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Show Investock:V Ata California sheepmen are just beginning be-ginning to market the largest crop of lambs ever grown in the state and the first two shipments arrived earlier ear-lier than usual on the Los Angeles market, one lot selling at $10.50 and $10.80 a hundredweight. It is estimated estimat-ed that California will have around 2,500,000 fat jambs to market this year, with the majority ready to sell during April, May and June. With ideal feed conditions in most lamb-raising lamb-raising districts, sheepmen realize tliat they are facing a crucial problem prob-lem in marketing their lambs this year at remunerative prices. Through the -efforts of the California Califor-nia Wool Growers association, a lamb marketing board has been formed, with the idea of orderly marketing, and a general sales and advertising program in co-ordination with pack ers and retail meat dealers. An effort is being made to acquaint the public with the fact that lamb is relatively low in price and at the same ,time. increase the volume of sales, both- on the Pacific coast and ; in the metro politan consuming centers of the astern ast-ern states. " : ' : It is generally realized that: .the majority of the California lambs nuist be marketed and consumed at nearby markets, particularly in view of the fact that per capita lamb consump tion in California is much higher thar in any other section of the country In 1930 it is said on good authority Due to continued depressed markets ! for dairy, products, many dairy type cows continue to go into the central markets for conversion into beef. Whereas statisticians ordinarily estimate esti-mate that 20 per cent of the beef supply is made up of shipments of dairy-type cattle, it is estimated that during the past few months this per centage has increased to around 30 per cent. Not all of this dairy beef is classified as common, as many of the grain-fed cows produce beef which is equal if not superior to the average i run of beef .type range cows. that Southern California ate in excess Df 30 pounds of lamb per capita, as compared with a national average of less than 5 pounds, per capita. With this fact to work upon, efforts will be made to increase home consump-ibn. consump-ibn. Last year more than 500,000 'ambs were shipped to eastern centers, cen-ters, both alive and dressed under refrigeration. re-frigeration. ' Whereas, a large percentage of Cal-fornia Cal-fornia lambs last year were in thin Hesh and classified as "feeders," it is generally agreed that this year, be-ause be-ause of good feed conditions, a much arger per centage will be fat and ust go directly into consumptive hannels. |