Made in the 1940s, this color cartoon showcases the advantages meat packers bring to the livestock producer and the general population. It was produced by the Agricultural Research Department of Swift & Company. This company began in 1904 and was located in the Fort Worth Stockyards. Fires destroyed the plant in 1971. The film opens with a scan of meat for sale in a store to a map of the U.S. with meat packaging plants (:08-:59). Before meat packaging plants, a farmer carries a carcass to town to sell to a butcher (1:00-1:33). The carcass is diagrammed for where each type of cut comes from: chuck, rib, loin, round, shank, plate, and flank (1:34). Only the cuts locally liked are paid well, the rest are sold at a reduced price (1:35-2:04). The diagram shows that in another town, the reverse cuts are locally liked. The meat packer’s job is to see that all of the meat cuts are sold for the highest price by distributing them among towns. The farmer then makes more money (2:05-3:08). The meat packer studies the local customs and meat preferences for each area in the country (3:09-4:15). Different parts of the country purchase different weights, a factor the meat packer must include when buying cattle (4:16-6:15). Other regional factors include taste, buying power, weather, and religious beliefs (6:16-6:25). For taste, heavier animals produce fattier cuts; lighter produce lean cuts (6:26-7:02). When it’s hot, the housewife in her apron in the film wants to cook meats that don’t heat the kitchen up. When it’s cooler, she spends more time cooking in the kitchen (7:03-8:12). Weather keeps housewives indoors and not shopping at the butcher (8:13-8:24). Religious beliefs heavily influence meat buying, and fish is more prevalent on certain days and during certain times. A well-dressed fish smoking a cigar struts across the ocean bottom. Some religions don’t eat pork (8:25-9:00). These factors combined created the national marketing system of the meat packer. As a result, live stock producers receive higher prices (9:01-9:33).

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com