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Show f&ffi Livestock?! Los Angeles, May 1, 1933 Recent'" advances in commodity values have failed to make much impression on livestock prices, although some gains j were directly beneficial to stockmen-! Most important to the shopman hasl been the rapid improvement in de- j ma ml for wool, nnd a consequent up-1 ward trend in values. What has been gained in wool values has more than been offset in lower lamb prices, how- j ever. Recent sales of wool clips in the western states have been made at much higher values than prevailed last season, while California early , crop lambs are now selling at prices fully one cent a pound lower than in May, 1933. j A feature which added strength to the cattle outlook is the stronger! market for hides. Hide prices have advanced sharply during the past, month. When it is remembered that; the hide of a steer averages about seven per cent of the entire weight j of the entire bullock, it will be understood under-stood that the packer must take into serious consideration the value of the hide, as well as the beef. Under normal nor-mal conditions, it is a well known fact that the packer was able to seJl his beef at cost, and still make a satis-factory satis-factory profit through the sale of the hide and by-products. Under present conditions, by-products hardly pay : the cost of processing, so that plant overhead and profit must come from the sale of beef. Hog prices have fluctuated within a narrow price range, showing a very small share in the gentral commodity upturn. Last season's spectacular advance in hog prices came late in June and continued through the summer. Government estimates indicate in-dicate a larger supply of hogs for market during the summer of 1933 than a year ago, yet the trade generally gen-erally is hopeful of a seasonal upturn up-turn which may take place in the very near future. Packers and producer pro-ducer agencies have started a comprehensive com-prehensive campaign in several east-ern east-ern states to push the sale of lard and to regain at least part of the huge outlet for that product which has been taken over by vegetable substitutes. It appears to this writer that the livestock and meat industry has been lax in developng and holding markets for varous by-products of the industry, indus-try, including such products as lard, hides, tallow and the many other important im-portant "sidelines," that once held a vastly important place in world commerce. com-merce. Promotion of meat has been carried along on comprehensive lines, through educational and advertising campaigns. It is just as important to the industry to energetically push the sale of by-products. |