Imperial Valley press., 1945-01-22
I Rise to
Re m, ark
BY Congressman John Phillips


This column is glad to announce
to its ouivering readers that it Is
now able. for the first time, to sub
nit the formula by which the OPA
arrives at the ceiling prices on per-
ishable farm commodities. I have
been sitting in a hearing as a
member of a subcommittee listen
ing to the boys and girls of the
OPA tell how they arrived at the
about to-be e-announced ceiling pric-
eS for Florida tomatoes.
Have you got your pencils ready?
First, you take the prices OF TOM
atoes month by month for five years
and average them. Q937-H ncO
That gives you $3.50 per bushel.
Please don't interrupt me by sug-
gesting that conditions are differ
ent in California, Texas, Florida,
! Virginia, and other states, or that
seasons are not the same, or that
our marketing problems are not
wholly alike: you disturb my train
of thought.
You now look at the $3.50 and
decide that this is more than the
consumer ought to pay. When the
Congress passed the Act under
which some of this authority was
given the OPA, it put in section
to make it possible to adjust prices
between commodities. 1t was called
the gross inequities section" 1t
was Intend ed to protect the pro-
ducer, and assure food to the con-
sumner by preventing unbalanced
production. The OPA turns it ar
ound and uses it as authority to cut
the producers price. Well, let's get
along.
SO you take 78c off the $3.50. That
gives you S211. Then you look at
it again. You recall that parity is
s2.13; you also consult the War
Food cministraticn and learn that
the consumer will not benefit great
ly if no tomatoes are grown, so you
add sac. This is what is called the
scientific approach to the proolem.
You have a net adjustment for
gross inequity" of 24c minus. This
gives S265.
The Florida deviation from the
national average is figured to oe
2O6 per cent or in dollars 81 40. DID
you ask, what deviation? month by
month? seaSn by season? year by
year? Stop interrupting me! have
to keep my mind on this analysis.
You now multiply $2.65 by 205 per
cent and that gives S5.459. You then
add S1.40 to S2.65 and that gives
S4O5. You add these two figures
together anc divide by 2; which
gives ATS. Now were getting some-
where's! |
This is per bushel. Florida figures
prices in lugs, about 80 to 33
pounds. Computing the relative
proportions, we multiply S4.75 by
6O.4 per cent which gives $2.87 per
lug for Florida. Don't go, we're not
through yet. These Florida prices
are mot strictly fob" quote that.
So, with some difference of opinion
inside the OPA somebody must
have remembered that Florida has
generally favorable freight rates
alreacy) 2Oc is added. That makes
s307.
Now we have to set up cushion
Any farmer knows that on PERISH
ABLE COMMODITIES he hopes to
sell his first stuff above the aver
age market for the season; that
he'll get his cost of production plus
hopefully a slight profit for about
fifty per cent of the crop, and that
he'll lose on the rest. He's been
doing that for generations. Florida
tomatoes sold last season at S5.25 at
the start and 22c at the bottom,
per lug. The OPA is trying to make
the AVERAGE the market price for
the season; but now I'm interrupt
ing myself To meet these sea sonal
rises and falls in price, which by
the way are seldom reflected
promptly in consumers prices, the
OPA has devised a cushion" eX-
cept that while most cushions are
below, where you can sit on them,
this one is overhead. To get it you
add the sums of two items: Il
quote
ID The average, without regard
to sign, of seasonally adjusted
farm prices from the reSpec-
tive seasonal averages for the
period rc37-41.
90 One-third the average daily
range between high ano low
prices for good merchantable
quality on the New York and
Chicago wholesale markets. in
|, 1912. 70
That gives you figure OF 63c pei
bu., or Ale per lug, which you ado
to the S307 making $3.48. You are
big hearted, and make it $3.50
That's it.
I trust you have followed me ster
by step through this scientific pro-
cess and will from now on be able
: to fio1Ire o1lt Opa cpilinp nrices