The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, October 18, 1917, Page 8

How Our Allies Control Food England Takes Over the Mills—France Gives Farmers a Bonus‘—Both France and England Pay High Prices for Wheat But Keep Price of One hundred kilos of flour, allowing Allies bave done along similar lines. ": | son? It was the clumsy attempt made 7 The price of bread is also set, 35 per cent for other ingredients, will Great Britain early in the progress by the government to solve the bread - 4 with some slight variations for malke 338 pounds of bread. Selling this of the war bégan the purchase of wheat Problem by fixing prices. The prices ’: 3 Jocal conditions, but this is never at eight pence per four-pound loaf in the world markets.’ The government fixed by the government were too low 5 more than a fraction of a cent. gives the cost of the flour plus $5.34 for issued milling orders, fixing the per-’ 8@nd owners of bread would not sell. z Nowhere in France since the war each 22¢ pounds of flour for the baker centage of flour that must be extractedr Meanwhile starvation was staring into 4 began has the four-pound loaf cost and for distribution cost, a little more from wheat, fixed also the percentage the eyes of the nation. The cry went | as much as nine ponce or as little than 1% cents for each pound of bread. of flour and of wheat and the percent- - WP everywhere for the solution of the i as seven pence and in Paris the From the first this government age of such commodities as rye amd (Contjnued on page 18) i _may be a shortage, or Bread Half What It Is in the United States BY MARIAN WHARTON NE of the most splendid exam- ples of the success of our allies in government control and operation is the manner in which France has solved the bread problem. War was declared in August, 1914. In September France already had her “Service du Revaille- ment Civil” 2t work. The duties of this service were to keep the nation plenti- fully supplied with bread and to pre- vent a rise in prices. France had already lost her northern provinces to the enemy and with them a considerable source of her wheat sup- ply. This, together with the scant harvest of 1914, created an unusual shortage of wheat in France, The speculators were already busy and prices were rising. It was necessary to import wheat, so the service began to buy quietly in foreign markets. Its agents, buying cash in hand and un- known as government agents, bought advantageously. France had secured a supply of wheat large enough for many months before the world knew they were buying. “SOCIALISM” BUGABOO DIDN'T SCARE THEM The next problem which the service faced was the problem of transpor- tation. It was much easier to secure the wheat than to secure transporta- tion. Rates were soaring. There were no guarantees.of delivery. The service did not hesitate, but immediately bought or chartered its own ships. It jncreased the service at its ports so that it was not neces- sary for any vessels to wait to unload but all could unload immediate- ly and start out again. The service built ware- houses and granaries in which to store the grain. It then gathered statistics all over the country on production and consumption and divided the country into zones for distribution purposes. It set prices on wheat, flour and bread. The service was given power to requisi- tion grain and raise the rate of extraction of flour from wheat from 70 per cent to 80 per cent. America’s allies in the great war, like this country, have been faced by the problems of speculation in the people’s food. The United States has adopted the price fixing method in an effort to meet the situation, starting by fixing the $2.20 price on the farm- er’s wheat. Our allies have found that the price fixing method has some disadvantages. A price that is fair in some sections is unfair in others and may lead to diminishing returns when the world is erying for more bread. Costs of manufacturing flour and baking bread also differ and make practically impossible the fix- ing of a fair price for everyone. France has gone at it in another way—adopting the plan of government operation and control in connection with price fixing. France is the only warring nation in which bread is sold at the same price today as before the war. This article, a portion of an address read at the Producers’ and Consumers’ conference at St. Paul, tells what France and others of our allies have done. price since the beginning of the war has always been eight pence. A penny is 21-40 cents in our money. Bread in England is now selling at a shilling for a four-pound loaf, which is a trifle over 24 cents in our money. In the United States a 14-ounce loaf is selling for 10 cents, which would make a four-pound loaf worth about 45 cents. The farmers are paid in France 33 francs a quintal for their wheat, which is $6.37 for 32-3 bushels, or $1.74 a bushel. Since March, 1917, the govern- ment has been paying the farmers a bonus of 3 francs for every quintal control and operation of the food supply has worked without a hitch. Week after week shiploads of wheat have been landed in France and distributed throughout the country. Each department has re- ceived its allotted monthly supply as regularly as clockwork and the rest has been stored in government granaries. The service has met extraordinary difficulties. It has had to buy in a market where prices fluctuate every day and rise most days and it has sold at a price fixed without regard to price fluctuations. Yet during the first two maize, that could be placed in flour, limited the use of wheat or any other cereal for the production of beer or other spirits and limited the use of flour made of wheat for making cake. Step by step the government has advanced until on April 30, 1917, it -took over all flour mills, except those of minor size, using any wheat in the making of flour. In 1914 the government purchased 900,000 tons of sugar, sold it to refiners, and set a maximum price to consum- ers. Numerous laws have been passed to regulate the consumption of food, such as restriction of the selling of pastry, meatless days, restriction of the supply of food in restaurants, etc, In February, 1917, England adopted the voluntary ration system, that is, the food controller asked the people not to use- more than a certain amount of flour and meat and sugar. No bellig- erent country except Germany has adopted a compulsory ration system. COAL CONTROL IN ENGLAND AND ITALY After considerable controversy be- tween the miners and the coal barons, who were making * enormous profits which interfered with the successful prosecution of the war, in February, 1917, the government decided to take * charge of all coal mines in the United Kingdom during the period of the war and a new department was organized for their operation. During the war the government has also appropriated $20,- 000,000 for the construction of houses for the working people, has gone ex- tensively into state insurance, assum- ing all risks at a flat rate of insurance. The government has also re- quisitioned much of its merchant. marine and has placed a government commission in charge of the railroads. In Italy the govern- ment has authorized in each community the es- tablishment 'of associ- ations of which the municipality is a promi- nent member, to pur- chase and sell grain without a profit. Maxi- mum prices have been fixed on many necessi- ties. Many Italian cities have established munici- pal enterprises. The work in Rome is a good Each zone has its example of the work ¥ wheat supply center. being done throughout ¥ The “Perfect” of each all Italy. Rome has governmental division established 160. munici- reports shortage at a fixed allowance to be sent monthly. ‘When wheat arrives in port it is sent to wherever there the shortage may be sup- plied from the nearest district which has a is now in use in the European countries at war. “War Bread Wagon” used in New York city for demonstrating to the people how toc make war bread such as Europsan countries have entered into much more effective and far reaching plans to conserve foods and fix prices on staple articles, such as wheat and bread, than the pal bakeries for the sell- ing of bread, also meat markets and stores for the distribution of po- tatoes, macaroni and spaghetti, noodles, rice and beans. It imports and sells without profit, milk and eggs. Italy surplus: Phus there _Un::ed State:* hEas-I R;ad the accompanying article and learn what is peing done about wheat, flour and bread imports and sells all are no unnecessary '0 'rance and England. ’ the coal. transportation rates added to the cost of the wheat and flour and bread. The wheat is sent through to the millers in each district with which the government has made ar- rangements to turn the wheat into flour. These millers pay cash in ad- vance at the price fixed by the service. The miller pays the transportation charges when he buys from a farm- er. When he buys from the govern- ment, the government adds a fixed rate to cover transporatation charges. FIX PRICES ON FLOUR AND ON BREAD TOO The price of flour is set by the serv- ice calculated on the basis of an 80 per cent yield of flour, 18 per cent bran and two per cent waste. The millers are not forced by law to accept this price but the government Kkeeps on hand a reserve supply of flour and sends this into any markets to be sold at the price set by the service, when- ever the mill shows signs of holding off. harvested, which adds 16 cents per bushel to the amount received. The miller pays the $1.74 per bushel, the government pays the bonus of 16 cents per bushel, making a total of $1.90 which the . farmer receives for . his wheat. In connection with this price, it must be remembered -that labor charges are less in France than in the United States, One hundred kilos of flour (220 pounds) cost 421% francs or $8.20. A barrel of flour, which in the United States is 197 pounds, in France would sell for $7.34, FRENCH MILLERS CONTENT WITH SMALLER PROFITS The cost of wheat to - the French miller, necessary for 100 kilos of flour at an 80 per cent yield, is $7.93. This he sells for $8.20, giving him 27 cents spread and the value of 40 pounds of bran by-product to pay expenses and profit. i PAGE EIGHT years of the war the seryice was not only self supporting, but saved the gov- ernment millions of dollars and fur- nished bread to the populace at pre- war prices. The millers have admitted that if their profits are somewhat less, their risks are very much less. They ° - admit that for 100 kilos ‘or 220 pounds of fiour with an.80 per cent milling, 4214 francs or $8.20 in our money is a good price with wheat'at $1.74 a bushel in our money and measurement. Thus has government operation and control of the food industry operated in France; protecting the interests of the farmer,. the miller, the baker and consumer,’ eliminating undue. profit and giving - the people; not a 5-cent 12-ounce loaf, but a 4-cent 16-ounce loaf of bread.’ WHAT ENGLAND DID IN FOOD CONTROL - - ‘While the suqcésq of France has per- haps been the most notable, it'is in- teresting to see. what: others of our g In Russia the govern- ment has taken over all the coal mines. "It has also assumed government - control of the food supply. Chaos in‘the food | supply was the big factor in the Russian - revolutien. Russia before the revolution suffered from the high cost of living more than any other country in‘ the world, Prices of some articles reached fabulous proportions. But when leather was selling at premiums the Russians - turned to sandals and rags to protect > their feet. When kerosene was selling at prohibitive prices, tallow candles . again became popular. Sugar was dis- .. It was not for sale, pensed with by a large part of the population. But a time came when the country finally found itself without bread. In the fall of 1916 the Russian nation faced famine, in spite of the fact that Russia had hundreds of mil- lions of surplus bushels of grain, ‘Where was this yast surplus? The peasants, the landlords and especially the specu- lators held it back. 'What was the rea- i P s e r— i e