Evening star., 1941-04-04
President Hopes Pork
And Dairy Price Pegs
will Boost Production
Wants to Assure Return
To Farmers So Food
May Be Sent Abroad
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
President Roosevelt described to-
day as primarily stabilization mat
ter the Agriculture Departments
move to peg hog and dairy products
prices to stimulate production and
enable this country to send food
abroad to nations arrayed against
the axis.
He told press conference that In
the case of hogs the desire was to
provide reasonable assurance to hog
growers that if they feed more corn
to hogs they would get reasonable
price for the meat.
He said the aim was to encourage
fattening of hogs and the use Of
corn, and that he believed the
farmers would go ahead in that
direction.
The same objective, he said, was
in mind as to butter, eggs, and
other like products. Mr.. Roosevelt
added That the Government wanted
to assure those who turn heifers into
milk cows that they would get a
reasonable price for their milk.
u. S. to Buy Products.
The price-pegging program con-
templates Government purchases in
the commodity markets sufficient to
keep the prices at the following
(Chicago) levels:
Hogs, SO per 100 pounds; butter,
81 cents a pound; chickens, Is cents
per pound; eggs, % cents a dozen.
The minimum prices will be subject
to the customary market differen-
tials as to grades and points of pur-
chase.
officials said retail prices of but
| ter, eggs and chickens probably
would not fuctuate much from cur
rent levels, but pork prices might
advance. The SO minimum for hogs
is between $100 and S125 higher
than present prices at Chicago. This
might result in an increase Of be-
tween IL and 20 per cent In pork
prices, officials said.
Present prices of pork, dairy and
poultry products have made some
gains since spending under the ma
tional defense program started.
Differentials Allowed.
Prices in other markets would be
subject to the customary trans
portation and handling differentials
between them and the Chicago
market.
The Governments purchases will
be used, the department said, to
accumulate reserve supplies of food.
These supplies, it explained, could
be used for transfer to the British
and other countries under the Lease
Lend Act; for release on the market
in case of "unwarranted" specula-
tive price increases; to meet requests
| from the Red Gross for shipment to
war refugee areas and for direct
distribution through school lunch
programs or through State welfare
departments to needy families in
this country.
The department said 1t hoped the
price-pegging would induce farmers
to expand production considera bly,.
The price-pegging operations will
remain in effect until June 80, 1943.
The program also will continue the
existing corn loan program for 1941
and 1912. This program puts bot
tom of 81 cents bushel under corn.
The department also announced
that no marketing quotas would be
invoked on the 1941 corn crop. This
is designed to make ample supplies
of feeds available to farmers desiring
to expand production of these prod
ucts.
The program was announced at a
time when hog production was below
last years level Hog prices in rela-
ton to corn prices had, officials said,
discouraged hog production.