Milford chronicle., 1930-12-19
PRODUCE
MARKET NOTES


prices. That will depend on what
they had to sell. Turkeys are a few
cents higher than month ago Ill
most eastern wholesale markets.
Roast meats are likely to cost about
the same since livestock prices
have not changed much although
cattle and lambs sell little higher
now. Chickens are about the same
in price as before the Thanksgiving
market and fowls are little lower.
Butter and eggs have gone down al
SO because of increasing supplies
and competition with cold storage
holdings. Fruit prices are nearly un-
changed but many vegetables are
selling higher than in tnid-Novem-
ber.
Oranges Compete With Apples
People who like oranges about as
we'll as apples will be able to find
enough of each kind, also plenty OF
erapefruit 1t looks like a big sea-
son coming for the yellow fruits.
Orange shipments the first two
months of the season were so per
cent larger than in 1929. There were
three times as many tangerines on
the market and grape receipts have
been 10 per cent larger this season.
These fruits run somewhat to small
sizes, as usually happens in years ot
heavy production. Quite likely there
will be a carload of oranges or
grapefruit shipped for every car OF
sfr lOuTnr in
price this season. During two days
carly in the month, about LOCO car
loads of oranges left Florida ship
ming points. Holdings at Potomac
Yards, diversion point near Wash
ineton. were also very heavy. Dur
ing the first week of December 40
cars of Florida oranges sold for an
average of $3.50 on the northern auc-
tion markets compared with $500
two years ago, which was also a
season of heavy production. Grape
fruit sold at S275 compared with
$325 two years ago.
There is some room for argi-
ment regarding the extent OF com
petition between apples and citrus
fruit but apple growers are dispos7
ed to expect some slackening of de-
n1and when there are plentysof low
priced oranges on the market. APP
pies are a medium crop and the
price tendency seems to be slightly
inward, the demand having been
helped little perhaps by the sell
ing activities of the unemployed" ."
Street peddlers, and the Juice fac
tories will dispose of many OF the
oranges but the market supply is
likely to continue liberal.
The strength of the eastern apple
market consists in the lighter pro-
duction of eastern fruit. Total ship
ments of apples have been a little
heavier than last season but cas-
tern apples have decreased nearly
one-third while the Northwest has
increased its shipments in about
the same proportion. Eastern ap-
pies are good this season, sweet
and well-favored, but perhaps a lit
tie below the usual average size on
account of dry weather Virginia
and West Virginia are still shipping
about 200 cars weekly and New
York about twice that number.
Other apple sections are moving
comparatively small quantities, Tx
port demand is falling off some
what but prices of apples packed for
export are holding up well in north
eastern shipping sections at S4.5O-
S4.75 per Dbl. for No. l Ben Davis
and S4.75-$5 for Baldwins, with
Greetings mostly $4.75 at country
shipping points. Shipments from
New York are about double those OF
last season. Bushel packs Of Bald
wins from cold storage range $1.5O-
$1.55 toward the middle of Decem-
ber and common storage fruit S1.4O.
Shipments are being made from
about 20 States at the daily. rate OF
a little more than 800 cars. Most OF
the city markets report supply mod
crate and demand slow to fairly ac-
tive. Prices of eastern Greetings
ranged $l25-$150 per bushel in
eastern cities, Kings $1-$1.65, Wine
saps $1.75-$2, Baldwins $1.25-S1.6O,
Staymans and Jonathans $125-$1.75.
Potatoes Hold Advance
The potato markets of the East
have kept most of the price ad-
vance reached early in the month
while mid-western potatoes sagged
back under the pressure of liberal
supplies from the Rocky Mountain
regions. Eastern markets quote
Maine, New York, and Pennsylvania
stock about 25 cents. per 100 lbs.
higher than the lowest point of last
month. Maine Green Mountains sell I
in consuming centers at $1.S0-S2 per
100 lbs. Pennsylvania Round white
varieties bring $175 in Baltimore.
Many carloads of New York pota-
toes have gone to southern markets
this season. They are quoted at So
$2.45 in that part of the county.
Unsettled market conditions pre-
vailed in northern Maine the second
week of December and prices drop
ped back about 5 cents. Similar
conditions prevailed in western New
York, with slow trading and prices
slightly lower Potato shipments
from all sources are lighter this
week compared with last week and
with a year ago, partly because of
weather conditions and because
some growers are not selling freely
at prevailing prices. With the crop
about the same this year they argue
that the price ought not to be 25
per cent lower. 5ir-
Moderate supplies of sweet pota-
toes are reported at nearly all the
eastern markets. Demand is slow to