The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-04-15

Selling problems. You must inspect.
You must put that authority into the
hands of the board Of directors of
your selling organizations. You must
tie yourselves up into an iron clad
contract that you will not violate
either the word OF the spirit Of your
agreement. You must start your
standarizing in the field and orchard
by learning to grow, and to pick in
such a way that the damage to the
fruit will be reduced to a minimum.
And right there is one Of the big
things in this business Of the farmer.
1t is the learning to handle our prod
uct at a minimum waste.
And so we should put into this DEM
ocratic concern which we call our CO.
operative corporation the power to
make the farmers farm right.
The growers in sections that have
interest in common must district their
associations and form central selling
agencies with capital n power suffi-
cient to track out the undeveloped
markets, and to keep informed upon
the trade conditions in those that are
already discovered.
The coming of the large organiza-
tons into the marketing Of these pro-
ducts will make the selling problem
relatively small.
Ju1Sl lIluSI go jill we have III
possibility Of reverting to the condi-
lions of a generation ago. The trend
of the farmers cooperative move-
ment toward central distributing
agencies is inevitable.
Associations in their operations
should court inspection by state Off
GERS, auditing by state officials, and
the open system Of bookkeeping.
They should also make it attractive
[ for t1n inInro~lont o~aTy~ ~ ;@{-
their groups. And they should do
business upon an ethical basis.
! The question will arise, can such a
, powerful organization control the
price of farm products? The answer
Is that some selling organizations
have already become so competent
that they are able to tell what are the
sales prices at which their goods will
move freely.
Another question that often comes
up is, just how far can the producer
go toward helping the consumer cut
the cost of living? The answer to
that is found in the extent to which
such action might be profitable to the
producer.
Except in the direct marketing of
some products, and those will be
mainly from farms to nearby cities,
it will not pay associations to sell
uAbCA lax VIC SdI ESdQ1ly see
how impossible such an undertaking
would be with our growers in the
southwest who must move fifteen to
sixteen thousand CARROTS in three
weeks time. The grower, however, is
interested in his products selling as
cheaply as it can on the retail count
ers. But he can not go below the eff
cheney line in helping the If
the consumers benefit from the CO.
operative movement it will be by their
organizing for big purchasing power.
That means a chain of cooperative
stores running on principles similar
to the federation of cooperative sell
ing associations. In other words not
until the consume is able to be his
own jobber will he find the farmers
association very willing to do bust
ness with him. n
How Uncle SIM Helps.
What the federal government is do
ing to help the farm producers
achieve more businesslike methods
was told today by Charles J. Brand,
chief, office Of markets, Z. S.. depart
ment of agriculture, to the Second
National Conference on Marketins
and Farm Credits. .
This national conference, said he, is
the reflection Of a nation-w wide desire
on the part Of the producer. for a
larger net return for the products OF
his labor and, on the part of the con-