Evening star., 1933-10-10
Open Quotations Are Termed
Essential to Hating
& Harmful Cutting.
EXISTING SYSTEM HELD
BAD FOR ALL GROUPS
Ruling Still Awaited on Exemp.
tions From Maximum Mark.
ups by Dealers.
By the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Secret prices by grocery and food
manufacturers and wholesalers were de.
scribed today as the root of the price.
cutting problem" by representatives Of
the industry favoring provisions Of ths
master food code before the Agricultural
Adjustment Administration.
They asserted a clause in the cods
which could require manufacturers and
wholesalers to make their sales upon
the basis Of open prices. uniform to all
trade buyers Of the same quantity, was
essential In the program OF seeking to
halt price cutting. which was blamed
for depressing prices Of raw materials
to farmers.
Henry King, New York. representing
the National American Wholesale Gro
GERS Association, and F. H. Massmann.
Chicago, representing organizations Of
chain stores, said the open-price provi-
sions would make it possible for re-
tailers of foods to be protected against
advantages Of their competitors.
Sees Harmful Effects.
Hector Lazo Of Washington, spokes-
man for the National Association of Re
tail Grocers, contended the existing sys-
tenn, with no prohibitions against secret
prices, has bad effects on the farmer,
the consumer and the trade and pre-
vents stabilization.
Conditions in the trade have reached
such pass that foodstuf1s are being
sold in many instances on every single
appeal except that of wholesomeness
and quality" Lazo said.
The social. economic and moral ef-
feet OF this can scarcely be exagger-
ated"
The hearing proceeded without q
ruling from the Farm Administration
as to whether 1t will grant the reques:
OF numerous manufacturers of food
products to be exempt from provisions
Of the code which, in addition to re-
Quiring open prices by manufacturers
and wholesalers, would prescribe min
imum mark-ups in prices by whole
Salers and retailers.
Such q mass abandonment by man.
ufacturtng groups threatened to ex-
tinguish the code for the industry.
Groups Seek Exemption.
With farm administrators and dis
tributors already at odds over price
stabilizing plans for the $4,000, 600 900
industry, the major processing groups
sought complete exemption from the
codes provisions.
These manufacturers were estimated
to form rs per cent of the wholesale
and retail grocery distribution volume.
Those asking exemption included -four
milling, fresh fruits and vegetables,
canned goods, fisheries, retail tobacco,
candy, spices and imported foods.
They told the Farm Administration in
public hearings continuing today that
the various groups preferred separate
codes. Some wholesalers Immediately
took the view that without the process
sors, the code would be valueless.
Most OF the retailers and wholesalers
Endorsed the price proposal-language
forbiddtng sales at less than minimum
mark-ups over cost Of 2l2 per cent for
wholesalers and 712 per cent for retail
ers. But George N. Peek, farm admin
istrator, has indicated strong opposition
to this provision.
Code Called Essential.
Spokesman for organizations Of
wholesale and retail distributors de-
scribed for the code as essential to
.stabilizatton" Of the distribution in
dustry, and as the means of ending
price-cutting which the Farm Admin
lstratlon Is interested in stopping in so
far as 1t believes this tends to depress
prices paid to farmers
With few exceptions, they praised
the heart of the code, but the pro-
vision that manufacturers should offer
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