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Show ffe livestock?! kSimationJ jCL ''CAS J.ive stock producers just now are in a very .satisfactory position. Cat-tip Cat-tip price on Pacific coast markets ari' : -trouper than they liave been for some time and there appears to be a very healthy undertone in the trade. This season's (rass cattle have been selling l prices from two to three cents a pound higher than a year ago. Hoic producers and feeders are resting rest-ing much easier for the severe slump of recent months appears to be definitely defi-nitely at an end and the upward swing in. values is well on its way. Pacific coast markets have advanced more than two cents a pound since the "low" time three months ago. Wool growers have been fortunate in striking very satisfactory markets and despite the increased production in most of the lamb growing sections, there has been sufficient demand for the product to stimulate rather than deflate values and prices are even better than a year ago, both on the Pacific coast and in the East. It seems reasonable to presume that a continued period of satisfac- tory prices is in sight for the producer produc-er for some time to come. The cattle cat-tle situation is giving the feeders some concern, as "asking prices" on thin stock are relatively high in relation re-lation to prrces on fat stock. However, How-ever, the old rule of supply and demand de-mand will take care of this situation and it is likely that buyers and sellers sell-ers will be able to iron out their present difference of opinion. Many Califonia cattlemen settled this problem to some extent by hold-ong hold-ong back a considerable portion of their yearlings, which figure well compared with replacement values. Imperial Valley feeders sensed a shortage of marketable beef on the ; Pacific coast in the late summer and early fall and laid in a substantial supply of feeders which will move : out to market during the period of anticipated light supplies, just prior to the movement of Intermountain cattle. Actual slaughter of beef cattle at federally inspected plants over the entire country shows a decided decrease de-crease from a year ago and the total runs far below any . normal yea,r. However, it must be remembered that when the price of cattle advances one cent a pound, the retail price of beef must advance from three to five cents a pound. This naturally eliminates a certain proportion of beef consumers, consum-ers, who turn to pork and lamb or some other substitute for beef. The shortage of beef and resultant higher prices scale undoubtedly have contributed contri-buted much towards the recent increase in-crease in pork consumption and the higher prices. No doubt, the scarcity of beef also is of much help to the lamb feeders. No food commodity can be considered consid-ered upon its own indepedent footing. foot-ing. With a shortage of beef and a higher price scale, it has been demonstrated demon-strated that many normal beef con sumers wiil turn to pork and Iamb. 1: j is another case of the lws of supyly and demand working. No group o" men. could, for instance, sit about a table and decide the price of cattVj or beef. Not only must the supply of beef be considered but the amount of money which the consumer can and will spend also enters into the proposition. propo-sition. And even then, there is no means of arbitrarily setting a price because of the competition with other meat food products. And after we deal with pork, veal, lamb and mutton, mut-ton, we must deal with poultry, rabbits, rab-bits, eggs and other foods. Just now, the laws of supply and demand favor the producer of meat food animals. That condition will prevail, as long as there is no overproduction. |