16 



MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 366 



Table 5. — Division of Worcester milk supply among producers by 

 SIZE groups 



1935 



Although there was a decided lack of uniformity in size of production through- 

 out the milkshed, the average daily delivery per farm increased steadily from the 

 center to the outer edge of the shed, and was largest in New Braintree, Hardwick, 

 and Rutland, that area northwest of the city. 



Seasonality of milk production varies widely among markets and areas. i^ 

 In order to determine just how much variation existed in Worcester, indices of 

 purchases in the three largest Massachusetts markets were compiled and com- 

 pared (Table 3 and Figure 7). It is very evident that throughout the year pur- 

 chases for Worcester varied much less than for the other two markets. It is true, 

 however, that as a market area increases in size there is usually wider seasonal 

 variation in supplies, but it is not known whether or not there is a definite ratio 

 between these two facts. Worcester is the smallest of these aieas,i^ and she 

 does exhibit the greatest regularity of purchases; and as there was even more 

 regularity in sales, surplus was necessarily small (Figure 3). 



Among dealers in the Worcester market there was some difference in the 

 amount of seasonal variation (Figure 8). Use-plan dealers purchased much more 

 in June than in the lowest months, January and November, but the regularity 

 of purchases by flat-plan dealers helped to level the average curve for Worcester. 

 Dealers of this type went far toward avoiding surplus supplies simply by not 

 buying all the milk produced by their farmers during the months of higher pro- 

 duction. Rating-plan purchases were almost the same seasonally as those in the 

 entire market. As about 62 percent of the purchases were fairly regular through- 

 out the year, showing only slight changes seasonally, the Worcester market did 

 not have a surplus problem. 



"Gauninitz, E. W., and Reed. O. M., Some Problems Involved in Establishing Milk Prices, 

 U. S. D. A., A. A. A. Division of Marketing and Marketing Agreements — Dairy Section, Sept. 

 19,37, pp. 48 and 49. 



''^Springfield area includes Holyoke and Chicopee; hence the population of this area according 

 to the 19.?5 census was approximately 248.000. By the same census the population of metropolitan 

 Boston was 2,064,000 and of Worcester was 190,000. 



