The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1920-07-09
COST OF WHEAT IS
s215 PER BUsHEL
GOVERNMENT REPORT SHOWS
THAT WAS AVERAGE COST
ON 481 FARMS IN 1919

The report recently issued by the
University Of Idaho department of
farm crops investigation, showing
that it cost about $3.50 per bushel
to produce wheat on irrigated farms
in this state, during the year 1919,
was regarded by some as being too
high, but the figures were accurate
Now comes the federal government
department Of agriculture with re-
port showing that in 1919 the aver
age cost of production of wheat
taken from 481 farms scattered over
wide area of several states, was
l2.15 per bushel. This is strong cor
soborative evidence that the estimates
made by the University of Idaho
were correct The federal report fol-
lows:
That the government wheat price
guarantee and the prevailing prices
in the last few seasons have not made
the wheat farmer a profiteer, as has
been charged in some instances and
implied in a great many others, is
indicated by the official statement of
the United States department of ag-
riculture that the production of the
average bushel of wheat on 481
farms in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri,
Minnesota, North Dakota and South
Dakota during the 1919 crop year
cost the farmer $2.15. This statement |
becomes doubly significant and
meaningful when considered in con-
'nection with similarly official
statement of the department of ag-
riculture through it's regular news
bulletin last year, wherein is gave the
following as the average prices re-
ceived by the farmers for their wheat
as of September / of the three years
1918, inclusive: 1917, $2.097; 1918,
$2.056; 1919, $2.057.
If these two official statements are
reliable and both representative of
the country as a whole, it becomes
apparent that the average wheat
farmer throughout the United States
actually produced wheat last year at
loss of over cents per bushel. If ,
this is correct, then the wheat farm
ers of the United States produced
last year a 100000, ,0OO-bushel wheat t
wheat crop at loss of approxim ate {
ly $8O,O0O,OO0. t
The statement issued by the de- !
partment of agriculture last week
the findings of a survey
covering a total of 284 winter wheat
farms and 1877 of spring wheat. This
areas in Kansas, Nebraska and Mis- J
souri, and five spring wheat areas in
North Dakota and South
Dakota.
The survey showed that the cost Of
wheat last year in those
states was as low as 81 bushel on
only two of the 481 farms on which \
The cost of production study was
made. On the other extreme, the
,ost was SIS per bushel or more on 20
farms.
The cost for the production OF win n
or wheat ranged from 81 bushel on f;
VIC farms to as high as $500 on one m
arm The average for the winter m
Wheat was $1.87. m
The cost of producing spring wheat d.
n the areas studied ranged from OF
Ito on one farm to as high as $5 iee
r more bushel on II farms. The e(
lverage for spring wheat was $265. m
The average cost per acre was st
27.80 for winter wheat and $22.4O
or spring wheat. The reversal in he
he average price per bushel is due Ii
o the fact that the average winter
ield was 14.9 bushels per acre, while til
re average of spring wheat was only or
a bushels. til
Referring to the $2.15 average cost of
f production, the official statement tn
f the department of agriculture al
ays CAT such price half Of the gi
armers in question would have lost m;
loney on their wheat" This means all