(j(i MASS. KXPliRIMENT STATION BUl.l.l^VriN 2.50 



space, and that too often not suitable for perishables. Better storage 

 facilities outside the home make it easy for dealers to provide the public 

 with good fruit throughout the year, and the housewife is now able t» 

 order apples as she needs them. 



Consumption of Apples 



Certain factors which undoubtedly have considerable influence on the 

 demand for any commodity must not be overlooked, even though they 

 may not lend themselves to exact measurement. 



We are accustomed to take account of the influence which the demand 

 for a product has on the price it will bring; but we less often con.sider 

 the influence which the price of a product has upon the demand for it. 

 Not only the total demand but the character of the demand may be in- 

 fluenced by the price. The housewife who goes to the market to buy 

 apples may find that the A grade fruit, which she prefers, is priced so 

 high that she can not afford it. She may instead accept B grade apples 

 at a price within her means; she may substitute some other fruit for the 

 apples she meant to buy; or she may decide that her purse does not 

 allow the purchase of any fruit whatever. The effective demand of this 

 consumer has been very definitely affected by the price. 



Obviously the volume of any product sold in any market varies with 

 the available supply. More will normally be consumed when the supply 

 is large and the price relatively low. The supply, likewise, may affect de- 

 mand unfavorably as well as favorably. The housewife whose purse is 

 not too rigidly limited, frequently buys a product because it is not com- 

 mon, to get a change in diet; or conversely, she may turn away from one 

 which has been on the market in abundance, regardless of the fact that 

 tlie price is attractive. She has grown weary of it. 



Unemployment, limiting as it does the purchasing power of the group 

 out of work, has marked influence on the demand for most products. The 

 unemployment which has been prevalent in Great Britain since the World 

 War, for example, has affected the demand for practically all products. 

 The buying power of large groups has been materially reduced, and the 

 demand for nearly all commodities has been correspondingly less. 



Advertising, well-directed, has its effect on the demand for the pro- 

 duct advertised. A notable example of the results of advertising is the 

 case of citrus fruit, the demand for which has been greatly increased since 

 a systematic campaign of advertising has been carried on by the growers. 

 It is, however, impossible to say that the increased demand is entirely due 

 to advertising. Such factors as more intelligent distribution and improved 

 pack and quality of the fruit, even if they can not be accurately measured, 

 ituist have their influence on the volume and character of the demand. 



Trend of Consumption 



The com])laint is frequently heard among dealers and growers that 

 "people aren't eating as many apples as they did", and that consumption 

 of apples is declining. In order to determine the truth of the statement, 

 statistics of population and commercial crops are compared in Chart II. 

 It is apparent that during the seasons from 1918 to 1927 the commercial 

 crop, exports deducted, has steadily increased. It is equally evident that 



