STUDIES IN CITY MILK DISTRIBUTION. 



BY S. J. BROWNELL. 



KSpecial Bulletin No. 111. 



Introduction. 



The drift of people toward our cities and the resulting rapid increase of 

 urban populations have given an unusual prominence to all forces affecting 

 a city's food supply and distribution. 



During the hearings of the Detroit Milk Commission the wnriter of this 

 bulletin was impressed with the lack of authentic data concerning some of 

 the many important steps in milk distribution (Special Bulletin No. 99 of 

 this Station). The feature most discussed was that of milk delivery. Some 

 voiced the opinion that milk should be dispensed from cash and carry stations 

 only. Most consumers, however, preferred to have milk delivered at the 

 door in the usual way, but contended that there was waste motion and un- 

 necessary expense entailed by reason of duplication of milk routes. Some 

 testified that they had seen two, three, five and even more milk delivery 

 wagons on the same street. Most city residents were of the opinion that the 

 presence of these wagons on the single street added much to the cost of milk 

 delivery. Some even asserted that its elimination would enable distributors 

 to make a verj^ substantial reduction in milk prices. 



While many popular magazine and newspaper articles had been written 

 upon the subject, it was found that little actual study had been made. It 

 was, therefore, in an attempt to ascertain the simple facts in actual practice 

 that the work described in this bulletin was undertaken. 



Cities Studied. 



The first study was made in East Lansing, Michigan. The College city 

 was selected because of the convenience and opportunity it offered for devel- 

 oping working forms upon which to make further studies, and get acquainted 

 with some of the problems to be met in the larger fields. After East Lansing 

 was completed, Lansing, Kalamazoo, and Flint were studied in the order 

 named. 



Lansing is a city of 57,327 people, fair roads, and well laid out for the 

 distribution of milk. It has a city food and milk ordinance enforced by a 

 qualified city food and milk inspector. 



The milk supply of the city is handled by 14 distributors operating 31 

 vehicles of which five are wholesale and 26 are retail. This requires the use 

 of 33 men, 33 horses, seven trucks and 24 wagons. It requires 6,300 quarts 

 of wholesale milk and 6,473 quarts of retail milk to supply the city daily. 

 All milk is dehvered in the day time. The wholesale men and part of the 



