The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1914-03-12
Cooperative
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can use the cooperative society for his
own selfish ends. The poorest farmers
attend the meetings, and If they show
ability, go upon committees and be-
come officers. The organization Is
most essentially democratic.
All Profits to the Producer.
The purpose back of cooperative
organization differs from that back
of a commercial enterprise. 1t seeks
not to make dividends for the man
who invests his money, but to pro-
vide that the producer shall receive
the largest possible percentage of the
price paid by the consumer Ireland
has found by experience that where
large profits are paid to the investors
the real purposes of cooperation are
not served. One case is recorded
where American fruit growers organ
izer a so-called cooperative concern
upon the joint stock plan. They in
weighed into the venture large num-
Der of smaller growers who had little
money to invest, but in the aggregate
very considerable amount of fruit
to market. The ones who invested
largely were in control and proceed
ed to make large profits for them
selves as investors, and ignored the
interests of the fruit growers them
selves AS result the small growers
were forced out of business and out
of the country.
Here in Ireland so well established
10 this principle that it is a definite
rule that no cooperative society can
pay more than 5 per cent per an
mum upon the stock held by the share
holders.
Must Market Through the Society.
Every time that any group of Amer
lean farmers have organized CO.
operative marketing concern they have
met sharp and often unfair competi-
ton. The other established buyers
have offered prices which were higher
than the cooperative society could
offer without taking a loss. Often they
succeed in coaxing the members of
the cooperative society from it's sup
port. 1t is hard for a farmer who is
receiving only 35 cents per bushel
for his potatoes at cooperative ware
house to refuse as cents offered by
some Independent buyer But the I'M
varying subsequent history is, of
course, that as soon as the co-opera-
tive concern is put out of business by
this sort of competition prices drop,
and the farmer is where he was be-
fore, and helpless in the hands of the
independent buyers,
To obviate this difficulty in Ireland,
it has been found necessary to ex-
plain the situation fully to the pros
pective members Of the cooperative
organization; to state to them that I'M
less they are willing to agree to mar
ket all their product through the CO.
operative society it is useless to be-
gin. They are warned that they will
be approached by independent dealers
and offered higher prices. But thus
warned and informed upon the sub
ject, the organizers of Irish co-opera-
tive societies have had little difficulty
in obtaining from the prospective mem
bers an agreement to market all OF
their produce through the concern.
Importance of Quality.
AS we have said, there is no magic
in cooperation. Cooperative market
ing simply means that the farm pro-
duce is to be marketed in business
like way without undue waste dur
ing the process. Pioneers in Irish CO.
operation soon found that after they
had discovered the best market and
after they had organized the co-opera-
tive society, and after the members
had agreed to bring all their produce
to the company, cooperation was stlll
an absolute failure whenever the mem
bers of the society delivered even &C.
casionally, inferior goods and mingled
them with the better goods. A cream
cry puts out 100 pounds OF good but
ter; if the next pound is bad butter
the market for the butter of that
creamery is ruined Without high uni
form quality cooperation cannot sue
coed. 1t becomes necessary therefore
for the members all to cooperate in
producing cream that is of the highest
possible quality and reaches the
creamery III the pest COuulllOu. Dul
Irish experience demonstrates that no
private concern can compete in quail
ity with a cooperative concern, for no
private concern can control the prod
uct from it's original source.
"ControI" Is Requisite.
Quality can be produced by the CO.
operative society, because these con-
Germs reach out to the farm it.
self. 1t is not enough that cream
cry has the best and latest methods
of making butter and marketing it.
If the cream comes in from the farm
in bad condition, the butter is bad.
To make good butter you must control
the COW, and her feed, and her care,
and the stables, and the milk pail,
and even the milk can used in deliv-
cry.
Certain rigid rules and conditions
are laid down by the creameries them
selves, and approved by central COM
mittee. Each creamery participating
in the scheme is required to give free
oooocc during the working hOurs To the |