MARKET MILK BUSINESS OF DETROIT, MICH., IN 1915. 7 



that skim milk has a value of 30 cents a hundredweight for feeding 

 purposes. Ninety pounds of skim milk were allowed for each 100 

 of whole milk. 



Table III. — Average prices, by months, paid for 100 pounds of 3.7 per cent milk 

 by all classes of milk dealers in Detroit; also estimated average returns for 

 butter fat delivered to a local creamery. 





Average prices paid per hundredweight 

 of milk. 



Average 

 prices per 

 pound for 

 butter. 1 



Possible returns 

 from creameries. 3 



Months. 



Small 

 dealers. 



Medium 

 dealers. 



Large 

 dealers. 



All 

 dealers. 



For but- 

 terfat per 

 hundred- 

 weight of 

 milk. 



For but- 

 terfat plus 



27 cents 

 for 90 



pounds of 

 skim 

 milk. 



January 



SI. 91 

 1.91 

 1.91 

 1.68 

 1.68 

 1.68 

 1.795 

 1.68 

 1.68 

 1.91 

 1.91 

 1.91 



$1. 884 

 1.884 

 1.864 

 1.678 

 1.63 

 1.588 

 1.618 

 1.720 

 1.760 

 1.851 

 1.864 

 1.942 



SI. 836 

 1.823 

 1.77 

 1.442 

 1.180 

 1.235 

 1.343 

 1.523 

 1.616 

 1.733 

 1.780 

 1.860 



SI. 876 

 1.872 

 1.848 

 1.60 

 1.73 

 1.501 

 1.585 

 1.641 

 1.685 

 1.831 

 1.851 

 1.904 



Cents. 



31.7 



30.437 



27.204 



30. 375 



27.46 



27. 175 



25.5 



24.293 



25.016 



27. 156 



30. 025 



33.208 



$1,321 

 1.264 

 1.119 

 1.262 

 1.130 

 1.118 

 1.042 

 .987 

 1.020 

 1.117 

 1.246 

 1.390 



SI. 591 





1.534 



March 



1.389 



April 



1.532 





1.400 





1.388 



July 



1.312 



August 



1.257 



September 



1.290 





1.387 



November 



1.516 



December 



1.660 







Total average 



1.805 



1.774 



1.595 



1.744 



28.295 



1.168 



1.438 







i Butter prices are the monthly averages of Chicago quotations on the basis of which most of the creameries 

 of that section sell their butter. 



2 These returns are computed on basis of 3.7 per cent butterfat in milk and on the basis of 22 per cent 

 overrun in butter manufacture, and a cost of 2.42 cents a pound for manufacture. 



The table and figure also show that there was no constant relation 

 between the monthly average wholesale prices of butter in the Chi- 

 cago market and monthly average prices paid for milk by Detroit 

 dealers. Farmers in that territory generally received higher prices 

 for milk than they would have obtained if they had delivered the 

 cream to local creameries for the manufacture of butter and had fed 

 the skim milk on the farm. Farmers have found that it requires 

 great care and expense to produce and deliver daily a good grade of 

 market milk, whereas three deliveries a week are usually sufficient 

 for buttermaking purposes. 



At certain seasons of the year, however, some of the dealers bought 

 milk for less than it would have yielded the farmers if it had been 

 utilized in the manufacture of butter and the feeding of live stock, 

 which may be explained by the fact that the companies which own 

 and control country milk stations may obtain virtual buying monop- 

 olies in certain localities. The prices paid to farmers for milk 

 usually depend upon existing competition. Small dealers who do 

 not own or control country milk stations are generally unable to buy 

 milk in distant areas. In the absence of market information and ac- 

 tive competition of manufacturing plants it may also be possible to 

 buy market milk for less than it would yield for manufacturing 

 purposes. 



19462°— 18— Bull. 639 2 



