St. Johnsbury Caledonian. (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1920-1920, 1920-08-05
AUGUST MILK
PRICE FIXED
AT TEN CENTS
New England Milk Produc-
ers' Assn Fix Prices
Farmers Lose Half CT.

The August milk price will be 10
cents pcr quart delivered in Boston.
This is the REGULAR seasonal advance
of one-halt cent which the farmers
who supply the Boston market re-
ceiyc and while it brings the Augsut
price higher than it was last year,
the advance is not in proportion to
the increased costs and the farmers
who sell in the Boston market Will
not get back the cost Of production
at the present abnormal prices OF
grain and labor.
The Boston price fixes the price
in many other smaller cities in New
England as there is Il rather general
practice that smaller cities shall fol-
low the Boston pl:cc. This system
grew up luring the war when the
prices to both farmers and to con-
sumers were fixed bv the Federal
Regional Milk commission which held
its sessions in Boston. Other cities
simply followed the Boston price set
by the commission. The commission
does not now exist but the system,
so far as the price to the farmers
Is COHCeIIeu Is sui SCHSlui'
The 10 cent price to the farmers
was arrived at after lonp and care
full study of the situation by the New
England Milk Producers association.
the selling agent Of the farmers
Survery have shofn that the cost OF
producing milk has advanced mater
allv and full cent a quart advance
would no more than e"''al the 'ncreas--
ed costs of reduction as compared
with last year. 1t was thought best,
however. to make an advance OF only
one-half cent, the same as IN the
three previous years.
The surveys of costs showed that
the average for the wear, at the pre-
sent prices of feeds, labor and ma
terials, would be 9.S2 cents per quart
at the farm. The actual cost in
August are 90 per cent lower than
for the year as a whole, according to
averages of cost production Of sew
cr;ll years. Deducting this from the
yearly average leaves the August
cost of milk production S.91 cents per
quart at the farm.
Prices for the Boston market are
fixed on the delivered basis. The cost
of delivery to Boston varies with the
distance and with other factors, but
the average is 1.52 cents per quart
for bringing milk to Boston. This
is the actual cost at 200 miles from
Boston. That is the average dis
lance from which the Boston supply
comes. Adding this cost to the farm
cost gives 1913 cents per quart which
the farmers should receive to come
out square in Au"ust.
The New England Milk Producers
association was unwillino to make
the advance of the full cent Quart
in Aupust although the figures SEEM
cd to justify it. 1t was decided to
make only the customary advance of
one-half cont. While this leaves the
farmer selling milk at loss of nearly
II half-cent quart. there is some
hope that prices for feeds and la
Dor will go down somewhat and that
the reduced costs will enable the far
mers to come out nearly square. The
early summer prices are lower be-
cause the costs of production arc
lower. The advance in August is a
swing back toward the normal '"icc
which must be paid to meet the aver
age costs for the year.
The New England Milk Producers
association laid their figures of costs
and informed the State commission
on necessities of life fully of the sit
uation both inside and out befort
taking any action. The association
has nothing to do with the price to
the consumer but voluntarily laid it's
case before the commission so that it
could be informed fully of the stu
alton in case the price to the con-
sumers was increased b.. the dealers.
RECENT DEhTIJc