COST AND PRICE TRENDS


 Processing, warehousing and selling costs remained reasonably

stable until the 1971-72 season. As shown in Table 12, costs for

processing, warehousing and selling 48 6-ounce cans of concentrate

in cases were at only 107 percent of the 1965-68 average until the

1971-72 season. Since the 1971-72 season the index has risen to 135

percent of the 1965-68 average. In the last two columns of Table 12,

the actual and relative retail prices of 48 6-ounce cans of concentrate

are shown. While 1973-74 processing costs were estimated at 135 percent

of 1965-68 levels, 1973-74 prices were at only 117 percent of 1965-68

levels.

 Changes in the cost categories that make up the total processing,

warehousing and selling expenses for 48 6-ounce cans of concentrate

are shown in Table 13. Labor, other processing expenses and warehousing

expenses are the items that increased the most relative to 1965-68

levels while materials, selling and other expenses have shown relatively

small increases.

 Tables 14 and 15 show how costs of producing other products have

changed since the 1961-62 season.