Bisbee daily review., 1914-09-09
HOUSEWIVES SHOULD BUY PRODUCE FROM
 ARIZONA FIELDS

the part of Arizona farmers that the local merchants and hotel and restau- rant keepers instead of buying frpm the farmers in thei rown locality pre- fer to purchase farm products snip- ped in from California and other out side points Naturally out-ofseason produce win always be shipped in, but what makes the farmers indig- nant sthe fact that their fresh, Homegrown products do not have the preference in their local markets However the farmers have failed to realize that there may be some req son for this state of affairs-that per haps they are themselves to blame.
 One reason at least why this pecu- liar situation exists is explained by Professor Stanley F. Morse. supt of the University Fof Arizona Agricul
 ural Extension Service The local purchasers of farm produce must have in the first place @ constant and regular daily supply on which they can depend. |. If a grocery store sells on an average two dozen punches of beets per day, the manager cannDt afford Co do business with the local farmers who bring in three dozen punches today and six punches to- morrow and none the next day Abain a local hotel keeper in ordering for instance. dressed poultry wants the birds of a uniform size. so that he may serve orders of the same size to his patrons ;or he wants vegetables or fruits Of the same quality and grade throughout in order that there may be less waste of material and time than when a small farmer sells hi ma mixed lot of farm produce which must be picked over before it is ft Co be used on the table The mer- chant also desires uniformly graded produce because it make a nicer ap- pearance and sells better, and be- cause there is less waste in selling, G e., no little unstable potatoes left over after all the big ones have been picked ouD Furthermore. from the housewife's point of view vegetables Of the same size cook more uniformly and only require the same amount of cHoking
 Why then cannot the farmer find a steady local market for his products? In the first place the average irriga- ton farmer produces crops on a rela- lively small scale. Hence no one farmer could contract to deliver fixed quantity of (one kind of produce every day. It is true that there may be a number of farmers carrying the same products for sale; but on one day there will be 20 farmers in town and the next day two So altogether the supply is too uncertain for the local dealers tD rely on. Besides the farmer cannot supply a graded. uni form produce On the other hand the commission houses and the farmers co operative associations have a large quantity and variety of farm produce which they grade and pack 70 suit the market requirements, and which they canfurnish in carload lots or in daily small lots to suit the needs of the purchasers, So the local merchants or proprietors of hotels or restaurants find 1t most convenient and economi- cal to deal with local or outside com mission houses where they can get what they want when they wanr "
 The next question is How can tho Ca. cal market? There is one way. They must organize! There is no reason why a farmers Organization could not take the place of the commission house in it's relation to the local buyers of farm produce Such an or ganization or assDciation if financial ly strong enough could have its own packing house and salesroom where the local buyers could come ana Duy sraded, unifor mfarm prnduce at an times This would solve the small farmers problem because he could take his products to the association market; there it would be sorted, graded and packed together with pro ducts ftom other farmers. and by mu. tual agreement the supply could be ! kept constant Such an association properly organized and managed could supply the local market. ship to out side markets and perhaps operate cannery 10 take care of surplus and ! rror grade products. The success of the whole enterprise would depend
 upon having large number of farm | CTS in the association and providing ample capital for its operation. Thus
 To thoroughly competent. reliable man ager could be secured and he would have the means to work with. The
 business of such an association
 should of course. be handled by a
 board Of directors elected by fits mem
 bers.
 The Maricopa County Farm Inn
 pavement Association. which it is
 proposed to organize, could handle
 not only the matter of securing a farm
 advisor an dother similar methods of
 farm Improvement but alsD this co.
 operative marketing undertaking. 5t
 would have the further advantage of being connected with other farm i'm.