Page Twelve 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



December, 19}0 



Farm Board News 



THE Coarse Grains Advisory Com- 

 mittee meeting in Washington on 

 November 17 and 18 reported to the 

 Federal Farm Board as follows: 



"The outstanding facts in the feed 

 gr?in situation are, first, the great short- 

 aje of corn and of feed grains as a 

 gi 3up; and second, the low prices pre- 

 va ling in the face of this shortage. 



"The corn crop is the smallest since 

 1901; it is S20 million bushels smaller 

 than last year, and only 88 per cent of 

 the 1924-28 average. While crops of 

 oats and barley are somewhat larger 

 than last year, the supply of the three 

 principal coarse grains is only about 89 

 million tons as compared with the 

 moderate supply of 100 million tons 

 last year. The less important crop of 

 grain sorghums is only 84 per cent of 

 last year's small crop and 66 per cent 

 of the 1924-28 average. The position 

 is further accentuated by short crops 

 of hay. 



"A partial offset to this reduction in 

 feed grains and hay is the existence of 

 unusually liberal wheat supplies, in- 

 cluding carry-over and new crop. Rye 

 supplies also are larger than usual, 

 though very small as compared with 

 other gr.ins. Even if -supplies of 

 wheat and rye are added to the coarse 

 grain supplies, the total is appreciably 

 Selow whrt the country has been using 

 up in eat'^ of several recent years." 



Reasons 5. .en for the low price of 

 corn were: 



1. The low price of wheat brought 

 ^ about by liberal carryovers. 



2. Import restrictions in European 

 countries. 



3. Russian shipments. 



4. The world business depression. 



5. A severe decline in world price 

 levels. 



Prices of com and barley in other 

 exporting countries are very low for 

 similar reasons in spite of the fact that 

 world crops of both grains outside the 

 United States are smaller than the 

 large production in 1929. 



The Advisory Board reported that 

 coarse grains as low as they are, are 

 considerably higher here than in most 

 foreign countries. The spread between 

 Chicago and Buenos Aires prices of 

 corn is around 3 J cents. The spread 

 between Minneapolis and Winnipeg 

 prices of barley is around 20 to 2 5 

 cents. The tariff on corn, recently 

 raised to 25 cents per bushel is effec- 

 tive in restricting impwrts to small pro- 

 portions and to an unusual degree in 

 keeping domestic prices above v.-orlJ 

 levels. 



Commenting upon the action of the 

 Grain Stabilization Corporation in buy- 



ing wheat at Chicago to hold the price 

 at 73c, Chairman Legge said: 



"Demoralization in world grain mar- 

 kets has made it necessary for The 

 Grain Stabilization Corporation to again 

 enter the wheat market in order to stop 

 , panicky selling and to prevent further 

 unwarranted declines in domestic prices. 

 Comparatively wheat is lower in price 

 than other agricultural commodities. 

 The price of flour fully reflects the 

 price of wheat, which, no doubt, is 

 increasing the per capita consumption. 

 While the visible supply of wheat is 

 large, there is no congestion in any of 

 the terminal markets. Receipts at pri- 

 mary markets are unusually light, 

 which suggests the extent to which 

 farm stocks are being used for feeding 

 purposes. Further price declines would 

 be in sympathy with foreign markets 

 and not justified by domestic condi- 

 tions." 



Monroe Leads in 



Use of Limestone 



Monroe county, Illinois, holds the 

 record for the most limestone spread 

 by any Illinois county, according to 

 C. M. Linsley of the University of Illi- 

 nois. He states that 43,000 tons of 

 limestone have been hauled and spread 

 by farmers of this county. 



"Every $2 invested in a ton of lime- 

 Stone for acid soil will return $15 or 

 more in higher crop yields," said Lins- 

 ley. "Farmers who can't spend $1 in 

 order to make $7.50 are the only ones 

 entitled to say that they can't afford 

 to buy limestone to sweeten their acid 

 soils. 



"If ioi.ie oil stock salesman would 

 approach these farmers who say that 

 they cannot afford to buy limestone and 

 offer them stock in an oil well which 

 was guaranteed to return $15 for every 

 $2 invested, most of them would man- 

 age to get together at least $100." 



Serum Directors Meet 



Buy Supplies for *31 



DIRECTORS of the Illinois Farm 

 Bureau Serum Association met in 

 Chicago recently to consider bids on 

 more than 30,000,000 c.c. of serum 

 and virus for immunizing hogs against 

 cholera. 



Farmers in 72 counties have pooled 

 their buying power in purchasing the 

 largest quantity of serum ever ordered 

 nt one time. Radio advertising it is 

 thought has been helpful in reminding 

 hog growers of the need for protecting 

 their herds. A larger sale of serum 

 and virus than heretofore is expected 

 in 1931. 



^AIRY 

 MarMJng 



THE McLean County Milk Pro- 

 ducers' Association announces that 

 the new base-rating plan effective for 

 November, December, January and 

 February provides for a price of $2.45 

 per 100 pounds of 4 per cent milk for 

 all supplies delivered under the base 

 amounts, f. o. b. Bloomington. With 

 associ.-ition dues and trucking costs de- 

 ducted, this means a net of $2.10 to the 

 producers. This price covers all milk 

 sold to the wholesale or retail trade. 



Surplus milk used for ice cream and 

 other dairy products, except butter, 

 will be valued according to its butter- 

 fat content, according to the following 

 formula: 92 score Chicago butter mar- 

 ket price plus 5 cents for each pound 

 of butterfat, plus 30 cents per 100 

 pounds of whole milk delivered. 



For surplus milk used in butter mak- 

 ing, the price is computed on the base 

 of Chicago 92 score butter market for 

 butterfat content plus 30 cents per 100 

 pounds for the whole milk. 



Thusj the net price paid each pro- 

 ducer dejjends upon the base amount 

 delivered and the percentage of his 

 total used in making butter or manu- 

 factured products. 



Each member's base amounts to iO 

 per cent of the average amount deliv- 

 ered during August, September, Octo- 

 ber and November of 1929. That base 

 rating is to apply throughout the bal- 

 ance of 1930. A new base will go into 

 effect January 1, applying the average 

 figures for the same months this year. 



This plan operates very much like the 

 equalization fee plan advocated in the 

 McNary-Haugen bill in that the pro- 

 ducer is penalized for surplus produc- 

 tion. 



Only two of the 72 co-operating 

 counties specified blood serum. Nearly 

 all have adopted the clear concentrated 

 serum. 



The prices obtained from the various 

 companies were the lowest on record. 

 The Anchor Serum Co. of St. Joe, Mo., 

 and the Globe Laboratories, Ft. Worth, 

 Tex., both high grade companies pro- 

 ducing their immunizing materials- ih. 

 sanitary laboratories under government 

 supervision, shared the bulk of the 

 business. 



The advantages gained by purchas- 

 ing serum and virus co-operatively are 

 first the substantial savings in cost, and 

 secondly the assurance of having on 

 hand at all times an ample supply o£ 

 materials. 



