June, 1928] ^Marketing Live Broilers ix Xkw York 13 



ceived. The average price in January. 1927, was even lower than in 

 December, 1926, although receipts were also lower. 



Receipts of live broilers during February increased enormously from 

 1625 to 1927. The percentage increase was over 400 percent. Average 

 prices received for New Hampshire broilers, however, showed a com- 

 paratively moderate drop, from 56 in 1925 to 51 in 1926 and 45 in 1927. 



A similar decrease occured each year in the average price of live 

 broilers from New Hampshire during March. Receipts during this 

 month increased about 150 percent from 1925 to 1926, and average 

 prices dropped from 60.2 to 56.3. The following year, a further in- 

 crease of about 35 percent in receipts was accompanied by a drop in 

 price of 8.1 cents to 48.2 cents per pound. 



Receipts during April showed a slightly smaller percentage increase in 

 1926 over 1925, but the average price received for New Hampshire 

 broilers dropped from 62.2 cents to 51.8 — a decrease of 10.4 cents. In 

 April. 1927. a further increase in receipts of 52 percent over the pre- 

 ceding year was accompanied by a drop of only 4.5 cents per pound. 

 Receipts during May increased about 85 percent from 1925 to 1926, 

 and remained about the same in 1927. Average prices received for New 

 Hampshire broilers, however, declined each year. This may have been 

 due to the increased receipts from New Hampshire in 1927 over 1926. 

 The following months from June to September show a decrease in re- 

 ceipts from New Hampshire from 1925 to 1926, but an increase from 

 other states except for June. The average prices received for New 

 Hampshire broilers followed these changes in receipts quite closely. 

 The largest drop in prices was 3.9 cents during June, while in July wdth 

 ]iractically constant receipts average prices were 3.4 cents higher. 

 During August and September, with receipts nearty the same, prices 

 also remained on about the same level both years. 



The seasonal production of broilers seems to be shifting in New 

 Hampshire. In 1926 the receipts of broilers were nearly the same in 

 ]\Iarch, April and Ma}' with only a small increase in June and July. 

 In 1925 there was a marked upward trend in receipts from January to 

 a peak in June and another low in November. Apparently the regular 

 poultiymen as well as the specialized broiler producers have pushed 

 their broilers for the earliest market possible with a resulting decrease 

 in receipts after May. These changes, while apparent and logical, 

 should not be accepted as definite trends of production, since the period 

 covered by this study is so short, and the relative profitableness of pro- 

 ducing broilers during each of these months is not known. 



There seems to be a consistent increase in demand for live broilers 

 from November to March and April. In spite of rapidly increasing re- 

 ceipts during these months prices are consistently higher in March and 

 April than in preceding months of the early broiler season. In 1925, 

 1926 and 1927 receipts during February have been considerably larger 

 than during the preceding months, and yet the average price received 

 by New Hampshire broiler producers was considerably higher in 1926 

 and 1927, and about the same in 1925. 



Receipts during March and April show a continued seasonal increase 

 during each of these years, and at the same time somewhat higher 

 prices than in the preceding January or February. The peak price of 



