The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1905-12-15
shipped to the central plants to be

shipped to the central plants to BE-
churned. Y ls
When the shipping plants first
began business nearly every small
operator was ready and anxious to 4
sell out believing that sooner or
later he must quit business. IT,
seemed the claim put by centralizers,
that they could handle the product
in large volume much more cheaply v
than il could be handled by local
plant, was something they coud
make good. The expense of manu-. 4
facture would be reduced to incon-
siderable proportions. The sale of
goods on 80 large scale would be
highly advantageous and enable
them to procure a material advance
over prices at which local plants
were selling. Buying of supplies in
large quantities would result in
enormous savings. These we're
the arguments used by centralizers
to induce the farmer to desert the
local creamery for the shipping
plant
Let us see if the results have been
what the centralizer anticipated, or
at least promised the patron. No
doubt the cost of manufacture has
been reduced somewhat by large
amount OF cream at one point.
The selling of centralized butter
has not been 80 advantageous as
many are led to believe, and in
almost every instance has resulted
in loss, as compared to a thorough
local creamery. This is obvious
from the fact that cream shipped
long distances in tightly closed cans
must deteriorate. In many instances
it has arrived at the central plant
unfit for use in manufacturing food
product.
There does not appear to be a
doubt but that there has been q
lowering of the quality of butter as
a result of creamery Capitalization.
This must also mean, if true, loss
of dollars and cents.
We must admit saving in buying
supplies in large quantities. The
saving however, is inconsiderable
compared to the extra cost of pro-
curing the raw material for a
centralizing plant. -
The expense of soliciting cream
shipments and placing cream buy
ing station is from Ac to 1c per
pound buttertat. Cream station
buyers are paid 1c additional for
buying, testing, and shipping cream
to the central plant.
Transportation on the whole in
Guiding cans costs full cent more.
Each station must have an outfit
costing from $25 to $50 each and
paid for by shipping plants and they
must be kept supplied with glass;
ware, sulphuric acid, shipping tags
stationary and many small articles,
all costing something. One would
be safe in figuring; at least cost of
&c per pound butterfat when good
reach central plant. A large part
in fact nearly all Of this expense is
outside a local creamery:
Now for results to farmers. Do
shipping plants pay more money
than local creameries2 One has only
to be familiar with both methods Of
handling creamery business to
answer this question correctly.
Shipping plans in Nebraska for the
first half of October paid 17c for
butterfat, while many of the local
Iowa creameries paid zoe for the
same time. Very few local cream
cries paid less than 100 in Iowa and
this was &c better than centralizers
have paid. Taking everything into
consideration it does not appear that
a reasonable amount of business
has anything to fear from centrall-
Zation.