Zellwood growers have had net returns ranging from $0.82 per crate
($1.96 per hundredweight) in 1960-61 to a minus $0.04 per crate (-$0.07
per hundredweight) in 1953-54. Negative returns accrued to Zellwood growers
in only one of the five years shown.

 Ihile specific data on returns per unit in the 1961-62 season are
not available some generalizations may be made from yields per acre, season
average price data and prices paid by farmers for items used in production.
Prices paid by farmers increased only slightly from the 1960-61 to the
1961-62 season while prices received for sweet corn declined by $0.294 per
crate ($0.70 per hundredweight). Corn yields increased in the Everglades
and decreased in Zellwood in 1961-62 over 1960-61. Applying these changes
to the 1960-61 data, results in an estimated average net return of $0.20
per crate ($0.47 per hundredweight) to Everglades' growers and $0.41 ($0.97
per hundredweight) to Zellwood growers in the 1961-62 season.


 Mar1-et Demand

 During the past 10 or more years there has been a general decrease
in per capital consumption of fresh vegetables. Sweet corn is one of the
few vegetables that has enjoyed a relatively steady per capital consumption.
During the 10-year period 1951-60 per capital consumption of all fresh
vegetables decreased about 10 percent while that of sweet corn increased
about 6 percent.26 There are some indications that sweet corn consumption
may level off at about 8 pounds per capital. At that rate of consumption
the United States requires 14.8 million hundredweights. Florida is at
present supplying about 24 percent of the national demand. Assuming that
Florida will continue to supply 24 percent of the market demand in the
future, the only increase required from present levels of production will be
directly related to the increase in national population. It has been esti-
mated that national population will increase about 16 percent between 1962
and 1970. For the next eight seasons then, Florida can expect to market
about 2 percent more sweet corn annually (assuming no increase in competing
production and no decrease in per capital income). To market this corn
profitably may be an even greater problem without some means of inducing
an orderly flow of the product to the market.

 Problems of the Florida Sweet Corn Industry
 1. Leveling off of national demand.
 2. Increasing competition from California and Texas.
 3. The.need for adjustments in supply.
 4. The need for increasing efficiency in production and harvesting.
 5. Quality control of the product.
 6. The need for more efficient marketing and better distribution
 of the product.
 7. The need for uniform trading practices.


 2Appendix Table 7.