.1une 1953 2 STATON BULLETN 41 ton of purchased goods and servces n producton may prove a fnancal hardshp. n such years outlay may be held down by deferrng the purchase of equpment and the postponement of all except the most pressng tems of repar and upkeep. On the other hand, n years of favorable prce relatonshps replacements of permanent equpment, new nvestments, and extensve repars, as well as debt reducton, should receve major consderaton n utlzng the larger excess of ncome over operatng expense. New technques n farmng requr more judcous longtme fnancal Plan nng n order to receve maxmutn beneft from them. As most of these new technques nvolve addtonal captal nvestments and also a larger volume of busness to use them most effectvely, they do ere. ate an addtonal fnancal burden for the startng farmer. The startng farmer needs not only more captal than for. merly, but also more techncal know}. edge n order to use the new technques to best advantage. Rex W. Cox S111111111lf/llllfd eonclusohs 1. Changes n farm technques on dary farms n southeastern Mnnesota durng the last 3 years nclude the substtuton of mechancal for anmal power, the general mechanzaton of the farm busness, and the adopton of new varetes of crops and new practces n crop and lvestock producton. 2. n general these new technques have resulted n ncreased output per man, per acre, and per anmal. 3. Labor saved by power machnery has been utlzed largely by ncreased numbers of lvestock. 4. Larger producton of crops and lvestock has ncreased both gross and net ncome per farm. But the expense per dollar of ncome has also ncreased snce more of the goods and servces used n producton are now purchased rather than produced on the farm. 5. The ncreased earnngs that result from the adopton of new producton technques are hghest n years when the purchasng power of farm products s relatvely hgh. Even wth a moderately low purchasng power of farm products, the farmer stll has a larger excess of ncome over operatng expendtures. n general, t s only when prce relatonshps are extremely unfavorable to the farmer, as they were n 1932, that the use of new technques may prove to be a hardshp. F:armers could ease ths stuaton by deferrng the purchase and upkeep of equpmen buldngs, and real estate mprovements to years of more favorable prce relatonshps.. New technques n producton adopted durng the perod covered by ths study may result n wder fluctuatons n ncome from year to year than occurred before ther adopton even though the average gross and net ncomes are hgher. 7. The great varablty of net earnngs from year to year resultng from the use of new technques calls for careful plannng of captal nvestments and debt servcng by the farmer and perhaps a more flexble type of credt for farmers generally. 8. New technques put an ncreasng burden on the startng farmer as they nvolve more captal nvestment n machnery and equpment, the purchase of more of the goods and servces used n producton, a larger sze of busness, and much more techncal knowledge, mechancal ablty, and busness judgment.
CONTENTS Varaton n consumpton... 4 Famly use and consumpton rate 4 Varaton n rates of consumpton. All fats and ols... 7 7 Factors nfluencng rates of consumpton. 7 Famly ncome and consumpton. 8 Natonalty, sze of famly, and consumpton.. 1 Famly ncome and proporton of usng butter and margarne. 1 Changes n the consumpton pattern... 12 Responses to changes n prce 14 Users of butter only.. 14 Users of both butter and margarne 14 Users of margarne only.. 14 Other comments on margarne use.. 15 Competton between and, Mnneapols, 1952 RexW.Cox THE MARKET poston of butter and margarne has changed greatly snce 1938 because of the large declne n the use of butter and the sharp rse n the use of margarne. 1938 1952. Annual consumptonpounds per capta Mnneapols Unted States 34.8 2.8 1. 8.7 1938..5 2. 1952..8 7.7 The changes n the consumpton pattern were ntated by condtons exstng durng World War. ncreased demand for flud mlk and expanson n cheese producton for domestc consumpton and for lendlease shpments to our alles reduced the amount of butter produced durng the war. Supples of other fats and ols were also short. Consumpton was lmted by ratonng. When supples of fats and ols became more plentful, there was a shft to margarne rather than a return to butter. Ths shft was encouraged by the dfferental between butter and margarne prces and by the reducton n federal and state restrctons on colored margarne. One consequence s that many consumers are unwllng to pay prces they formerly pad for a gven supply of butter. The purpose of ths study s (1) to show the varaton n the consumpton of butter and margarne by n Mnneapols and to account for these dfferences, and (2) to search for nformaton whch wll be useful n pontng out future changes n the compettve status of these products. Competton BUTTER AND MARGARNE CONSUMPTON PER PERSON MNNEAPOLS UNTED STATES BUTTER MARGARNE BUTTER MARGARNE J Conclusons..... 1 CEY 1938 ll..5 11. 2. 1952 = 5 LBS. 2.8.8 8.7 7.7
o MOO 4 STATON BULLETN 417 BUTTER AND MARGARNE 5 between butter and margarne s, at least to some extent, a part of the competton among all edble fats and ols; n consequence, consderaton s gven to the consumpton of lard, shortenngs, spreads, and other fats and ols. The study s based on the reported consumpton of groups of n varous parts of the cty. The were selected to provde a good representaton of condtons n the cty as a whole. The areas and the number of ntervewed n each area had been prevously desgnated n accordance wth an overall sample desgn. The were contacted n March and Aprl, 1952, and the reples gven by the housewves to questons about the weekly consumpton of fats and ols, famly preference, and famly characterstcs consttute the data of ths study. nformaton was obtaned from 1,179, whch ncluded 3,721 ndvduals or 2,574 consumng unts. Part of the analyss of the data was FAMLY USE AND CONSUMPTON RATE A large proporton of the ncluded n the study used butter, shortenngs, spreads, and dressngs; more than onethrd used margarne; and less than onethrd used lard (table 1). 1 The domnance of butter n famly consumpton was qute apparent. Shortenngs were second n mportance, followed by margarne, dressngs, and spreads. n terms of expendtures, the mportance of butter was even greater. was the hghest prced of the varous fats and ols, the prce beng more 1 The term shortenngs here ncludes hydrogenated lard as well as vegetable ol shortenngs. Offcal statstcs on consumpton of lard and shortenngs classfy hydrogenated lard as shortenngs. drected toward fndng out how c sumers havmg d'ff 1 eren t c h aracterst on. vared n ther use o butter and rna garne. The consumpton of the varous products has been converted to con. sumpton!'er consumng unt for each famly and averages have been calcu. lated for each dstnctve group of con. sumers. A consumng unt s an adult male equvalent eatng all hs rneaj.s at home. The consumng unt equvalents for all famly members are: Adult male Adult woman Chldren 13 years or older 112 years old 79 years old 4 years old Varaton n Consumpton Consumng unts 1..a. 1..7.. 4.3.1. 9 months to 3 years old Under 9 months f a member of a famly ate some meals away from home, the consumng unt equvalent assgned to that ndvdual was adjusted to reflect that fact. than twce that of margarne. prce was one and onehalf tmes that of spreads, whch ranked second n expendtures. The amounts of each fat and ol used for varous purposes are gven n table 2. The amount of butter used on the table was four tmes the amount of margarne. More butter than margarne was used n fryng, but the same amounts were used n bakng. The marked preference for shortenngs compared wth lard n bakng and fryng was qute apparent. Table use accounted for almost fourffths of total consumpton of butter and threeffths of total consumpton of margarne (table 3). Use of lard was about equally dvded between bakng and fryng, but twce as much short Fat or ol pounds Lard shortenngs. ou Spreads DressngS Table 1. JUl Fats and Ols: Consumpton, Prce, and Expendtures Proper Consumpton Expendtures ton of Average Per Propor prce Per Properusng Per consum lon of pad Per consum lon of famly ng unt total per lb. famly nq unt total 9 1.27.58 39.4.82 1.5.48 58.5 39.41.19 12.9.37.1.7 8.5 28.15. 4..13.2.1 1.2 85.55.25 17..33.17.8 9.8 53.12. 3.7.33.4.2 2.4 84.3.1 1.8.55.2.9 11. All fats and ols 3.2 1.48 1.79.82 9.4.18 12.2.37.15.7 8. Table 2. All Fats and Ols: Consumpton per Consumng Unt n Varous Uses Fat or ol All uses Table Bakng Fryng Vegetables Salads Others. 58.45.4.3.5..1.19.11.4.2.2 Lard..3.3 Shortenng&.25.17.8 Ols...1.1..3.1 Spreads.1.15..1 Dreungs. 18.3....14.1 All fats and ols. 1.48.74.29.17.7.17.4 Less than.5 pounds. Table 3. All Fats and Ols: Proportons Consumed n Varous Uses Fat or ol All uses Table, 78.8.1 Lard Shortennqs Ols 2. Spreads 9.4 Dressngs 17.7 All fats and ols 5.7 enngs were used n bakng compared wth fryng. About onehalf of the ols were used n salad dressng preparatons, most of the remander beng used n bakng and fryng. Table 4 gves further nformaton on the use of butter and margarne. About threeffths of the consumed butter only. Table use accounted for more than threefourths of the total consumpton by ths group of. Of the usng both butter and Bakng Fryng Vegetables Salads Others 7. 4. 8..5 1.1 2.2 9.5 8.1.4 1.7 47.8 49.1 3.1.4 32.7.9 21.7 19.2 1.1 48.3 7.1 4.9.7.2 3.8.8 1..9 75.4 4.2 19. 11.5 4.7 ll.5 2. margarne, almost onehalf used only butter on the table. The amount of butter used on the table was fve tmes nontable use. Famles usng both products on the table consumed almost the same total amount of each; however, table use of butter exceeded that of margarne. About 1 of the used margarne only. Table use was three tmes nontable use. The total consumpton per consumng unt of
STATON BULLETN 417 Table 4. and : Proporton of Famles Usng, and Consumpton n Table and Nontable Uses Consumpton per consumng unt Proporton of Famles usng usng Table Nontable Table N Total use use Total use use only 1.4 and margarne 28.8 Only butter on table _ 12.8 Both on table 15.8 Only margarne on table only.2 9.8 All.71.53..48.29.58.55.1.44.9.37.18.19.51.9 2.2.4.8.45.32.13.29.5.5.71.54.17.45.13.19.11.8 There were two n ths group that reported only margarne used on the table, an; 1 reported the use of nether on the table. margarne by ths group was the same as the total consumpton of butter by usng butter only. Also, the dstrbuton between table and nontable use was about the same. VARATON N RATES OF CONSUMPTON All Fats and Ols The average rates of consumpton for the cty as a whole were derved from showng a wde range n consumpton per consumng unt. Seventy of the were found n groups where the total consumpton per consumng unt was between.8 and 2.. Table 5. All Fats and Ols: Cumulatve Dstr. buton of Famles Consumng at Specfed Rates of Consumpton per Consumng Unt Consumpton per Proporton of consumng unt famlee Less than.4 1.1 Less than.8 9.3 Less than 1.2 32.3 Less than 1. 59.7 Less than 2. 79.1 Less than 2.4 89.4 Less than 2.8 94.8 Less than 3.2 Only 9 used less than.8 (table 5). When the consumpton of ndvdual fats and ols was examned on the varous levels of total fat consumpton, all tems were found to ncrease as the level of total consumpton rose. Ths suggested that were more alke n the composton of ther consumpton than n the amount of fat consumed. General food habts of n preferrng or not preferrng a large fat ntake thus appeared responsble for the larger dfferences n the total consumpton per consumng unt rather than an assocaton of larger consumpton wth an ndvdual fat. However, there were some marked dfferences n the proportons of the fats used at varous levels of total consumpton (table ). The declne n the proporton of butter and the rse n the proporton of salad ols, spreads, and dressngs were partcularly marked. Thus, whle butter consumpton per consumng unt ncreased from.31 pounds n the group consumng less than.8 pounds of total fats to 1.17 pounds n the group consumng 2.8. pounds or more, the butter proporton dropped from 5.1 to 33.. n the case of spreads and dressng, not only the amount ncreased sharply but also the proporton. BUTTER AND MARGARNE 7 Table. All Fats and Ols: Proportonate Dstrbuton of Consumpton of Specfed Fats and Ols at Varous Levels of Total Consumpton ============= Mar Short Dress cousu!lpton per All fats col1llumng unt and ol garne Lard enngs Ols Spreads ngs pounds Less than.8 5.1 11.4 3.2 15.9 2.7 7.7 9..B 1.19 42.4 11.3 3.7 1.7 3.1 9.8 13. 1.2 1.59. 4.7 12.4 3.4 17. 3.3 1.9 12.3 1. 1.99 38.2 13. 4. 1. 3.7 11.7 12.8 2. 2.39 35. 13.9 3.8 18. 4. 12.7 12. 2.4 2.79 35.5 14.1 5.8 13.9 5. 12.5 13.2 2.8 and over 33. 11.9 8.2 17.5 5. 1.9 12.3 Consumpton perconsum nqunt Table 7. and : Cumulatve Dstrbuton of Famles Accordng to Rates of Consumpton per Consumng Unt Proporton of consumng at specfed rates pounds Less than.2. Less than.4 _,_, Less than..8 Less than Less than 1. Less than 1.2 Less than 1.4 _. Less than 1.. All 13.2 27.1 55. 72.2 81.9 91.3 9.3 Usng butter only 1.9 13. 43.7 2.9 75.4 88.3 94. More than onehalf of the ncluded n the study consumed less than. pounds of butter per consumng unt (table 7). However, less than onehalf of the usng butter only and twothrds of the usng both butter and margarne consumed less than ths. Usng Usng butter All Usng butter and mar margarne and margarne only garne 7.9 9. 28.5 32.4 8.3 17.4 59.7.2 9.5 47. 85. 82.7 94. 8.7 91.8 89.7 9.3 77.4 94.7 94.7 98.1 9.4 9.8 98.5 99.2 94.8 99.1 Fourffths of all the used less than.4 pounds of margarne per consumng unt. About onesxth of the usng margarne only. and threeffths of those usng both products consumed less than.4 pounds. Factors nfluencng Rates of Consumpton ncome, natonalty, and sze of famly appeared to be the prncpal factors responsble for varatons n proporton of usng varous fats and n rates of consumpton. The most mportant of these factors seemed to be famly ncome. The populaton of Mnneapols s predomnantly of north Euro
8 STATON BULLETN 417 BUTTER AND MARGARNE 9 Famly ncome Table 8. All Fats and Ols: Weekly Consumpton. Cost per Pound. and Expendture per Consumnq Unt on Varous ncome Levels Less than 99,,,, 1 139 14 and above Consumpton 1.4 1.5 1.49 1.4 Cost per poun.54.78.54.81.5.84..8 All,_. 1.48.55.82 Table 9. All Fats and Ols: Consumpton per Consumlnq Unlt on Varous ncome Levels Famly ncome Mar Total Short qarne Lard' = ennqs Salad Ols Spreads drea.n 91 Less than 1.4.53.28 99 1.5.58.19 1 139 1.49.1.14 14 and above 1.4.2.12 All 1.48.58.19 pean stock, and the natonalty groups wth specal consumpton characterstcs are comparatvely small. Therefore, dfferences n natonalty probably accounted for only a mnor part of total varaton n consumpton of dfferent products. FAMLY NCOME AND CONSUMPTON The total fat consumpton was approxmately the same on all ncome levels. n consequence, the ncrease n expendture per consumng unt per week was due manly to the purchase of hgherprced fats and ols on the hgher ncome levels (table 8). A prevous study of the consumpton of fats and ols conducted at a tme when ncomes were: relatvely low ndcated a sgnfcant ncrease n consumpton as well as cost and expendture on the upper ncome levels.: t was lkely that even on the lower ncome levels famly W. C. Wate and R. W. Cox..A Study of the Consumpton of Fats and Ols n Mnneapols, 1938. Mnn. Agr. Expt. Sta. Bull. 344. 1939..8.23.4.15.S.7.2.5.17.18.5.2.7.1.2.5.21.7. 19.2..25..1.18 ncome was suffcently hgh n 1952 to permt a volume of purchases comparable wth that made by n the upper ncome groups. The composton of purchases, however, dffered sgnfcantly among ncome groups. The ncrease n the average cost of fats purchased gves an ndcaton of the shfts whch take place between the sources of fat as the ncome level rses. The tendency for greater use of the more expensve fats n the hgh than n the low ncome groups s shown n table 9, whch gves the consumpton per consumng unt of each of the fats and ols on the varous ncome levels. Consumpton of butter, spreads, and dressngs tended to ncrease, and consumpton of margarne tended to declne wth ncreases n ncome. n smlar studes of the consumpton of fats and ols t was not unusual to dscover that the average consumpton of shortenngs and of lard and shortenngs combned s less n the upper ncome group because of the substtuton of cookng ols n fryng. These changes have been tested by varance analyss and found to be sgnfcant at the 5 level. Table 1. All Fats and Ols: Proporton of Consumpton per Consumnq Unlt on Varous ncome Levels Mar Short Salad f(llllly JcOle Total Butte r qarne Lard enngs Ols Spreads dressnqs dollar par week ).ld thaj1 3.3 19.2 5.4 15.8 2.7 1.3 1.3 & 38.7 12. 4.7 17.4 3.3 11.3 12. 99 4.9 9.4 3.4 17.5 4.7 1.7 13.4 11)!39 1 c111d a bove 42.2 8.1 3.4 14.4 4.8 13. 13.7 All falllles _,._. 39.4 12.9 4. 17. 3.7 1.8 12.2 DSTRBUnON OF CONSUMPDON AND EXPENDTURES AMONG FATS AND OLS XJ'ENDTURES lly BUTTER Q MARGARNE LARD AND SHORTENNGS 111111!111 SPREADS OTHERS Table. All Fats and Ols: Proporton of Expendtures per Consumnq Unt on Varous ncome Levels F111Y All fats Mar Short Salad!nco111e and ols qarne Lard ennqa Ols Spreads dressnqs Leu than. 5.2.99 57.9 1.1.39.. 4 cmd above 2. All fa mles 58.5 The relatve ncrease n the consumpton of substtute spreads and other o1ls by n the upper ncome group was greater than that of butter. n consequence, butter and margarne combned accounted for a smaller, proporton of the total consumpton of fats on the upper than on the lower ncome level (table 1). The ncreased consumpton of the hgherprced products and to some extent the ncrease n prces pad per pound resulted n a marked shft n the relatve expendtures among the 13.5 1.8 9.2 1.9 1.3 7.1 8.9 1. 9.9 2.3 11.3 8.1. 1.2 9. 3.1 1.4 9.1 5.4 1.2 7. 3.3 11.5 9. 8.5 1.2 9.8 2.4 11. 8. dfferent ncome groups (table 11).' For example, the expendtures for butter were not only more than onehalf of the total expendtures on the lower ncome level, but n ths group spent four tmes as much on butter as on margarne. n the upper ncome group expendtures on butter accounted for 2 of the total and were about 12 tmes the expendtures on margarne. ' The average prce pad for butter by n the upper ncome group was about 2 cents more than the average prce pad by n the lower ncome group.
STATON BULLETN 417 1 NATONALTY, SZE OF FAMLY, AND CONSUMPTON The nfluence of famly ncome on the average rates of consumpton of butter and margarne became all the more evdent when both natonalty and sze of famly were held constant. Table 12 shows the consumpton rates for two dfferent sze groups of natve whtes on the varous ncome levels. Famly ncome seemed to have no apparent effect on the consumpton of butter by of small sze. However, on each ncome level the consumpton per consumng unt of the small exceeded that of the larger. The use of butter by the large rose sharply as ncome ncreased. For ths group, the average consumpton per consumng unt on the upper ncome level was about twce that on the lower level. The changes n margarne consumpton were somewhat comparable to those of all ncluded n the study. FAMLY NCOME AND PROPORTON OF FAMLES USNG BUTTER AND MARGARNE More concrete nformaton of the nfluence of ncome on the consumpton of butter and margarne s shown n table 13. The data n ths table suggest that famly ncome was more nfluental n determnng the use of these products than n determnng the amounts used. Fqr example, there w a marked ncrease n the proporton usng butter only and a mark d declne n the proporton of famle usng margarne only as famly ncollles ncreased. The proporton of famm e consumng both products was Pra tcally the same n all ncome group On each ncome level, the consum;: ton of butter by usng butter only was about the same as the con. sumpton of margarne by Usng margarne only. Also, the consump. ton of each product by these two respectve groups of was about the same on each ncome level Among the usng both butter and margarne, the consumpton of butter exceeded that of margarne on each ncome level. The amount of butter consumed per consumng unt by these dd not vary sgnfcantly among the varous ncome groups. The amount of margarne consumed by these decreased from the lowest to the next ncome level, but remaned practcally the same for the upper three ncome groups. t was evdent that the use of overall averages based on both consumng and nonconsumng for the purpose of comparng the consumpton on dfferent ncome levels tended to obscure the real effect of ncome. When each consumng group was examned separately, the unformty of consumpton rates was surprsngly hgh; however, the proporton of usng Table 13. Proporton of Famles Usng,, and Both, and Consumpton per Consumng Unt on Varous ncome Levels === Table 12. and : Consumpton per Consumng Unt of Large and Small Natve Whte Famles on Dfferent Levels Consumpton Famles usng FamlY ncome and product used number 13 85 4 294 55.4 28.9 15.7 ssds99 only and margarne. only All 31 141 5 513 1. 27.5 1.9 SlDD$139 only and margarne only All 174 8 9 29 4.7 32. 3.3.8.53 71 8.9 27.2 3.9 $14 and above only. and margarne only _,,_.. All 28 4 13 and margarne Las than sso only and margarne only All.54 1..81.91.4.28.53.37.9.19.54.58.9.77.8.8.75.33.14.1.79.74.74.33.74.12.4.2 The number of n the upper ncome groups whch used margarne was too small to warrant any comparsons. However, they have been ncluded for totalng purposes. HOW NCOME AFFECTS BUTTER AND MARGARNE CONSUMPTON MNNEAPous, 1952 1 FAMLY NCOME PER WEEK LESS THAN $ $14 ='77777.==:sE4:S>m m ='f?7?7m'77777.. \. ;1r::. _..,,5.7,.1. :. Jlo.uJ,:<, : 27.5 :,; $ $99 $1 $139 Famly ncome 11 BUTTER AND MARGARNE AND OVER. ;:, =;_,,,; \ 2 % : ;. 3.3. ' ll 3.9 % 27.2. _,1 1 All Small Larg e All Small Large fam111 Less than 99 1 139 14 and above.52...4..5.9.32.52.57.2.31.2.15. 12.27.19.12.15.38.21.1.12 All.59.8.53 KEY BUnER ONLY c:=j BUnER AND MARGARNE the respectve products vared sgnfcantly. Ths suggested that the hgher average rates of consumpton of butter and the lower average rates of the consumpton of margarne by on the upper ncome levels were due to c:::j MARGARNE ONLY a larger proporton of purchasng the hgherprced product and a smaller proporton purchasng the lowerprced product. A smlar study conducted at a tme when ncomes were lower mght reveal
12 STAT ON BULLETN 417 that ncome s effectve not only on the proporton of people consumng the product, but also on the rates of consumpton of the respectve consumng groups. Changes n the Consumpton Pattern n 1938, practcally all Mnneapols used some butter, but by 1952 the proporton had dropped to 9 per cent (table 14). The proporton of usng some margarne ncreased from 4 to almost 39. Table 14. Proporton of Famles Usng and 1938 and 1952 Product used only and margarne only _ Proporton of total consumng 1938 1952 9. 3.5.5 1.4 28.8 9.8 Addtonal nformaton on the shfts n consumpton over a perod of years was revealed n an examnaton of the consumpton patterns of 78 that started housekeepng before World War. Nnety of these consumed butter only before World War (table 15). About 75 of the latter group contnued to use butter only durng the war, most of the remanng shftng to the use of both butter and margarne. Almost 75 of the whch had contnued to use butter only durng the war also were usng butter only n 1952. Of the whch shfted to the use of both butter and margarne durng the war, almost 5 were usng both n1952, but 4 had shfted back to the use of butter only. Consderng only the net changes between the prewar perod and 1952, of the 73 consumng butter only durng the prewar perod, contnued to use butter only or had shfted back to butter only, 27 had shfted to the use of both butter and margarne, and the remanng small proporton had shfted to the use of margarne alone. Of the usng both butter and margarne before the war, almost 82 contnued to use both durng the war, and almost twothrds of the latter were usng both n 1952. Only a few were usng margarne only before the war. These have been ncluded n the table for totalng purposes. Whle the consumpton pattern of many changes n many drectons over a perod of tme, the data n table 15 ndcate a certan persstency of the pattern that was establshed durng World War.. Seventyone of the that started housekeepng durng World War used butter only at that tme and onehalf of these were usng butter only n 1952. Of the that used both butter and margarne or margarne only at the start of housekeepng, almost twothrds were usng both or margarne only n 1952. Of the usng butter only durng both the prewar perod and the war perod but were usng margarne n 1952, about 72 reported that the change was made because of the prce of butter. The same reason was gven by of the usng butter at the start of housekeepng durng the war but whch used some margarne n 1952. t J j J J: r j! D' l..: l r! :!, 5 J tl j, d.. CDON N ;s (). ).:: tj 1 P: :5 P:.! A r z.:: D', u ll, Po ll R D', Po j & < l a;. tl l g P: 1. tl ' g'>t tj a.a'] G> tl.. tl [ ::.:. ;. r N >< 8. 2 Q ll ll : _ ;coo. _!!': c a..:.:.: tl t1 tl' = = a ::.: ; N <>!!! l tl' l e..: t1 : : 5 : Q l!!! < _ crro:m g! >< c a.: 'd : a. t1 tl' ::: t; ::.:.. :::; tl tl' l U) U) N :::; ll ll < l 1 ll gj : r '.: >< a t:: tl tl' ::: ::.: 2 ll ll : _ MM.. a g, >< c e..:.:.: :: t1 tl' =::: ::.:! U) l tl' l e. s Q U) ; lll l. $ U') ) l q q q l q 9 N to 9. U) ll gj j _. s::! g j tl':. 8 a tl tl' ::: ::.: ; >. 8 l g'. ll j l lll ll j cc U)U) '; 1t tl l e'! ><t:l 8 =J Q >< 8 s Q l ll <! ; l a. $ : ::.: t ::.:, q tl' ::::: ll gj j j
14 STATON BULLETN 417 Responses to Changes n Prce The decson to buy butter only, margarne only, or both, depends n part on famly tradton, psychologcal nfluences, prce dfferentals, and prce level of butter. From evdence obtaned durng the survey, t appeared that most consumers were more aware of the prce level of butter than of the prce dfferental between butter and margarne. n order to obtan nformaton on possble changes n consumpton pattern accompanyng specfed changes n butter prces, each housewfe was asked two questons, the responses to whch are tabulated n tables 1, 17, and 18. USERS OF BUTTER ONLY The prce of butter at the tme of the survey averaged 82 cents per pound. Table 1 gves the responses of the users of butter only to these questons: 1. At what prce of butter would you buy some margarne? 2. At what prce of butter would you buy margarne only? About 3 of the housewves ndcated they would buy some martable 1. Famles Consumnq OnlyProporton That Would Purchase Marqarne at Specfed Prces of Bu ter Prce of butter cents per pound 85 9 95 1 15 no n5 Never Proporton that Proporton that would purchase would purchase some marqarne marqarne only 1.7 5.7 12. 29. 34. 39.2 39.2.4 1.4 2.9 9.5 14.5 2.2 2..8 79.4 garne f the prce of butter rose to $1. or more per pound, but 1 Per cent sad that they never would buy margarne. Almost 1 repled that they would buy margarne only f the prce of butter were $1. or hgher, but almost 8 repled that they never would shft completely to margarne. Tob18 17 Consumnq Both and Marqarne: Proporton That Would Purchase Only and Proporton That Would Purchase Marqarne Only at Specfed Prces of r prce of butte Proporton that would purchase butter only und c:ents per po 8 75 7 5 55 so Table 17 gves the responses of users of both butter and margarne to these questons: 1. At what prce of butter would you buy butter only? 2. At what prce of butter would you buy margarne only? Almost 5 repled they would buy butter only f the prce of butter declned to cents. About 2, however, repled that they never would buy butter only. Less than onehalf of ths group of sad that they would buy margarne only f the prce of butter advanced to $1 About 41 repled that they never would buy margarne only. Never ' 19.3 Proporton That Would Purchase at Specfed Prces of cents per pound 8 75 7 5 55 5 Never Proporton that Proporton that would purcbase would purchase some butter butter only 2. 8.7 25.2 4. 45.2 4.3 35.7 Proporton that would purchase maraarne only 85 9 95 1 15 no n5 Tobe 18. Famles Consumnq Marqarne Only: Prce of butte r Prce of butter cents per puunu 3.5 9.1 18.2 31 3 48.5 57. 8.7 Never USERS OF BOTH BUTTER AND MARGARNE 15 BUTTER AND MARGARNE.9.9 3. 8.1 1.1 19.7 4.2 59.8 than onethrd, however, repled that they would never buy butter. Only 1 of ths group of users sad they would change over solely to butter f the prce declned to cents. Almost sad they never would confne ther purchases to butter only. 5. 13. 21.9 4.5 5. 58. 58.9 41.1 t was evdent that many consumers have suffcent ncome or such a hgh order of preference for butter that they would not change ther tradtonal consumpton pattern even though butter prces rose to hgh levels. However, ths does not mean, partcularly among of lower ncomes, that the same amount of butter would be consumed. Also, the concluson was warranted that once margarne became part of the establshed consumpton pattern a strong resstance developed to restrctng consumpton to butter only. A more nformatve type of response mght have been obtaned f the questons had been based on prce dfferentals. Questons dealng wth prce dfferentals were ncluded; however, the responses ndcated that such questons led to confuson on the part of the housewfe so that adequate response could not be obtaned. USERS OF MARGARNE ONLY Table 18 gves the responses of users of margarne only to the questons: 1. At what prce of butter would you buy some butter? 2. At what prce of butter would you buy butter only? Forty of the users responded that they would purchase some butter f the prce declned to cents. More Other Comments on Use About 72 of the housewves reportng famly use of margarne were able to dentfy the composton of ther purchases, that s, whether the margarne conssted prmarly of anmal fats or vegetable ols. Only 24 were aware of the current prce dffer enta! between the two types, and only 4 specfed the 1cent tax on margarne contanng less than per cent anmal fat as the reason for the prce dfferental. Twentythree of the usng margarne mxed the latter wth
1 STATON BULLETN 417 butter before usng t on the table, the usual mx contanng about equal proportons of the two products. Almost 8 of the colored the margarne; 2 re ported they would buy more margarne f t were colored; and 33 re. ported they would pay more for colored margarne. Conclusons Before World War, consumer buyng habts were characterzed by preference for butter and strong resstance to the purchase of margarne. The marked changes snce then n the consumpton pattern were ntated because of condtons exstng durng the war and have contnued because of the hgh prces of butter relatve to those of margarne and the mprovement n the qualty of margarne. About 39 of the ncluded n ths study used margarne n 1952. A smlar study n 1938 revealed that only 4 of the used ths product. The marked change n these proportons was strong evdence that resstance to margarne has weakened. Also, once margarne was ftted nto the consumpton pattern the chances were about even that ts use would contnue as long as butter and margarne prce relatonshps remaned about the same. There were many, however, who preferred to buy butter only and would contnue to do so even though the prce of butter was relatvely hgh. There were also who would not shft back completely from margarne to butter even t.hough the prce of butter were to declne sharply. n the case of most the decson to buy one or the other product rested largely upon the prce level of butter, or the prce dfferental between butter and margarne. Famles wth hgher ncomes used more butter and less margarne per con. sumng unt on the average than wth lower ncomes. The dfferences n the average consumpton rates, how. ever, were due manly to the ncrease n the proporton of usng but. ter and the decrease n the proporton of usng margarne. A declne n the prce of butter very lkely would result n an ncrease n the proporton of purchasng butter only and, n partcular, those wth lower ncomes. and margarne prces dd not change much n 1952 or early 1953. f butter prce remaned at levels prevalng durng the forepart of 1953, there would be lttle prospect for an easng of the compettve stuaton. n fact, t s generally beleved that the stuaton has become more ntensfed. Further, the stuaton would become even more so, should the general level of consumer ncomes drop and butter prces reman at government support levels. The proporton of purchasng margarne has been nfluenced by state laws whch prohbt the sale of colored margarne and whch levy a tax of 1 cents a pound on all margarne sold whch contans less than anmal fat. The repeal of ether of these laws would further enhance the market poston of margarne. Austn A. Dou Robert E. Olso.,1/CS UNVRSTY OF MNNSOTA