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etUio/p~
Apples and
Apples
and Pears
4t
Ut,
Iie dlooJ RUJeII,
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tits
PROGRESS
REPORT V
PROGRESS REPORT
V
W. Kuhlman
Kuhlman
Gustav W.
Arthur E.
E. Irish
lrsh
Agricultural
Experiment Station
Agricultural Experiment
Oregon State College
Corvallis
of Information
Information 510
Circular of
April
1952
April 19$?
Cesi oj P4odcüs
Apples and Pears
i
Ihe .4toocI iü
VaI, &wo#t
PROGRESS REPORT V
Gustav W. Kuhiman, Agricultural Economist
Arthur E. Irish, Fieldman
This report is a sunmary of detailed cost records kept on 25 fruit farms in
the Hood River Valley for the year 1951 with comparable data for the 5-year period
1947-1951. The cost of production includes all items of expense incurred in producing and delivering the crop to the door of the packing house or processing
No packing house costs are included.
plant.
Apple Production Costs
The cost of producing apples in 1951 on 24 orchards averaged 8l per loose box
and l.4O per packed-box basis, exclusive of packing and storage costs (Table 1).
Assuming packing and handling charges (from $1.25 to $l.5O*), the total F.O.B. cost
would be $2.65 or more per packed box.
Cost of Production, Hood River Valley, Oregon.
Table 1. APPLES:
(floes not -include cost of storage. boxes. nackin. and shinnin
Five -year
Item
Number of orchards in study
Acreage of apples per orchard
Yield per acre, loose boxes
Yield per acre, packed boxes
Costs per loose box for:
Preharvest labor
Picking . . .
Year
1951
24
15.2
556
........ 323
Cents
23.1
14.1
5.6
42.8
12.3
12.8
..............
Other harvest ...............
Total labor ...............
average
1947-1951
598
359
Cents
25.5
12.4
5,9
43.8
11.8
12.1
Distribution
of costs
Per cent
31.3
15.2
7.2
53.7
14.5
14.8
6.8
10.2
100.0
Naterials
General expense
Depreciation on equipment
5.3
5.5
8.1
8.3
Interest on investment (5 per cent)
81.3
81.5
Total cost per loose box
139.8
135.1
Cost per packed-box basis
* The cost of sorting and handling all apples which are delivered to the packing house is charged against the packed fruit, which usually comprises from 60 to
85 per cent (by weight) of fruit delivered.
.
.
.
The production of 556 loose boxes per acre, equivalent to 323 packed boxes, in
1951 was the lowest yield of packed apples since this study was initiated in 1947.
That year production averaged 542 loose boxes, equivalent to 328 packed boxes per
acre. The highest cost, $1.54 per packed-box basis in 1947, was 11 per cent higher
than the cost in 1951.
Table
2.
APPLE PRODUCTION COSTS, Hood River Valley, Oregon.
(Does not include cost of storage, boxes, packing, and shipping)
Man
Item
1951
hours
__________Cost
1951
1947-1951
1947-1951
Labor per acre
Priming
Brush removal
$ 28.56
3.95
1.03
3.30
1.69
12.10
6.28
31.23
6.89
25.12
8.38
$128.53
78.41
31.17
$238.11
$ 30.69
$ 14.89
6.09
34.47
12.66
$ 68.11
$ 13.25
3.04
9.52
11.41
8.06
Electricity; water; wood fuel; office
7.78
Liability, fire, and motor insurance
Property taxes ...................... 15.40
3.78
8.99
5.48
11.45
8.13
7.71
15.71
10.00
10.00
$ 71.33
$ 71.25
8.35
$ 10.58
$ 29.41
21.40
$ 31.98
6.58
9.76
28.51
44.85
$451.81
8.44
10.46
30.02
$ 48.92
$480.81
28.6
3.9
1.2
2.9
1.5
10.5
Hand cultivating
Machine cultivating
Fertilizing; mowing
33.0
6.2
22.2
6.0
121.3
89.9
26.7
237.9
24.6
10.8
150.6
89.4
32.0
272.0
Spraying
Thinning
5.3
Maintenance
Supervision
Total preharvest
Picking
Other harvest
..........
Total labor ..........
Materials per acre
5.0
1.8
3.6
1.7
12.8
11.6
40.4
Irrigating
Propping; cleanup
31.8
Fertilizers
Irrigation water
6.5
....................
Sprays
Miscellaneous supplies .................
Total materials
General expense per acre
Building repair
Machinery repair
Machine hire
Gas and
Buildings (not including operator's dwelling)
Machinery
Buildings
Machinery
Orchard
$
........................21.06
Total depreciation
Interest per acre (5 per cent)
$
.........................
....................
Total interest
Total cost per acre
5.83
40.00
10.50
$ 69.58
6.12
oil
Cash to operate
Total general expense
Depreciation per acre
4.85
1.63
3.65
1.70
13.12
11.82
35.46
6.45
25.98
14.27
$149.62
74.85
34.61
$259.08
.81
Cost per loose box
$
1.40
Cost per packed box
$
Acres per orchard
15.2
Loose boxes produced per acre ................ 556
Packed boxes rroduced per acre ..............
323
$
$
$
.82
1.35
15.8
598
359
Pear Production Costs
Winter pears
The cost of producing winter pears in 1951 on 24 orchards averaged $1.71 per
lug box and $1.93 per packed-box basis, exclusive of packing and storage costs
(Table 3). Assuming packing and handling charges (from $1.25 to $1.50), the total
F.0.B. cost would be $3.18 or more per packed box.
Cost of Production, Hood River Valley, Oregon.
Table 3. WINTER PEARS:
(Does not include cost of storage, boxes, packing, and shipping)
Five -year
Year
average
Distribution
of costs
1951
1947-1951
Item
24
-Number of' orchards in the study
10.9
-of winter pears per orchard .
Acreaj
232
430
-r acre, loose-lug boxes
Yield
383
Yield per acre, packed boxes ........205
Cents
Per cent
Cents
Costs per loose-lug box for:
46.1
30.0
27.1
.
preharvest labor
11.8
13.0
16.7
Picking
6.6
6.0
8.7
Other harvest
49.6
71.5
44.9
18.1
16.4
29.8
Naterials
16.9
32.4
18.7
General expense
14.2
8.2
9.0
Depreciation on equipment
13.6
.
22.7
15.0
Interest on investment (5 per cent)
110.4
100.0
170.6
Total cost per loose-lug box
123.9
192.9
Cost per packed-box basis
The production of 232 loose-lug boxes per acre, equivalent to 205 packed boxes,
in 1951 was the lowest yield during the five years studied. A 46 per cent decrease
in yield for 1951 below the five-year average was accompanied by a 55 per cent inSee Table 5 for itemized costs.
crease in cost per lug box.
.
.
Total labor ...............
.
.
. Bartlett (cannery) pears
The cost of producing cannery pears in 1951 on 22 orchards averaged $1.86 per
See Table 6 for itemized costs.
lug box and $82.28 per ton (Table 4).
Table 4.
Cost of Production, Hood River Valley, Oregon.
BARTLETT CANNERY PEARS:
(Tn-1iis 1l c1-s. f1p1ivArd t,n th
nnrv tlorr')
Year
1951
Item
Number of orchards in the study
Acreage bearing pears per orchard
Yield per acre, loose-lug boxes
Yield per acre, tons
Costs per loose-lug box for:
Preharvest labor
Picking
Other harvest
22
7.2
205
4.6
Dollars
.55
.14
.07
.76
Total labor ...............
Naterials ..................33
General expense
Depreciation on equipment
Interest on investment (5 per cent)
Total cost per loose-lug box
Cost per ton
.38
.15
.
.
.
.24
$ 1.86
$82.28
Five-year
average
1947-1951
-
286
6.5
Dollars
.50
.12
.07
.69
.25
.27
.12
.20
$1.53
$67.37
Distribution
of costs
--
Per cent
32.7
7.8
4.6
45.1
16.3
17.7
7.8
13.1
100.0
4
WINTER PEAR PRODUCTION COSTS: Hood River Valley, Oregon.
Table 5,
(Does not include cost of storage, boxes, packing, and shipping)
Man hours
1947-1951
1951
Item
Labor per acre
Pruning
Brush removal
Hand cultivating
Machine cultivating
Fertilizing; mowing
Irrigating
Spraying
Thinning
$ 41.81
3.61
25.87
7.99
$106.90
38.76
20.29
$165.95
4.98
24.16
15.29
$117.63
54.65
26.93
$199.21
$ 14.25
5.90
37.85
................11.17
$ 69.17
$ 13.39
5.92
38.79
12.51
$ 70.61
42.9
4,3
1.7
2.6
1.7
10.9
Propping; cleanup ........ 3.5
Maintenance ...........21.6
5.3
22.3
5.6
95.5
44.7
17.3
.......... 157.5
11.4
112.9
65.5
25.3
203.7
Total labor
Cost
1947-1951
$ 43.49
3.84
1.06
2.44
2.13
10.43
6.04
41.9
3.8
1.1
2.1
1.8
9.2
4.9
Supervision
Total preharvest
Picking
Other harvest
1951
9.4
4.17
1.48
2.73
1.75
11.07
9.85
.34
.4
Materials per acre
Fertilizers
Irrigation water
Sprays
Miscellaneous supplies
Total materials ...................
General expense per acre
Building repair
Machinery repair
Machine hire
Gas ani oil
Electricity; water; wood fuel; office
Liability, fire, and motor insurance
Property taxes
4.13
11.15
4.28
13.92
7.25
8.60
15.86
10.00
$ 75.19
$
Cash to operate ....................
Total general expense ................
Depreciation per acre
Buildings (not including operatorts dwelling)
3.51
9.71
4.52
12.72
8.04
7.87
16.07
10.00
$ 72.44
$
$
8.93
$ 11.37
Total depreciation .................$
33.10
23.74
$ 35.11
.
.
Machinery .......................24.17
Interest per acre (5 per cent)
Buildings
Machinery
Orchard .
Total interest
Total cost per acre
Cost per loose box
Cost per packed box
Acres per orchard
Loose-lug boxes produced per acre
6.87
11.35
34.46
$ 52.68
$396.09
$ 1.71
$ 1.93
10.9
232
2O
$
......................
.
.
.
.
.....
Packed boxes nroduced er acre .............
8.76
11.32
38.60
$ 58.68
$436.05
$ 1.10
$ 1.23
10.9
430
$
5
Table 6.
BARTLETT PEAR PRODUCTION COSTS: Hood River Valley, Oregon.
(Includes all costs delivered to the cannery door)
Nan hours
1947-1951
1951
Item
Labor per acre
Pruning
Brush removal
Hand cultivating
28.3
2.5
1.8
2.9
Machine cultivating .....
2.3
Fertilizing; mowing
11.4
Irrigating
5.1
Spraying
18.4
Thinning
Propping; cleanup
3.5
22.2
Maintenance
Supervision
5.4
103.8
Total preharvest
Picking
33.3
Other harvest .......... 13.1
Total labor .......... 150.2
Materials per acre
31.5
3.6
3.3
3.2
1.7
11.5
10.1
35.3
6.0
23.5
9.6
139.3
38.0
18.5
195.8
1951
Cost
1947-1951
$ 29.37
2.40
1.75
3.34
2.45
12.51
6.05
17.79
3.78
25.79
7.44
$]]2.67
29.11
15.05
$156.83
$ 31.42
3.52
3.00
3.31
1.69
11.73
10.42
31.22
5.64
25.84
12.50
$140.29
31.71
19.32
$191.32
$ 16.32
5.49
34.35
12.33
$ 68.49
$ 13.82
5.39
38.20
12.11
$ 69.52
4.77
11.3$
5.47
14.31
7.14
7.97
16.08
10.00
$ 77.12
3.66
9.16
5.60
12.32
8.44
8.37
16.03
10.00
$ 73.58
$
7.93
Total depreciation ................. $
30.62
$ 10.01
22.99
$ 33.00
Fertilizers ....................
Irrigation water
Sprays
Miscellaneous supplies
Total materials
General expense per acre
Building repair
Machinery repair
Machine hire
Gas and oil
Electricity; water; wood fuel; office
Liability, fire, and motor insurance
Property taxes
Cash to operate
Total general expense
Depreciation per acre
Buildings (not including operator's dwelling)
$
.
.
Machinery .......................22.69
Interest per acre (5 per cent)
Buildings
Machinery
6.79
11.12
30.96
$ 48.87
$
Orchard ........................
Total interest ...................
...................J381.93
Total cost per acre
Cost per loose-lug box
Cost per ton
Acres per orchard
Tons produced per acre .................
. .... ..
Loose boxes produced per acre
1.86
$ 82.28
7.2
4.6
205
$
.
.
.
.
.
$
8.53
11.71
34.49
$ 54.73
$422.15
$ 1.53
$ 67.37
6.0
$
6.5
286
Effect of Yield on Cost
The yields of apples and pears in 1951 varied more widely than usual from
In both the winter pear and the cannery pear groups the
farm to farm (Table 7).
majority of the growers had yields of less than 200 boxes per acre--revealing the
effects of severe winter damage in those orchards.
YIELDS: Effect on Cost of producing Apples and Pears,
Hood River Valley, Oregon, 1951.
c-sts of storage. boxes. oackin2. and shiouin
(flns iinf inrii
Table 7.
Number
of
orchards
Yield of packed boxes per acre*
Average
Range
Apples
153
Less than 200 boxes
285
200 to 399 boxes
400 or more boxes
All orchards
Winter pears
134
Less than 200 boxes
299
200 to 399 boxes
400 or more boxes
All orchards
Bartlett pears
132
Less than 200 boxes
245
200 to 399 boxes
416
400 or more boxes
205
.
.
All orchards
* Bartlett pears are figured as loose-lug boxes.
.
.
.
.
11
16
15
15
$ 2.28
1.55
1.04
$ 1.40
14
12
9
8
11
$, 2.69
6
7
$ 2.59
1.64
1.29
$ 1.88
7
3
484 ........
205 ........24
.
.
Cost per
packed
box*
4
14
504 ........6
323 ........24
.
Acres
per
orchard
13
7
2
22
10
7
1.44
1.14
$ 1.92
Age of the Trees
The orchards typically have trees of varying ages ranging from a year up to
maturity (Table 8). The usual practice followed by most growers is to replace any
dead or undesirable trees and thus tend to perpetuate the orchards. Therefore, depreciation on orchard investment was not included in computing the cost of producing fruit.
Table 8.
AGE OF TREE
flistributAon on 2
farms.
Tood River Valley. Oregon. 1951.
V
Age of trees
Apples
Per cent
16
Winter
pears
Per cent
Bartlett pears
Bearing
Total
Per cent
Per cent
25*
16
20
18
64
57
100
100
7
Less than 6 years
5
9
6 to 9 years
84
79
10 years and over
100
100
Total, all trees
This group of trees was not included in computing cost of production where
the nonbearing trees comprised an abnormally high proportion of the total Bartlett
pear plantings on the farms studied.
7
Over three-fourths of the apple trees were 10 years old or over. Nore than
four-fifths of the winter pear trees were 10 years or older. In the case of the
OneBartlett pears, only 57 per cent of: the trees had come into full bearing.
fourth of the trees were less than 6 years old. In order to make the three orchard enterprises studied more nearly comparable, the latter group of trees (less.
than 6 years old) was excluded in computing cost of production where it comprised
an abnorrhally high proportion of the total Bartlett planting. Thus 36 per cent
of the Bartlett pear trees included in the cost study were less than full bearing
age (under 10 years), and 64. per cent of ti-c trees were in full bearing.
Varieties
Newtown and Delicious (Red, Striped, and Golden) comprised the major portion
of the apple acreages on the farms studied (Table 9). D'Anjou is the principal
winter (storage) pear, and the BarUett is the canning pear.
Table 9.
VARIETIES OF TREES: Distribution on 24 farms,
Hood River Valley, Oregon, 1951.
Apples on farms studied
Percentage
Variety
Winter pears on farms studied
Percentage
Variety
Newtown ..........49
D'Anjou .........85
Delicious
Ortley
Spitzenberg
5
Bose
Easter
3
Cornice
4.0
Other...........3
2
2
100
Total
100
Total
11
Orchard Investment
The capital value represented by the plantings was estimated by the growers
from a conservative, long-term standpoint. Consideration was given in the appraisal
to the age and variety of trees and to the location and character of the land.
The present (depreciated) values of buildings (other than operator's dwelling)
and all other equipment were allocated proportionately to the various enterprises
according to the use made thereof (Table 10.).
Table 10.
ORCHARD INVESTNENT: Average Value of Capital Investment on 25
farms,_Hood_River_Valley,_Oregon,_l951.*
Bartlett pears
Value
Value
per
per
orchard
acre
Apples
Value
Value
per
per
acre
orchard
Winter pears
Value
Value
per
per
acre
orchard
$ 570
132
195
200
$ 7,484
1,493
2,464
2,172
$
689
137
227
200
:4,469
980
1,604
1,443
619
136
Cash for oerating
$ 8,647
1,995
2,963
3,033
Total investment
$16,638
$1,097
$13,613
$1,253
$8,496
$1,175
Item
Orchard
Buildings
Equipment
* See Table 11 for acreages per orchard studied.
220
200
Apple enterprise
The estimated worth of the capital, represented by the apple enterprise on
More than half of the
the 25 farms in the study, averaged $16,638 per orchard.
total capital investment for apple production, or $570 per acre, was for the
plantings.
Buildings (exclusive of the operator's dwelling) averaged $1,995 per apple
orchard. The equipment inventory, averaging $2,963 per apple orchard, includes
irrigation equipment as well as the machinery, tractors, trucks, and small tools.
It does not include the automobile (charge for the use of automobiles was computed on a mileage basis).
Winter pears
The investment for winter pears averaged $13,613 per orchard. The value of
the plantings averaged $7,484 per orchard or $689 per acre. The investment in
buildings and equipment per acre of pears was similar in amount to that shown for
apple orchards in this study.
Bartlett (canning pears)
The investment for bearing pears averaged $8,496 per orchard.
sented $4,469 each or $619 per acre.
Plantings repre-
Land Use
The size of the 25 farms in the study averaged 58 acres per farm (Table 11).
Orchard plantings comprise 34 acres per farm. This was 80 per cent of the total
cropland or nearly three-fifths of the total farm acreage. The remainder of the
cropland was chiefly in hay or used as pasture. Much of the untillable acreage
is steep, rocky, and covered with trees and brush.
Table 11.
Utilization of the Land on 25 farms,*
Hood River Valley. Oregon. 1951.
FRUIT FAR11S:
Land use
Apples
Bartlett pears
Number
of
farms
24
25
Winter pears ......... 24
Other ............12
Total orchard
Other cropland
Farmstead
Nontillable ....... .
Total, all land
25
15
25
21
25
Acreage
per farm
reporting
Acres
15.2
7.6
10.9
2.7
-11.2
2.3
18.3
Average
acreage
per farm
Acres
14.6
7.6
10.4
1.4
34.0
6.7
2.3
15.4
58.4
Distribution
of total
farm area
Per cent
25
13
18
2
58
12
4
26
100
* Of the 34 acres in orchard, apple trees occupied 14.6 acres per farm.
Total pear (winter and canning) acreage slightly exceeded the apple orchards with
18 acres per farm. Twelve of the 25 growers in the study had cherry plantings.
These averaged 2.7 acres per farm reporting cherries.
Rye-Year Summary
The average annual yields per acre and the costs per box on 48 farms in this
study- have been compiled for the 5-year period 1947-51 (Table 12).
Table 12. COST OF PRODUCING APPLES AND PEARS IN ROOD RIVER VALLEY, OREGON, l947_51.*
(Does not include costs of storage, boxes, packing, and shipping)
Winter_pears
Bartlett pears
Apples
Number
No. of Boxes Cost
No. of Boxes Cost
No. of Boxes Cost
of
acres
/acre /box
acres /acre /box
/acre /box
Year
farms
acres
1947
.
.
1948
1949 . . .
1950
.
1951
.
.
Average.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
24
328
358
360
366
406
324
360
364
364
25
21
23
25
24
425
323
359
$1.54
1.39
1.24
1.18
1.40
$1.35
256
283
228
236
261
253
406
363
388
556
205
383
$1.14
1.20
1.10
107
126
119
141
159
130
.2
1.93
$1.24
263
258
363
342
205
286
$1.64
1.64
1.24
1.24
1.86
$1.53
* Apples and winter pears are packed boxes; cannery pears are standard lug boxes.
Effect of Size of Business on Costs
The size of the orchard enterprise had only very slight influence on the cost
of production during the 5-year period studied (Table 13).
Five-year results on 48 cost farms, Hood River Valley,
Oregon, 1947-51.
(Does not include costs of storage, boxes, packing, and shipping)
Table 13.
SIZE OF BUSINESS:
________Production
Yield
Total
Acres
/acre
yield
Iteni
Small farms
Apples
Winter pears
Bartlett pears
Total
Medium farms
Apples
Winter pears
Bartlett pears
Total
Large farms
Apples
Winter pears
Bartlett pears
Total
Cost
Total
Per box
Range per box
$ .72 to $8.96
.48 to 4.18
1.02 to 4.09
$ .48 to $8.96
6.2
3.2
2.4
11.8
461
439
292
421
2,858
1,405
701
4,964
$6, 914
$1.26
1.47
1.78
$1.39
13.6
8.4
5.0
27.0
369
454
302
383
5,018
3,814
1,510
10,342
$7,075
4,462
2,280
$13,817
$1.41
1.17
1.51
$1.34
$ .71 to $3.18
.47 to 4.26
1.09 to 5.51
$ .47 to $5.51
22.7
17.4
8.0
340
350
280
7,718
6,090
2,240
$10,342
7,612
3,293
$1.34
1.25
1.47
....... 48.1
$ .75 to $2.91
.66 to 3.53
.56 to 4.59
334
16,048
$21,247
$1.32
$ .56 to $4.59
.
.
.
.
.
.
$3,601
2,065
1,248
Apples and winter pears are packed boxes; cannery pears are standard lug boxes.
t Small farms had less than 20 acres of orchard; medium farms had from 20 to 39
acres; and large farms had 40 acres or more.
The small farms (11.8 acres of apples and pears per farm) generally bad the
highest yields per acre. Good yields thus reduce the cost per box. The individual
growers should note the wide range in the costs per box and strive to reduce his
own costs by increasing his yields.
10
Purpose and Nature of the Study
The purpose of this study was to obtain information from growers that would
provide basic facts on yields and on costs of production. This information, when
carefully adjusted to reflect changes occurring in yields and in the price level
of farm production cost, provides a basis whereby cost of production can be readily
estimated for any given year if no changes have occurred in production techniques.
The cost of production reported herein is the average-acre cost of the entire
plantings in the study. Thus, the man-hours-per-acre (see Tables 2, 5, 6) is a
figure that is applicable to the entire acreage of a crop within an area such as a
county and indicates the average amount of labor that may be required per acre for
all of the acreage in that crop in the area even though each acre may not have been
covered by each operation.
The same holds true of the other items of cost.
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the fine cOoperation received from the
growers who kept detailed daily records which provided the data for this report.
Special mention is made of the financial assistance contributed by the Hood River
Traffic Association. Without the active participation of both these groups, the
study would have been impossible.
Leroy Childs, superintendent of the Hood River Branch Experiment Station, Paul
C. Newkom, Apple Growers Association, Robert Nunamaker, fruit grower, and A. L.
I'Iarble, formerly County Extension Agent of Hood River County, were instrumental in
helping to plan and initiate this project.