| Show r K q APPETITES GROW Larger Demand by Consumer Figures in Spiral of Prices V WASHINGTON ASHINGTON April 18 OB i Food prices would tumble if AmerIca America America Amer Amer- ica went back to Its prewar diet For example Americans are arc eating meat at a rate of ot about Ibs lbs a person a year ear Some want even more And It is competition among consumers consumers consumers con con- sumers that sets the price To meet the demand farmers are producing about Ibs lbs this year In the prewar period of 39 1935 consumption averaged Ibs lbs At Atthe Atthe Atthe the same rate now Americans would take only about Ibs lbs leaving a surplus of about lbs Ibs Such a surplus would break the price and require widespread government government government gov gov- buying of meat under the federal price support program to prevent an agricultural collapse Ate Ale More In Wartime During the war however with Incomes hl high h and fewer nonfood items to buy many who had been on a low-level low diet were encouraged encouraged encouraged aged to buy more and better quality qualIty quality ity foods And from every sign they want wanti to continue to eat welL i Tho The Increase in consumer demand demand demand de de- de- de mand is even more pronounced on ona ona ona a percentage basis for some other food items than meat Before the war the annual per capita consumption of eggs was It now Is Js running at the rate of a year or a gain of nearly 35 Latest agriculture department figures show the following other increases over prewar consumption consumption consumption tion Cheese 25 evaporated and condensed milk 14 fluid milk and cream 25 lard 3 margarIne margarine margarine mar mar- garine 26 citrus fruits 24 canned fruit 11 canned fruit Juices frozen fruits fresh vegetables 17 canned vegetables vegetables 46 frozen vegetables dry peas 80 canned soups and baby foods corn syrup 51 breakfast foods 35 hominy homIny hominy hom hom- iny 25 oatmeal 13 flour lour 1 coffee cortee 23 chickens 26 and turkeys 69 Present Present-d a y consumption of ot other ther Important items such as as- as sugar ugar butter shortening salad oils Ils rice cocoa and tea ten is below prewar simply because supplies are arc short lort Naturally the shorter the supply of ot a commodity the higher competitIon pushes the price As in the case of meat if It consumptIon consumption consumption con con- of all items dropped to the ic prewar level there would be surplus supplies and prices would drop rop sharply The governments government's farm price support program under program under which the government buys farm products at an n price whenever the market falls below that figure figure is Is playIng laying an n insignificant role in the present resent price situation Only Inthe Inthe in the he case of at potatoes es eggs and dried milk is Js t this Is program operating DomestIc and foreign demands operating operating op- op rating through competitive proc proc- esses esse are holding prices of other products above u. u S. S Buying Baying Assists Government purchase of grains for tor needy areas abroad has contrIbuted contributed contributed con con- to high wheat and corn earn prices But these purchases have no connection with the tho price support support support sup sup- port program They would be mado made whether or not there was was' a support program The bureau of ot labor statistics reported Thursday night that the wholesale price of food declined tenths nine-tenths of 1 during the week ended April 12 with decreases in all groups This hIs brought the total i decline for the past month to 21 0 i but the figure still was higher than a 1 year ago ngo Wholesale p price r i 1 c e c fluctuations ns us usually require two weeks or more to be felt in In retail stores |
