FALL SUB DRIVE SEPT. 15-NOV. 15 NEED PT MORE NOW THAN VER BEFORE It’s a new ball game. With the defeat of Social Credit and the election of a new progressive Government, the way is open for long overdue reforms nd eventual fundamental change. “But the way will not be easy. The capitalist press and other media are going to howl in direct ratio to the Pressure applied to the pocketbook of big business, and the working class will need a spokesman as never before. a That is. why the Pacific Tribune is needed in the . days that lie ahead. : : . That is why our fall drive for new readers and renewals is so important, for there is no other weekly in B.C. that speaks for the working people. More readers must be introduced to our paper Which spoke out in the past for the freeing of Angela Davis, for the defeat of the Social Credit regime, for the ' -€lection of a progressive government, and which helped ~ to bring those victories about. ; In months to come the Tribune will speak out to €nsure that in the provincial field there is no i backtracking on election promises; that, in the federal ofield, the swapping of a Trudeau for a Stanfield is Avoided by getting rid of both. We will speak out, as in the past, against the U.S. ~ Aggression in Vietnam and for an end to the war; for an €nd to monopoly rape of B.C. resources; for the rights of labor, and for policies to end unemployment. | In short we will make the Pacific Tribune your Quide in the day to day fight for a better life in the Municipal, provincial and national arenas. And last but Not least, we will fight for those fundamental changes Which can lead to socialism. We ask all our readers to take it from there. . . KK ®To continue publication of the PT we Urge every reader to renew their sub Promptly when it comes due. We also need 150 NEW SUBS — help uild the PT — win a new reader. ®Fo, every new sub turned in you have a “Shance to win a valuable B.C. €ntennial coin set. @ln addition — the outstanding press vilders will receive additional valuable a Centennial coin sets. BITERI OE Lo 7 4 fe cna avonpyed onowsl areioa ii How the public gets robbed in quality, quantity, prices By JACK WARDEN The stranglehold that is exercised by the large food- processing monopoies, and their control of consumer outlets through the supermarkets has been well documented in previous issues and does not have to be repeated here. General Foods and the Weston interests practically control the entire field, not only because they control the largest group of supermarkets, but, because of their tremendous influence, also dictate the policies of the less aspiring monopolies. A public personality drew attention quite recently to the fact that the food-processing industries have not suffered by rising prices, while the con- sumer has suffered from nothing but increasing prices. We would like to illustrate this through figures released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showing that when bread was only 14 cents per loaf, the farmer received a mere 3.3 cents out of that same loaf. Now that bread is .29 cents a loaf, the farmer is still getting only 3.6 cents. The favorite claim of the ‘‘free enterpriser’’ is that all prices are influenced by supply and demand. We have in Canadaa visible wheat surplus of 276.2 million bushels of wheat— a glut on the market. The price of wheat has declined from over $2 per bushel two years ago to $1.74 as of August, 1972. While the cost of goods sold by the processor and food monopolies has decreased, the price or bread has steadily increased to the con- sumer. If asked why, the immediate reply of the monopo- lies is WAGES! Information Canada shows us that wage costs in every $100 of processed food has declined from $11.25 to $9.70 between 1963 and 1972. There was a day, in the era of the independent retail stores, that competition played a part in consumer prices. This is no longer true. The average inde- pendent retail store nowadays waits for the newspaper ads of the large supermarkets and sets his prices a cent or two above, never less. If you are inclined to disbelieve this, make your own survey. That is what I did. Consumer prices do not reflect the fluctuations in the costs of the processor. Under date of August 24, Statistics Canada released figures that revealed that while retail consumer prices increased by 4 percent, the cost Workers Benevolent Assn. Of Canada Progressive Fraternal Society Caters to all your needs in the Life Insurance field PENSION PLANS WEEKLY BENEFITS Apply to: B.C. office at 905 East Pender St. or National Office at 595 Pritchard Ave. | ! l ! l ! I | I ! ‘LIFE INSURANCE 1 l | | I I I Hy | ! Winnipeg 4, Manitoba | | l l I | | l | | I ENDOWMENTS I | | I I | I l l of these same items to the whole- sale outlets rose by only .04 percent (four-tenths of one percent). In the same press release, the Statistics Bureau states there is no direct link between the cost of goods sold and retail price. They frankly stated they could not explain the phenomennon. Could the answer be that retail outlets are pushing the price of food to the highest possible level in anticipation of a price freeze? The cost of living index in August, 1972, shows that con- sumer prices rose by 8.1 percent since June of 1971. However, it can be shown that the index is not a true indication of the cost of living. The old 20 ounce can of peaches is now 19 ounces. Toilet tissue that cost 2 for 18 cents a few years ago contained 650 “sheets’’ per roll. Now that it is 2 rolls for 35 cents, it contains only 400 - 500 ‘‘sheets’’. There was a time when one bought a box of matches it took quite a ‘‘push’’ to open the well- stuffed box. This is no longer true. You can pick up any package of matches in any store and shake it. It will rattle. By actual count, I opened a package of the 2 for .05 cent boxes and repacked them. I ended up with two empty boxes and and the other 10 boxes merely full. The old count was 55 matches per box. It is now 47. These are only a_ few examples. The list is endless. If you thaw a seven and a half pound turkey, you will find you have bought almost a pound of water, etc., etc. It is going to take some strong _action by the consumer to insist that our governments lean heavily on the Ministry of Con- sumer Affairs to correct this situation, rather than spending the department’s time and millions of Canadian tax dollars worrying about overstuffed toys and children’s automobile seats. It takes only a glance to realize that the large monopoly food interests, through their control of wholesale, retail and process- ing industries, not only set the pattern for consumer buying and rising food costs, but have com- pletely eradicated any form of competition such as was usual in the days of the independent retailer. HOW THE PUBLIC is robbed. The author of the accompanying article repacked 12 boxes of matches, and ended up with 10 “merely full’’ two empty boxes. This type of chiselling on quantity is another “gimmick’” which cheats the consumer and adds profits for the processor. Classified advertising HALLS FOR RENT Hospital Fund. 876-2782 ‘WEBSTER’s CORNER HALL —Available for banquets, meetings, weddings, etc. Yor rates, Ozzy 872-5064 or 685- 5836. JKRAINIAN CANADIAN CULTURAL CENTRE -. 805 East Pender St., Vancouver 4. Available for banquets, wed- dings, meetings. Phone 254- 3436. RUSSIAN PEOPLE'S HOME — ‘600 Campbell Ave. Now under Renovation. Wateh ‘PT’ for details re- garding re-opening re: Rent- als for meetings, banquéis, weddings, etc. 254-3430. COMING EVENTS SEPT. 16th — RUMMAGE SALE — Saturday, Septem- ber 16th, 10:30 AM to 3:30 PM at the Arcadian Hall, 2214 Main St. Vietnam Children’s | ag ck anwar os satay v)PAGIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 19725-PAGE 1. wha ty, WRGIA TOON GS ASEMETASS YAS -Glaysiat Jtint © SEPT. 16th SOCIAL EVE- NING and SLIDE sSHOW- ING with Pat O’Kane, Satur- day, September 16th at Jean and Don’s, 104-136 East 18th North Vancouver. Admission $1.50 Spons. by: North Shore Club, Comm. Party. BRING YOUR FRIENDS. BUSINESS PERSONALS - REGENT TAILORS LTD. ..For reasonable priced Made to Measure and Ready to Wear. 324 W. Hastings St. — 681-8456 or 4441 EF. Hastings St. — 298- 2030. STOUT HEARTS STAND TALL (Soft Cover) needs PEOPLE sales-reps. Far- mers, Teachers, Adminis- trators, Libraries & Schools. Generous Incentives on Con- signment. Write to Mr. Ivor J. Mills, 126 West 59th Ave., Vancouver 15, B.C., Canada.