UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



sy^^'^^u 



i BULLETIN No. 682 



Contributions from the Bureau of Markets 

 CHARLES J. BRAND, Chief 



SU^'^^U 



Washington, D. C. 



July 15, 1918 



A STUDY OF PRICES AND QUALITY OF CREAMERY 



BUTTER. 



By G. P. Waeber, Assistant in Marketing Dairy Products. 



CONTENTS. 



Importance of accurate wholesale price quo- 

 tations 1 



Method and scope of investigations 1 



Wholesale quotations on which creamery but- 

 ter prices are based 2 



Important basic wholesale butter markets ... 3 

 Relation of wholesale price quotations to 

 standards and grades 5 



Relation of wholesale prices to jobbing and 



retail prices 9 



Retail price levels 11 



Effect of packagingunderestablished brands. 15 



Effect of differences in type of retailers 16 



Conclusions 20 



IMPORTANCE OF ACCURATE WHOLESALE PRICE QUOTATIONS. 



The majority of American creameries sell their butter on the 

 basis of some recognized market quotation which, it is supposed, 

 represents the prevailing wholesale market value of a certain grade 

 of butter within the market where the quotation is issued.^ The 

 primary wholesale market receivers of creamery butter usually have 

 standing agreements both with the creameries from which they obtain 

 their supplies and with the jobbers and retailers to whom they sell, 

 whereby the current prices for different grades of goods are de- 

 pendent upon either weekly or daily market quotations. Thus, it 

 is a matter of considerable importance to consumers as well as to 

 producers that the various wholesale price quotations in different 

 markets should reflect accurately the actual current values of different 

 grades of butter. 



METHOD AND SCOPE OF INVESTIGATION. 



In order to determine the relationship of certain market quotations 

 to the basic wholesale prices of creamery butter and to find out to 

 what extent improvement in the quality of butter helps the creamery 



^ For a detailed description of the methods by which current market quotations are 

 issued, see Department Bulletin 456, " Marketing Creamery Butter," by Potts, Roy C, and 

 Meyer, H. P. 



53153°— 18— Bull. 682 1 



