Retail Prices Of Food 1944 And 1945

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABORL . B . Schw ellenbach, S ecreta ryB U R E A U O F L A B O R ST A T IST IC SEw an Clague, C om m ission er R etail Prices o f Food1944 and 1945B ulletinT o. 899For sale b y th e Superintendent o f Docum ents, U . S. G overnm ent P rinting OfficeW ashington 25, D . C . - Price 10 centsDigitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

L etter o f Transm ittalU nited States D epartment op L abor,B ureau op L abor Statistics,Washington, D. C.t M a y 20, 1947.T he SecretaryopL abor :I have the honor to transmit herewith the third issue of the bulletin on retailprices and indexes of retail prices of foods. This report covers the years 1944and 1945.A mimeographed report on retail prices of food, giving index numbers bygroups and subgroups of commodities and average prices for individual com modities in each of 56 cities will continue to be issued monthly and will be availableon request as heretofore.This report was prepared by the Food Section, Division of Consumers Prices,Prices and Cost of Living Branch.E w an C lague , Commissioner.Hon.L . B . SCHWELLENBACH,Secretary of Labor.ContentsPageSummary of trends in food prices during World War I IFood prices during the years 1944 and 1945Changes in food prices by citiesTrend of prices for major food groups1269TABLESTable 1.— Indexes of retail prices of food in large cities combined, byyears, 1913 to 1945, and by months, January 1943 to Decem ber 1945Table 2.— Indexes of retail prices of food in large cities combined, bycommodity groups, by years 1923 to 1945, and by price re porting period, 1944 and 1945Table 3.— Indexes of retail prices of principal articles of food, by citiesand months, 1944 and 1945Table 4.— Indexes of retail prices of principal foods in large cities com bined, by months, 1944 and 1945Table 5.— Annual average retail prices of principal articles of food, bycities, 1944 and 1945Digitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis H)2461520

B ulletin7 o. 899 o f theU nited States Bureau o f Labor StatisticsRetail Prices of Food 1944 and 1945Summary o f Trends in Food Prices During World War I IDuring the 6 years of World War II (September 1939-August1945), average retail prices of all foods advanced more than 50 per cent. A t the end of 1945 the Bureau of Labor Statistics all-foodsprice index was more than 41 percent above the 1935-39 average and24 percent below the 1920 peak. Retail food prices in 1944 wererelatively stable, averaging 1.4 percent below the average for theyear 1943 and 4.8 percent below the high for World War II establishedin M ay 1943, the peak of the rise that led to the President’s hold-theline order, issued in April 1943. This stability was largely accom plished through subsidies and OPA regulations, including commoditydollars-and-cents ceilings and the establishment of ceilings for anumber of items not previously controlled. As an integral part ofthe price stabilization program, subsidies were paid producers andprocessors o f many foods including meats, dairy products, floury andsugar. The subsidies, which served to hold or reduce retailers* costs,enabled retailers to sell at prices within the established OPA ceilings.By the end of 1943, price controls were in effect for all foods pricedby the Bureau. With few exceptions, these controls continued inoperation during 1944 and 1545. Prices for 1945, on the average,were higher than in 1543 or 1944, although the M ay 1943 peak wasnever equaled Hi any month in the two following years.Production of foods in 1945 remained at high levels but fell farshort of demand as Government purchases for military and lend-leaseaccount took a considerable part of the available supplies. Manyfoods continued to be rationed during 1944 and most o f 1945. Short ages of certain foods were intensified in 1944, and some foods becameextremely scarce in 1945. Despite the reduction of rations, supplies,in many instances, were inadequate to fulfill the ration allowances.VE-day brought no immediate relief from the acute shortages of meats,fats and oils, sugar, cheese, condensed and evaporated milk, eggs,poultry, processed fruits and vegetables, and canned fish.Food supplies, except for sugar, and fats and oils, improved consid erably after VJ-day as a result o f the curtailment o f military require ments and the cancellation of most contracts for lend-lease purchases.Rationing of canned fruits and vegetables was removed on VJ-day andDigitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis( 1)

2rationing of meats, canned fish, butter, and fats and oils was eliminatedin November 1945. Sugar was the only food still being rationed atthe end of 1945. OPA price controls continued in effect and theelimination of rationing had no specific reaction on prices.Table 1 presents indexes of retail prices of all foods from 1913through 1945. During World War I (1914-18) annual average foodcosts rose about 64 percent. During World War II (1939-45) annualaverage food costs advanced less than 47 percent. However, theaverage of 139.1 percent of the 1935-39 base, reached by the index in1945, was 3.5 percent higher than that for 1918, the final year ofW orld War I. Retail food prices mounted rapidly and unceasinglyduring most of W orld War I. By contrast, in 1944, food pricesaveraged 1 percent lower than in 1943, and in 1945, the final year ofWorld War II, food prices were maintained at levels only slightlyhigher than the average for 1943.T able 1.— Indexes o f retail prices o f food in large cities combined9 by yea rs, 1913 to 1945,and b y months January 1943 to December 1945[1935-39 100]Year and monthAll-foodsindexYear and monthAll-foodsindexYear and monthAll-foodsindexBy Year1913JQ141Q15IQlfi. .1917191ft19191920192119221923 . . .7 9 .98 1 .88 0 .99 0 .8116 .9149 8168 .8128 .3119.9124 .01924 . . .1925 - .1926 . . . . . .19271928 .1929 -2930 - . .1931193219331934 .122 .8132 .9137 .4132 .3130 .8132 .5126 .0103.98 6 .58 4 .19 3 .719351936 . . . . : . .19371938 . .19391940 .19411942 .1943 7137.0136.4136.5137.4JanuaryFebruaryM arch.April.M mber1 0 0 .41 01 .310 5 .39 7 .89 5 .29 6 .610 5 .51 23 .91 3 8 .0136.1139.1By Month194319451944January.February.March. .April.M ay. .June.July. .August.SeptemberOctober. 9.0137.2137.4138.2137.3137.1January.FebruaryMarch. .April.M ay .137.3136.5135. 136.6138.8141.1141.7140.9139.4139.3140.1141.4F ood Prices D uring the Y ears 1944 and 1945Fluctuations in the all-foods index during 1944 and 1945 werecaused partly by the regular seasonal variations in prices of certainfoods such as eggs and fresh fruits and vegetables and partly by other factors such as adjustments in price controls and subsidies. In April1944, the OPA instituted a system of seasonal pricing for fresh fruitsand vegetables whereby ceiling prices could be revised each week andDigitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

3adjusted to restore the usual seasonal price patterns.of eggs had been in effect since March 1943.Seasonal pricingWith the exception of only 2 months, food prices declined steadilyfor the first 10 months after M ay 1943, and by March 1944 were 6percent below the World War II peak. The decline during the firstquarter of 1944 was chiefly the result of lower prices for eggs, of whichthere was an abundant supply, and fresh fruits and vegetables, forwhich OPA, in January 1944, issued new maximum prices at whole sale levels. Prices of cereals and bakery products declined slightlyduring this period after a 3-year uninterrupted advance. A subsidygranted to millers of wheat flour in December 1943 stopped the steadyclimb of prices in this group and permitted processors to pay farmersmore for their grains.After March 1944, prices rose steadily until in August they were2.7 percent higher than the low in March, a result of seasonal increasesin egg prices and higher prices for fresh fruits and vegetables, particu larly oranges, potatoes, and spinach. Prices of foods then receded—except in November and December—until March of 1945, when theywere about 5 percent below M ay 1943. During the next 4 months,they again advanced sharply, this time to within 1 percent of theM ay 1943 peak. These advances, through July 1945, were due chieflyto rapidly rising prices of fresh fruits and vegetables such as apples,oranges, potatoes, and green beans.Table 2 shows the indexes of retail prices of foods by commoditygroups for the years 1923 through 1945 and for each month in 1944and 1945. In 1945, the average cost of all foods combined was higherthan at any time in the preceding 21 years (1923-44). The high aver age cost of all foods in 1945 resulted largely from the high levelsreached by prices of meats, dairy products, and eggs.Digitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

T able 2 ,— Indexes of retail prices o f food in large cities combined ,1 b y com m odity groups[1935-39 100]By Tears, 1993 to 1945 3Year102aAllfoodsCAraalaandbakeryprod TotaluctsFruits and vegetablesMeatsBeefandvealPorkLambFish,Chick 19421943. .19441945 .894.8102.1122.6146.1151.0154.419U.Tan* 18 tfAh, 15Mar, 14Apr. 18-.M av 16June 13-. .July 18Aug. 15Sept. 12.Or»t. 17TSTnv. 14Dec. 12. 0112.1 3219331934Digitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. LouisDairyprod uctsEggsTotalFresh Canned DriedBever .4124.4124.4124.3124.3124.3124.3 fl124.3124.3124.3124.0123.8123.5123. 4

imJan. 16.Feb. 13.Mar. 13.Apr. 17.M ay 15------ ----------------------------June 12.July 17.Aug. 14.Sept. 18------ ----------------------------Oct. 16.Nov. 13.Dec. 11. 0124.4125.1126.3126.3126. 126.4126. 126.4126. 126.6126. 126. 126. 126. e1Aggregate costs in each city, weighted to represent total purchases of families of wage earners and lower-salaried workers, have been combined with the use of population weights,a Comparable indexes for the years 1923-34 have been computed by converting indexes from the 1923-25 base to the 1935-39 base.Digitized for FRASERhttp://fraser.stlouisfed.org/Federal Reserve Bank of St. LouisQji