OCR Text |
Show Predicts More Efficient Food Market of Future Fruit and Vegetable Delegates Also Hear Possibilities of Shipping by Air. By AL JEDLICKA Meeting recently in Chicago for the fortieth annual convention of the United Fresh Fruit and Vegetable association, 2,200 delegates were told that increased efficiency in marketing mar-keting was promised in the postwar world. The deputy director of the food distribution administration, C. W. Kitchen, doubted that there would be any radical change in marketing practices, since we have a system built up over a long period of years and representing the experience of many people. ine amerence Between wnai ine producer receives and what the consumer con-sumer pays is always a subject of widespread public interest," Kitchen Kitch-en said. "With increased volume . , . the producer now receives . , . about 58 per cent ... of the consumer's con-sumer's dollar . . , with an average of 42 per cent in the 4 years 1935-'39. "When supplies are scarce and prices are rising, consumers complain," com-plain," Kitchen continued. "When supplies are plentiful and prices are declining, the producers find the return re-turn for their labor and investment is too little. Each tends to blame those in between most often, without with-out definite information regarding the many services which have to be performed and what it costs to perform per-form them. Desire Channels Regulated. "Consumers and producers realize real-ize that most products must pass through numerous channels and many hands between the farm and home to meet modern conditions . . . But they want these channels kept clear and open, with duplication duplica-tion and waste eliminated; and to the extent that public supervision will increase efficiency and fair dealing, they want them regulated." Pointing out that the house approved ap-proved the Fulmer resolution authorizing au-thorizing a study of marketing practices, prac-tices, Kitchen said he believed some at the present procedures are in need of change, such as those under un-der which farmers are often at the mercy of occasional buyers because they have little chance to take or send their products to assembling and shipping centers where competition compe-tition exists among the purchasers! At the other end of the line, Kitchen Kitch-en asserted, markets are often crowded, or they are improperly located, lo-cated, buildings are poorly equipped and rents are excessive. As a result, re-sult, he said, products are piled up in stores, on sidewalks, in gutters, or left standing in trucks, and ban-1 died in ways promoting spoilage and deterioration. Sometimes regulations regula-tions require much unnecessary handling han-dling and the payment of unnecessary unneces-sary charges. Reduced Costs Urged. "It is just as necessary to work toward reduced costs in marketing as it is to reduce costs of production," produc-tion," Kitchen concluded. Development of methods for the shipment of perishable commodities by air was explained by Col. John H. Jouett, vice president of Hig-gins Hig-gins Industries. Because of the impracticability im-practicability of constructing refrigerated refrig-erated airplanes, Colonel Jouett said, efforts are being directed toward to-ward perfection of insulated plywood boxes that would retain desired temperature tem-perature for 24 hours. Although limited lim-ited cargo space would bring shipping ship-ping costs above thos'e of railroads hauling on a volume basis. Colonel Jouett declared, this factor might be offset by the airplanes' ability to make many more trips over the same routes. Because of the war, people should not expect a great overnight change in civilian aviation, Colonel Jouett said. Instead, the industry will develop de-velop gradually, and should be financed fi-nanced in orderly fashion to prevent irresponsible expansion. Throughout the convention, producers pro-ducers were congratulated for growing grow-ing 4 times as much citrus fruits and 2 times as much vegetables as during the last war. Because perishable commodities are unsuitable unsuit-able for overseas shipment, however, how-ever, the government will take nearly near-ly all dehydrated vegetables, half of the dried fruits, 40 per cent of the canned fruits and juices (except (ex-cept citrus); 15 per cent of the citrus cit-rus fruits in fresh and canned form; and 20 per cent of canned vegetables, vegeta-bles, during the year ending October Octo-ber 1, 1944. |