MARKETS 159 



In the summer of 1917, the Federal Food Administration, in 

 an effort to control the prices and profits of condensed milk, 

 ruled that the profits on condensed milk shall not exceed 30 

 cents per case on an average for the year, this being- considered 

 the average pre-war profit. This did not mean that the govern- 

 ment guaranteed a profit of 30 cents per case, it merely meant 

 that 30 cents per case was the maximum profit the condenseries 

 were allowed to make. This ruling applied only to condensed 

 milk sold to the government, it did not refer to the goods sold 

 to the domestic trade nor to export contracts. The national 

 committee of condensed milk men who met with the Federal 

 Food Administration Committee, however, agreed to apply the 

 same ruling to their product sold to the domestic trade. 



Profits on condensed milk supplied to the allied nations, 

 however, were in excess of this figure, partly because of high 

 prices payed for this export milk and partly because of the 

 greatly reduced cost of selling and distributing. 



The following figures show wholesale condensed milk prices 

 in 1916 and 1917: 



January June 



1916 1917 



per case, per case. 



Sweetened condensed milk, per case $6.50 $8.75 



Evaporated milk, per case 3.85 5.75 



Early in 1918, this condensed milk boom suffered an abrupt 

 check from the fact that the transatlantic bottoms available 

 proved entirely inadequate to handle the vast stores of goods 

 which were intended to be shipped to the Allies and to the Amer- 

 ican forces in France. Thus, the Allied Provision Export Com- 

 mission was forced to reduce its orders for shipment of condensed 

 milk from this country to one fourth the regular monthly amount 

 and the American government ceased ordering additional supplies 

 of condensed milk for its overseas forces. 



In the meantime, the condensed milk firms in this country 

 had contracted for an increased supply of fluid milk at high 

 prices with their farmers, many new factories had been erected 

 and the output of the old factories was vastly increased. With 

 the sudden reduction of orders from the Allies and the complete 



