but the business of the '"big five" was shown to be large
  canned food sales alone showed 1oo 1o per cent increase in 1918 over 1915. Libby sales on canned sal mon increased from 4.6 per cent of tne world packers 1915 to 5.8 in 1917, the report shows.
 Control Complete.
 50 complete has become the con- trol, especially by Libby, McNeill and Libby, over the pineapple supply" the report reads, "that one of the largest wholesale grocers in the country was unable in the summer of m aylS to get any supply whatever" Inere IS sufficient evidence, the re- port continues, that the "big five" are dividing the field among them selves.
 If Armour's grocery specialties are largely concentrated along such lines as rice, cereals, certain kinds of canned goods and cheese, and each of the other of the five packers concen- trate his specialties along a few we'll ruled by the five.'
 The report declares the meat packers "are large spectators" and that their control of capital and cred- It enables them to buy in such way as to resell "upon market in which tnelr purchase have forced up the price. It also asserts the packers nave extraordinary buying and mar kietlng power due to certain advan- l,ages, perhaps not always unlawful, put certainly often unjustifiable."
 Among these advantages are emu merated packer control of 44.8 per cent of all cold storage facilitieS